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Marjorie Tingley’s sons and a Michigan memory care facility clashed over antipsychotic medication after staff documented repeated physical incidents during her care. Her family alleges the facility retaliated by sending her to the emergency room and evicting her; the facility denies wrongdoing. Tingley died in January 2025, and part of the family’s lawsuit is scheduled for trial if mediation fails.
Marjorie Tingley’s sons disputed a Michigan memory care facility’s request to use antipsychotic medication after staff recorded repeated incidents in which the 85-year-old struck or kicked caregivers, according to records reviewed by KFF Health News. The family later sued Vista Grande Villa, alleging negligence, wrongful eviction and that emergency-room trips were used in retaliation for disagreements over her care; the facility and its former director deny those claims.
In an urgent email in December 2024, Vista Grande told Tingley’s sons their mother posed a safety threat and sought permission to sedate her. Facility behavior logs described at least 10 days in the prior month when Tingley hit, kicked or elbowed aides assisting with changing briefs, dressing, bathing or using the bathroom. Her sons and the facility continued to disagree about medication into the new year.
Records cited by KFF Health News show that Tingley was taken to an emergency room eight times after incidents at the facility. After four trips, Vista Grande issued a 30-day eviction notice; she was sent to the hospital four more times while her family sought another placement. The lawsuit alleges the facility initiated the trips in retaliation for the family’s objections. Vista Grande’s legal filing said it sent Tingley to the hospital because her family would not allow her to be treated at the facility.
Tingley died at another facility in January 2025. Her sons’ suit names Vista Grande and its director at the time. A judge dismissed the negligence claim on legal grounds, but the remaining claims are scheduled for trial early next year if mediation does not resolve the case. Vista Grande and the director deny the allegations. The facility has since become a wholly owned subsidiary of Otterbein SeniorLife and was renamed Otterbein Jackson SeniorLife Community; Otterbein is not named in the suit.
Medication Disputes Can Threaten Placement
The case illustrates the difficult choices families can face when dementia-related behavior creates risks for residents and care workers. They may weigh medication’s possible benefits against serious health warnings, while also worrying that refusing a facility’s proposed plan could jeopardize a loved one’s place in care. The lawsuit’s allegations remain contested, but the dispute shows how treatment decisions can become entangled with emergency transfers and questions about whether a facility can continue providing care.
Antipsychotic medications carry an FDA-required warning that they increase the risk of death in older people with Alzheimer’s disease and similar conditions. 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 medicines associated with risks including delirium, falls and hospitalization. That estimate concerns potentially inappropriate prescribing across the population, not Tingley’s individual treatment.
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Long Campaign Against Overprescribing
Dementia can damage brain systems involved in impulse control and perception. People may react aggressively when frightened, when they do not recognize caregivers, or when they cannot communicate pain or another need. These behaviors can put residents and staff at risk, while also requiring facilities to determine what support or treatment is appropriate.
Federal efforts to reduce the use of antipsychotics in long-term care include the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Partnership to Improve Dementia Care, launched in 2012. KFF Health News reported that the initiative has helped reduce antipsychotic use, although the practice persists. In 2025, excluding people treated for schizophrenia, antipsychotics were given to one in seven nursing home residents, according to the report. Antipsychotics are approved by the FDA primarily for conditions including schizophrenia, rather than as a general treatment for dementia-related agitation.
“They just wanted to have her drugged up. It’s a lot easier to take care of someone who’s just out of it.”
— David Tingley, one of Marjorie Tingley’s sons, in an interview with KFF Health News
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Court Has Not Resolved Remaining Claims
The family’s claims that Vista Grande acted negligently, caused emotional distress, wrongfully evicted Tingley and used hospital trips in retaliation have not been established in court. The facility and its former director deny the allegations. The negligence claim was dismissed on legal grounds, but the remaining claims have not yet gone to trial.
The available account does not establish which medications, if any, Tingley ultimately received, or whether a specific drug caused harm. It also does not resolve whether the emergency trips were medically necessary or retaliatory. The report says the former facility’s attorneys and director did not respond to requests for comment; Otterbein representatives also did not respond. Otterbein is not a defendant in the lawsuit.
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Mediation Could Affect Trial Schedule
The remaining claims are scheduled for trial early next year if mediation fails, according to KFF Health News. The case’s next major development will be whether the parties reach a settlement or proceed to trial. A trial could address the family’s allegations and the facility’s account, but no outcome is established at this stage.
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Key Questions
Why did Vista Grande seek permission to medicate Marjorie Tingley?
The facility said she posed a safety threat after behavior logs recorded incidents in which she hit, kicked or elbowed aides helping with personal care. Her sons disputed the facility’s push for medication.
What does the lawsuit allege?
The family accused Vista Grande and its former director of negligence, emotional distress and wrongful eviction. It also alleges the facility sent Tingley to emergency rooms in retaliation for disagreements over her care. The defendants deny the allegations.
What are the known risks of antipsychotics for older people with dementia?
The FDA requires a warning that antipsychotics increase the chance of death in older people with Alzheimer’s and similar diseases. KFF Health News also cited risks associated with some brain-altering medications, including delirium, falls and hospitalization. The account does not identify a particular drug given to Tingley.
Has the lawsuit gone to trial?
No. A judge dismissed the negligence claim on legal grounds, while the remaining claims are scheduled for trial early next year if mediation fails.
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