13-year-old sexually assaulted at Gastonia hospital, mother says

GASTONIA, N.C. — Police are investigating a sexual assault of a 13-year-old girl at CaroMont Regional Medical Center in Gastonia.

A mother says her teenage daughter was sexually assaulted by a teenage boy while waiting at the hospital.

Channel 9 Gaston County reporter Ken Lemon spoke to the mom about the allegations and the changes she’s now calling for.

“This is going to affect my child for the rest of her life,” she said.

Her daughter was an inpatient at the hospital. Last week, her daughter was in a lobby with other kids and teens who were also there waiting to see a doctor. That’s when she said a 17-year-old male patient locked in on her daughter.

She said he groped her and exposed himself and there were no adults to make him stop.

“I’m disgusted. It’s deplorable. I’m upset. I was enraged when it happened,” the mother said.

She said her daughter called her from the hospital the next day.

“She was scared. She didn’t want to be there. She didn’t feel safe anymore,” she said.

She immediately went to get her daughter, complained to staff and called police. She said hospital workers apologized for not contacting her immediately and told her the other patient was discharged.

A hospital spokesperson said they watch patients one on one, or with video monitors.

They sent the following statement to Channel 9:

“The safety of every patient is CaroMont Health’s highest priority, and all CaroMont Health facilities follow strict processes and protocols to ensure patients are safe and protected while under our care. This includes one-to-one observation or closed-circuit video monitoring for vulnerable patients.

We have attempted to contact the patient’s mother to discuss her concerns. Unfortunately, those attempts have not been accepted. We remain open and hopeful there will be an opportunity to speak with the family directly to resolve this matter.”

The mother told Ken she recently spoke to a hospital manager, and she said they need to make changes.

“Separate the boys and girls. Stop putting boys and girls together,” she said.

The mother and daughter will meet with a detective on Friday. She said she is talking with a lawyer now about steps they can take to force the hospital to make changes.

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