CORDOVA, Tenn.– Two caregivers are facing serious charges after police say they killed one of their patients.
Investigators say care home owner Brenda Hightower and caregiver Anthony Freeman are responsible for the death of 59-year-old Cynthia Garrison in 2021 while she was a patient at an adult care home on Hunters Point in Cordova.
Hightower was indicted on charges of First Degree Murder, Aggravated Neglect of a Vulnerable or Elderly Adult, Vulnerable Adult Abuse, and Financial Exploitation of an Elderly or Vulnerable Person. The grand jury indicted Freeman on charges of First Degree Murder, Aggravated Neglect of a Vulnerable or Elderly Adult, Vulnerable Adult Abuse, and Tampering with Evidence.
Tammy Valentine is still coming to terms with a terrible truth. She’ll never see her sister Cynthia again.
“She was so sweet and so kind,” she said. “She did nothing to deserve what was coming.”
Police haven’t detailed Hightower’s involvement, but Valentine said prosecutors showed her a video of Freeman beating her sister with a two-by-four.
“He drags her out of the bed and beats her with that board for two hours non-stop and you can see her just begging please stop,” Valentine said. “He just shows no mercy.”
WREG investigated the same facility in 2015 when another patient was allegedly abused. State officials say 75-year-old Howard Collie was neglected by one of the caregivers.
Collie’s granddaughter Alexandria Collie will never forget what investigators told her.
“Found him in a chair covered in feces half naked with bungee cords all around the doors so the patients couldn’t get out of the room,” she said.
Brenda Hightower owned the home back then as well. She went by “Tucker” at the time.
Her license was suspended by the state after what happened.
Alexandra feels the facility should have been permanently closed and says this latest incident makes her sick.
“I think she bears all the responsibility,” she said. “I hope that woman never sees the light of day again.”
Hightower is currently being held without bond as Freeman sits in jail with a $2 million bond. Both are facing serious prison time if they are convicted.
We are still waiting to get the other side of the story and we hope to learn more when Hightower goes before a judge later this week. Freeman is not due in court until next month.