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Marjorie Tingley’s sons disputed a Michigan memory care facility’s request to use antipsychotic medication after staff logs described repeated physical incidents. Their lawsuit alleges negligence, wrongful eviction and retaliatory emergency-room trips; the facility denies the claims. Tingley died in January 2025, and a trial on the remaining claims is scheduled for early next year if mediation fails.
Marjorie Tingley’s sons fought a Michigan memory care facility’s request to give their mother antipsychotic medication after staff recorded repeated physical incidents, and later sued the facility over her care and eviction. Vista Grande Villa denies the allegations; the dispute highlights the difficult choices families face when dementia-related behavior puts residents and caregivers at risk.
In December 2024, staff at Vista Grande Villa sent Tingley’s adult sons an urgent email describing their 85-year-old mother as a safety threat. Facility behavior logs said she had hit, kicked or elbowed aides on at least 10 days the previous month as they helped her change briefs, get dressed, bathe or use the bathroom. The facility sought the family’s permission to use medication to calm her.
The sons and the facility then disagreed over whether to use antipsychotic drugs. According to medical, facility and dispatch records cited by KFF Health News, Tingley was taken to an emergency room eight times after behavioral incidents. After four trips, the facility gave her a 30-day eviction notice; records show four more hospital trips while the family sought another placement. Her family’s pending lawsuit alleges the facility arranged emergency visits in retaliation for disagreements over her care. Vista Grande and its director deny that claim.
Tingley died at another facility in January 2025. Her cause of death was plaque buildup in her brain, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, according to the report. Her sons’ suit accuses Vista Grande and its former director of negligence, causing emotional distress and wrongful eviction. A judge dismissed the negligence claim on legal grounds. The remaining claims are scheduled for trial early next year if mediation does not resolve the case.
Medication Disputes Can Threaten Placement
The case shows how families can be caught between medication risks and concerns about whether a care facility can continue to support a resident whose behavior is difficult to manage. The FDA requires drugmakers to warn that antipsychotics increase the risk of death in older people with Alzheimer’s disease and similar conditions. These medications can also be associated with delirium, falls and hospitalizations.
At the same time, aggression can create immediate safety concerns for residents and care workers. Families may have to weigh those risks against the potential harms of medication, while also facing the possibility that a facility will say it cannot meet a resident’s needs. The lawsuit’s allegations remain disputed, but the case illustrates the practical stakes of disagreements over dementia care.
antipsychotic medication for dementia patients
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A Long Campaign Against Overprescribing
Dementia can damage brain areas involved in impulse control and perception. People may react aggressively out of fear, including when they no longer recognize caregivers, or because they cannot communicate pain, hunger or another unmet need. Those behaviors can put both residents and staff in difficult situations.
Federal efforts to reduce inappropriate prescribing have continued for years. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services launched its Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in 2012, targeting the use of antipsychotics in nursing homes. KFF Health News cited a JAMA study estimating that one in four Medicare beneficiaries with dementia may be inappropriately prescribed antipsychotics or other brain-altering drugs. The source also reported that, excluding people with schizophrenia, antipsychotics were given to one in seven nursing home residents in 2025.
Memory care communities typically serve residents with cognitive impairment in specialized settings and often charge more than standard assisted living. The source report describes more than 6,000 assisted living facilities specializing in dementia care. It also noted that earlier government action has reduced antipsychotic use, while concerns about psychotropic medication in long-term care date back decades.
“They just wanted to have her drugged up.”
— David Tingley, Marjorie Tingley’s son
Court Dispute Remains Unresolved
The central allegations have not been decided at trial. Tingley’s family says the facility used emergency-room trips in retaliation for their objections to medication; Vista Grande and its former director deny that accusation. The facility’s legal filing said the hospital visits followed the family’s refusal to permit treatment on site.
The court dismissed the negligence claim on legal grounds, but the supplied account does not specify the full legal reasoning. The remaining claims have not been resolved, and it is unclear whether mediation will take place or settle the case. Vista Grande’s attorneys and its former director did not respond to KFF Health News’s requests for comment, according to the report.
Mediation Could Precede Trial
Mediation is the next possible step described in the report. If it does not resolve the remaining claims, a trial is scheduled for early next year. The case’s outcome could determine whether the family’s allegations are established in court; they remain contested at this stage.
Vista Grande, formerly a nonprofit, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Otterbein SeniorLife earlier in 2025 and was renamed Otterbein Jackson SeniorLife Community. Otterbein is not named in the lawsuit. Its representatives did not respond to the report’s request for comment, and no further legal developments are confirmed in the supplied material.
Key Questions
Why did Vista Grande seek medication for Marjorie Tingley?
The facility’s behavior logs described incidents in which Tingley hit, kicked or elbowed aides during personal care. Vista Grande asked her sons for permission to use medication to calm her.
What does Tingley’s family allege in its lawsuit?
The family accuses the facility and its former director of negligence, emotional distress and wrongful eviction. It also alleges that the facility arranged emergency-room visits in retaliation for disagreements about her care. The facility and its director deny the allegations.
What are the risks of antipsychotic drugs for older people with dementia?
The FDA requires drugmakers to warn that antipsychotics increase the risk of death in older people with Alzheimer’s and similar diseases. The source report also identifies possible risks including delirium, falls and hospitalizations. Medication decisions should be discussed with qualified health professionals.
When could the remaining claims go to trial?
A trial is scheduled for early next year if mediation fails, according to the report. The supplied material does not give a more specific date.
Source: rss
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