The Supreme Court of Justice (STJ), in a decision dated Wednesday, declared that it could not be concluded that the defendants had abdicated their duties of oversight, supervision, and adherence to the essential care associated with their roles, nor that their omission of intervention was the cause of the dehydration condition suffered by the two residents.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) accused that two residents of a care home in Vila Nova de Gaia, aged 68 and 92, who were completely dependent on others, were hospitalized in 2020 with clear signs of dehydration attributable to insufficient care provided.
According to the statement, the MP argued that the defendants failed to take necessary actions (omitted) to rectify the situation where water or liquid foods were not distributed in sufficiently necessary and adequate quantities to those residents.
The defendants were acquitted by the first instance court, the Tribunal de S. João Novo, in the Porto district, but were convicted by the Court of Appeal.
The STJ notes that direct action aides and clinical staff were not charged and further elucidates that it was not proven that the defendants were aware of the specific situation and accepted its outcome.
The statement concludes that the situation could potentially be one of negligence, which, in this case, is not punishable by law.
