Findings Of Fact The Respondent Tobianna W. Huddleston is a registered nurse licensed in Florida, having been issued license number 140220-2. The Respondent's license to practice nursing in the State of New York was revoked on or about December 24, 1982, effective January 3, 1983, by the Commissioner of Education for the State of New York. The Commissioner's revocation was based on a Report of the Regents Review Committee which reviewed a Recommendation of a Hearing Panel which found that the Respondent was incapable of practicing her profession competently and, therefore, constituted a threat to the public.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing findings of fact and conclusions of law, it is RECOMMENDED: That a Final Order be entered by the Board of Nursing revoking the nursing license of the Respondent Tobianna W. Huddleston. DONE and ENTERED this 28th day of October, 1983, in Tallahassee, Florida. SHARYN L. SMITH, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The Oakland Building 2009 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32301 (904) 488-9675 Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 28th day of October, 1983. COPIES FURNISHED: Julia P. Forrester, Esquire Department of Professional Regulation 130 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301 Tobianna W. Huddleston Post Office Box 1124 Danville, Kentucky 40422 Helen P. Keefe, Executive Director Florida Board of Nursing Room 504, 111 East Coastline Drive Jacksonville, Florida 32202 Frederick Roche, Secretary Department of Professional Regulation 130 North Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32301
The Issue The issue for consideration in this case is whether Respondent's license as a registered nurse in Florida should be disciplined because of the matters alleged in the Administrative Complaint filed herein.
Findings Of Fact At all times pertinent to the issues herein, the Department of Health, Board of Nursing, was the state agency in Florida responsible for the licensing of nurses and the regulation of the nursing profession in this state. Respondent was a registered nurse licensed in Florida with license number RN 2561322, which she obtained by endorsement in 1991. Respondent, using the name Michele Draper, applied for licensure as a registered nurse by endorsement by application filed on October 7, 1991. On that application, she listed 340-22-0150 as her social security number and June 22, 1954, as her date of birth. Attached to the licensure application was a copy of Respondent's Illinois driver's license which reflected her date of birth as June 22, 1951. The application form reflects that at some point, the name "Draper" was struck through and the name "Jackson" written in, but Respondent's signature on the application form reflects Michele Draper Jackson. This same application form reflects that Respondent answered "No" to the question, "Have you ever been convicted or have you a no-contest or guilty plea-regardless of adjudication-for any offense other than a minor traffic violation." Respondent had been arrested and, on June 8, 1988, convicted of a felony charge of "Deceptive Practices over $150" in McLean County, Illinois, and on July 1, 1988, was convicted of three misdemeanor charges of "Deceptive Practices under $150" in the same county. On the felony charge she was sentenced to serve 10 days in the McLean County Jail, to pay a fine of $300 plus court costs, and to serve 30 months' probation. On the misdemeanor charges, she was sentenced to 12 months' conditional discharge and to pay court costs. She was ordered to make restitution in both cases. No reference was made to this conviction by Respondent on her application for a Florida nurse's license. In 1993, Respondent was again arrested and indicted, tried, and convicted in Sarasota County on a third-degree felony charge of grand theft. She was sentenced to imprisonment for that offense, but the sentence was suspended and she was placed on probation for four years. The evidence reflects that as a part of the offense with which Respondent was charged was her use of three different social security numbers, to-wit: 344-33-4188; 360-22-0150; and 310-22-0150; and a date of birth of June 22, 1951. Respondent has a Florida driver's license number D616-540-57-722, bearing a Social Security Number 310-22-0150. She also has a Florida driver's license which bears the Social Security Number 360-40-8146. Both driver's licenses reflect Respondent's date of birth as June 22, 1957, yet the records of the Florida Division of Motor Vehicles reflect Respondent's date of birth as June 22, 1951. Respondent at one time also used an Illinois driver's license which bore the Social Security Number 360-42-4186, and a date of birth of June 24, 1954. In 1995, Respondent was charged in Sarasota County with a second-degree felony of scheme to defraud by using false pretenses, representations, or promises with a credit card to defraud a credit union, several banks, and an individual, of between $20,000 and $50,000 in July of that year. The court records relative to that incident indicate that Respondent stole the identity and social security number of her employer and used that number to secure a credit card and loans used to purchase two vehicles on which she failed to make the appropriate payments. Respondent was found guilty of this charge and of violation of her previously imposed probation and was, in March 1996, sentenced to five years in prison, which she served at the North Florida Reception Center beginning on March 8, 1996. Both felony convictions and the misdemeanor conviction were violations of Chapter 817, Florida Statutes, which deals with fraudulent practices. Before going to prison, between August 21, 1995, and February 28, 1996, Respondent was employed as a registered nurse at Hospice. When asked on her application for employment if she had ever been convicted of a felony, Respondent answered "No" when, in fact, she had been so convicted in 1988 and in 1993. On the application for employment, Respondent listed Social Security Number 306-44- 4186 and a driver's license bearing number D616-540-57-177. She also indicated on her résumé which she had submitted with the application that she held a bachelor of science degree from Northwestern University from which she had allegedly graduated with a 3.1 grade point average. Respondent did not hold a degree of any sort from Northwestern, having attended that institution's school of journalism for only a short period in 1972-1974. Respondent's résumé also reflected she had received a nursing diploma from Lewis University through the On Site Little Company of Mary Hospital in 1980, earning a grade point average of 3.0. In fact, Respondent did not earn a degree of any sort from that institution, having attended for only one year. Her grade point average when she left was 1.77. Her résumé also reflects she was employed in increasingly responsible nursing positions at Cook County Hospital in Illinois from 1980 to 1987. In fact, she did not receive her nursing license until 1984 and was never employed by Cook County Hospital. Respondent was sentenced to prison on March 1, 1996. That day she was scheduled to work at Hospice, but she did not appear for work as scheduled. Later that day she called in to advise she had been called away on a family emergency. Thereafter, she resigned her position with Hospice with no advance notice, and gave false reasons for leaving. Once Respondent was released from prison, on June 1, 1998, she filed an application for employment with Hospice on which she again denied ever having been convicted of a felony, and reiterated her false educational claims. In addition, she gave a false driver's license number and date of birth. There are several other inconsistencies running throughout Respondent's employment history. On her Florida nursing license application she was asked to list the names she has used during her lifetime and the name under which she received her nursing education. Respondent did not list the name Shepard in either response. The records of the Little Company of Mary Hospital Nursing School reflect that at no time was there a student at that school with the name Michele Nash, Michele Jackson or Michele Draper. At one point there was a student with the name Michele Shepard, but no social security number is on file for her. The former registrar of the nursing school testified that she received a telephone call from someone purporting to be Ms. Michele Shepard who requested a certification of graduation be issued in the name of Michele Jackson, which was supposed to be her new name. The registrar at no time saw any documentation to indicate Ms. Draper and Ms. Jackson were one and the same person, and she cannot say with any certainty that Respondent is a graduate of Little Company of Mary Hospital Nursing School. Nonetheless, she issued the letter of certification in June 1984, and that letter was forward to the Florida Board of Nursing in support of Respondent's application for licensure. Respondent submitted an Illinois nursing license as support for her application for licensure by endorsement in Florida. The application for the Illinois license is in the name of Michele Nash, and bears the Social Security Number 366-42-4116 as well as a birth date of June 22, 1954. The application also shows a date of graduation from the Little Company of Mary Nursing School of June 16, 1984. In her application for licensure by endorsement to Florida, Respondent used the Social Security Number 340-22- 0152, a birth date of June 22, 1954, a high school graduation date of 1965, a nursing school graduation date of May 1984, and a date of May 1982 as the date she took the nursing licensure examination in Illinois. She also used the names Draper, Jackson, and Nash, and she provided a copy of her Illinois driver's license showing a birth date of June 22, 1951. Because of the myriad contradictions in her application history, it is impossible to tell whether Respondent is the individual who graduated from Little Company of Mary Nursing School in June 1984. Respondent filed an application for employment with LifePath Hospice in Tampa on June 25, 1998, using the name Michele R. Draper, a Social Security Number of 261-40-6814, and a Florida Driver's license number D616-5154-671772. Neither that social security number nor a driver's license bearing that number was issued to Respondent. She also indicated she had not been convicted of a crime within the past seven years. That answer was false. Respondent also indicated in her employment application that she held a bachelor of science degree in education from Northwestern University with an earned grade point average of 3.5, and a degree in nursing from Lewis University/Little Company of Mary Hospital with an earned grade point average of 3.0. Both representations are false. Ms. Draper also outlined an employment history in this application which was false in many respects. She did not work for Nurse, Inc. from May 1993 to January 1996, as claimed; she did not work for Cook County Hospital from February 1980 to August 1983, as claimed; and she did not even hold a nursing license until 1984. When LifePath attempted to verify the information submitted by Respondent, it determined that the social security number she had given was incorrect; a second social security card presented in place thereof was false; and she provided a Florida driver's license which, though the number is correct, bears an incorrect and altered date of birth. Nonetheless, Respondent was hired by LifePath. Sometime after being hired by LifePath, Respondent presented them with a new social security card bearing the name Michele Ann Draper, and the number 570-83-2297. She said that she had married and the Social Security Administration had given her a new number. This is untrue. Respondent has been married to Al Draper since before 1978, and the Social Security Administration ordinarily does not issue a new social security number to a woman when she marries. When LifePath learned of Respondent's concealed criminal record, the numerous misrepresentations as to her education, experiences, and references, and of the numerous different social security numbers, they terminated her employment on July 2, 1999. This was approximately one year after she had been hired and placed in patient's homes by the company. Commencing in the Fall of 1980, while a student at Lewis University, until 1998, Respondent used fourteen different social security numbers and six different birth dates in her dealings with educational institutions, licensing officials, and employers. Records of the Social Security Administration indicate that only two Social Security Numbers, 360-42-4186, used at Lewis University in 1980, and 590-83- 2297, used in the last LifePath application in 1998, were issued to Respondent. None of the other numbers she used was ever issued to her under any of the names she used. By the same token, Respondent has used various dates of birth in her educational career, on driver's licenses, and on applications for licensure and employment. Birth records of the state of Illinois indicate that Michele Ann Jackson, Respondent herein, was born in Illinois on June 22, 1951. Until just recently, Respondent appears to have continued to show evidence of dishonesty and misrepresentation in her dealing with authorities. Significant among these are, for example, in her response to a complaint against her license filed in Illinois, she falsely asserted she had been cleared of any wrongdoing in Florida, and that the allegations of criminal convictions are incorrect. Further, during the Florida investigation into the instant allegations, Respondent advised the investigator she had resigned from Hospice in 1996 with proper notice and that she had not had any legal problems prior to her employment by Hospice in 1995. No evidence was presented that Respondent has ever physically harmed or neglected a patient in her care or stolen from a patient.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is recommended that the Board of Nursing enter a final order finding Respondent guilty of the matters alleged in the Administrative Complaint and revoking her license to practice nursing in Florida. DONE AND ENTERED this 25th day of January, 2001, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. ___________________________________ ARNOLD H. POLLOCK Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 SUNCOM 278-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6947 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 25th day of January, 2001. COPIES FURNISHED: Diane K. Kiesling, Esquire Agency for health Care Administration 2727 Mahan Drive Fort Knox Building Three Room 3231A Tallahassee, Florida 32308 Michele Jackson Draper 4645 Flatbush Avenue Sarasota, Florida 34233 Ometrias Deon Long, Esquire Long & Perkins, P.A. 390 North Orange Avenue Suite 2180 Orlando, Florida 32801 Ruth R. Stiehl, Ph.D. R.N. Executive director Board of Nursing Department of Health 4080 Woodcock Drive, Suite 202 Jacksonville, Florida 32207-2714 Theodore M. Henderson, Agency Clerk Department of Health 4052 Bald Cypress Way Bin A02 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1701
The Issue The issue in this case is whether Petitioner, Latrice J. Walker’s application for certification as a certified nursing assistant should be granted.
Findings Of Fact Petitioner is a 31-year old woman. She is currently employed as a key-holder at Church’s Chicken, where she is a de facto assistant manager. Her duties include handling customers’ credit cards and cash, as well as making drop deposits at a local bank. On or about March 4, 2013, Petitioner completed and submitted a Florida Certified Nursing Assistant Application. The application was received by the Board on March 12, 2013. On page 4 of the application, there is a section entitled “Criminal History.” That section asks of the applicant: “Have you ever been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty, nolo contender, or no contest to, a crime in any jurisdiction other than a minor traffic offense? You must include all misdemeanors and felonies, even if adjudication was withheld. Driving under the influence (DUI), driving while impaired (DWI) and driving while license suspended (DWLS) are not minor traffic offenses for the purposes of this question.” Petitioner answered, “No”, to the criminal history question. In fact, she had three relevant arrests on her record, to wit: 1) In January 2003, Petitioner was arrested and charged with a violation of section 832.05(2), Florida Statutes (2002), relating to the issuance of a bad check; 2) in April of the same year, Petitioner was arrested and charged with violation of section 812.014(3)(a), Florida Statutes (2002), relating to petit larceny, and section 831.09, Florida Statutes (2002), relating to passing a forged instrument; and 3) on August 8, 2004, Petitioner was arrested and charged with leaving the scene of an accident in violation of section 316.061(1), Florida Statutes (2004), and possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana, a violation of section 893.13(6) (2004). Petitioner entered a plea on the 2002 charges and adjudication was withheld. She was found guilty of the 2004 charges. Petitioner provided two reasons for answering, “No”, to the criminal history question: First, she believed that because adjudication had been withheld she did not need to disclose the arrests. Second, she was holding her six month-old child while preparing the application and may have hit the wrong box on the application form. The testimony concerning her child affecting her typing of the application was not persuasive. Whatever the reason for her response on the application, it is clear Petitioner did not try to hide her criminal past. As early as October 2013, she had requested from the Levy County Clerk of Court information about her convictions so that she could provide that information to the Board. On February 24, 2014, almost one year after submitting her application, the Board sent Petitioner a letter indicating her application was not complete. The letter advised Petitioner that incomplete applications would expire after one year from the “received date.” The letter then identified information that was missing from Petitioner’s application, including the following items: Proof of completion of probation or parole; Proof of completion of fines, restitution, or court-ordered sanctions for each offense; Certificates, counselor letters, and proof of treatment or rehabilitation; Proof of completion of community service; and Proof of completion of pre-trial intervention. It is clear from the Board’s letter to Petitioner that the Board was aware of her criminal convictions as the omissions letter had asked for explanations as to completion of sanctions for each offense. Petitioner went to the Levy County Courthouse and obtained the requested information. She provided the information to the Board as requested. On March 4, 2014, the Board notified Petitioner that additional explanations about each of the offenses were required. Again, Petitioner provided the requested information. On or about June 30, 2015, the Board notified Petitioner that her application for certification was being denied. No one from the Board testified concerning the basis for the denial, but the Notice of Intent to Deny set out the following bases for the denial: That Petitioner was convicted of or entered pleas to a charge of no driver’s license in 2000, worthless checks, petit theft and uttering a forged instrument in 2003, and leaving the scene, resisting arrest, possession of marijuana and petit theft in 2004. The application includes the following question: Have you ever been convicted of, or entered a plea of guilty, nolo contender, or no contest to, a crime in any jurisdiction other than a minor traffic offense? You must include all misdemeanors and felonies, even if adjudication was withheld. Driving under the influence (DUI, driving while impaired (DWI) and driving while license suspended (DWLS) are not minor traffic offenses for the purposes of this question. The applicant answered the question, “NO”. The applicant is in violation of Sections 464.204(1)(a), 464.018(1)(a)(c) and (o), and 456.072(1)(c) and (h), Florida Statutes, by being convicted or found guilty of, or entering a plea of nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, a crime in any jurisdiction which directly relates to the practice of nursing assistance or to the ability to practice nursing, and by attempting to obtain a nursing license by bribery, misrepresentation or deceit. No further explanation for denial of Petitioner’s application for certification was stated in the Notice of Intent to Deny or by way of testimony or other evidence at final hearing in this matter. However, one may surmise that the basis for the Board’s denial of the application was: 1) that Petitioner had been found guilty or pled nolo contendere to the enumerated crimes, and 2) that Petitioner attempted to mislead the Board in her application for certification. Petitioner provided evidence as to each of the issues raised in the Board’s Notice of Intent to Deny. Although her memory was clouded as to specifics about each of the incidents due to the passage of time, she admitted each offense and tried to explain the circumstances surrounding them. As to the charges of leaving the scene of the accident, resisting arrest without violence and possession of marijuana, Petitioner explained as follows: She was helping her sister move to a new home. Petitioner was driving the rental vehicle and hit a car in the parking lot of a business. She drove away from the scene. When the police came to her home, Petitioner went into her house. At some point marijuana was found, but Petitioner-–who says she has never done drugs–- claimed it to be her sister’s drugs. Petitioner was arrested. However, she satisfied all of the conditions of probation and made all payments for costs. As to the insufficient funds charge, Petitioner stated that at the time she wrote the check to pay rent for the mobile home she was living in, she had funds in the bank. However, by the time the check was submitted for payment, she had used the existing funds. She admitted the violation and made all payments of restitution and costs. The uttering offense came when she agreed to sign a money order that did not belong to her. She yielded to the influence of nefarious friends with whom she no longer associates. Again, she admitted her culpability and made all necessary restitution to the victim. Petitioner filed her application for certification as a nursing assistant to fulfill a long-time dream of working in health care. She has “changed her ways” and is very desirous of doing positive things in her life. Petitioner’s demeanor and candor at final hearing gave credence to her promise to do better in the future, if given the opportunity. Her testimony was persuasive. However, it is troublesome that Petitioner chose to blame her application errors on the fact that she was holding her child while typing the application. That “excuse” does not ring true and seems an unnecessary reason for not disclosing the crimes. Nonetheless, absent further elucidation by the Board as to exactly why Petitioner’s application was denied, there is no way for Petitioner to further support her challenge to the denial other than as she did at final hearing. The Board did not challenge her reasons; it merely stood by its denial letter without further support or justification.
Recommendation Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is RECOMMENDED that a final order be entered by Respondent, Department of Health, Board of Nursing, granting Petitioner, Latrice J. Walker’s, application for certification as a certified nursing assistant, with appropriate sanctions. DONE AND ENTERED this 16th day of March, 2016, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. S R. BRUCE MCKIBBEN Administrative Law Judge Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building 1230 Apalachee Parkway Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3060 (850) 488-9675 Fax Filing (850) 921-6847 www.doah.state.fl.us Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 16th day of March, 2016. COPIES FURNISHED: Latrice J. Walker 454 Southwest 10th Circle Chiefland, Florida 32626 Deborah B. Loucks, Esquire Lynette Norr, Esquire Office of the Attorney General The Capitol, Plaza Level 01 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050 (eServed) Joe Baker, Jr., Executive Director Board of Nursing Department of Health 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C02 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3252 (eServed) Ann-Lynn Denker, PhD, ARNP Chair Board of Nursing Department of Health 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C02 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3252 Nichole C. Geary, General Counsel Department of Health 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin A02 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1701 (eServed)
Findings Of Fact Mary Louise Rahming was a licensed practical nurse, who held a license issued by the Florida State Board of Nursing until March 31, 1977. Rahming failed to renew her license by March 31, 1977, and her license was automatically terminated effective April 1, 1977. Rahming continued in her employment as a licensed practical nurse from April 1, 1977, until July 28, 1978, when she sought to renew her license. Since July, 1978, Rahming has not practiced nursing. Rahming's request for reinstatement of her license was denied by the Board of Nursing on August 25, 1978, because Rahming had practiced without a license after her license was terminated.
Recommendation Whether the statute is construed to entitle an individual whose license has been terminated for failure to renew to a license pending a hearing, or construed to entitle the applicant to a hearing on the grounds for denial after notice of the Board's initial determination, the facts in this case reveal that Rahming applied for licensure on July 26, 1978, and has not practiced since that date when she became aware she was in violation of the law. The period of the denial of the right to practice between the applicant's request for reinstatement and the Board's final action must be considered in weighing the penalty. In the instant case, this period of defacto suspension has been nearly nine months. Although many delays have occurred in this case which have resulted from Rahming's failure to keep the Board advised of her current address, this period of suspension should be considered in any penalty ultimately assessed. Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and the Conclusions of Law, and considering the matters in mitigation, the Hearing Officer recommends that the Board reissue the license of Mary Louise Rahming, considering the period she has not been able to practice during the pendency of this case as sufficient penalty for her violation of Section 464.151(2). DONE and ORDERED this 16th day of March, 1979, in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida. STEPHEN F. DEAN, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings Room 530, Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida 32304 (904) 488-9675 COPIES FURNISHED: Mary Louise Rahming 5218 NW 5th Avenue Miami, Florida Julius Finegold, Esquire 1107 Blackstone Building 233 East Bay Street Jacksonville, Florida 32202 Geraldine B. Johnson, R. N. Board of Nursing 6501 Arlington Expressway, Bldg B Jacksonville, Florida 32211
Findings Of Fact Bonnie Isaac, R.N., held License No. 52845-2 as a Registered Nurse. Said license having been suspended for a period of ninety (90) days pursuant to the lawful order of the Board signed February 18, 1976. Said order of suspension was transmitted to and received by Bonnie Isaac on February 27, 1976. Subsequent to the receipt of said order, Bonnie Isaac continued to perform duties which can only be performed by licensed nurses in the course of her employment at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Dade City, Florida. Bonnie Isaac did not return her certificate of licensure and renewal certificate to the Board, but said renewal expired on March 31, 1976 pursuant to law. The license of Bonnie Isaac was not reinstated at the end of ninety (90) days although she requested that her license be returned to her by her letter of June 25, 1976 to the Florida State Board of Nursing. The license of Bonnie Isaac, suspended by lawful order of the Board effective February 27, 1976, had not been reinstated as of the date of hearing.
Recommendation Based upon the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, the Hearing Officer would recommend that the probation of Bonnie Isaac expressed in Board's order dated February 18, 1976 for nine (9) months following the ninety (90) day suspension of Respondent's license be set aside and the license of Respondent be suspended for one year from the initial date of suspension, February 27, 1976, said license to be reinstated with the full benefits and privileges thereof on February 26, 1977. DONE and ORDERED this 16th day of December, 1976, in Tallahassee, Florida. STEPHEN F. DEAN Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings Room 530, Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida COPIES FURNISHED: Julius Finegold, Esquire 218 E. Forsyth Street Jacksonville, Florida 32202 Geraldine B. Johnson, R.N. State Board of Nursing 6501 Arlington Expressway Bldg B Jacksonville, Florida 32211 Bonnie C. Isaac, R.N. Route 11, Box 735 A Lakeland, Florida 33801
