Several lawmakers have called for a Rhode Island man charged with molesting a patient with dementia at an assisted-living center to step down as the town's fire district chairman.
State Reps. Jared Nunes, Robert Nardolillo and Sen. Leo Raptakis sent a letter Wednesday urging Frank Palin to resign from his position as the Coventry Fire District Chairman.
Palin pleaded not guilty May 21 to a charge of indecent assault and battery in connection with the alleged assault at the Cornerstone in Canton, Massachusetts. Investigators said the assault happened May 19 and that the woman assaulted was under the care of Old Colony Hospice of Bridgewater, which employed Palin.
Palin worked part-time as a nurse practitioner, and prosecutors say the assault was captured on a camera that the woman's family installed in the room.
The state Department of Health says it has suspended Palin's license.
Palin has been released on $5,000 bail. He returns to court July 30.
