Former Spartanburg caregiver gets 30 days in jail for stealing pain meds from vulnerable patients

SPARTANBURG, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - A former caregiver at an assisted living home in Spartanburg pleaded guilty on Thursday to charges related to the exploitation of victims at the facility.

Erica Danielle Gilbert Nichols, 29, neglected and exploited five residents of the assisted living facility by depriving them of prescribed pain medication.

Nichols took the medications, which included oxycodone and hydrocodone, for her own personal use.

The incidents occurred between October 2020 and March 2021.

The facility where she worked, which has not been named, reported the misconduct and cooperated with an investigation.

Nichols pleaded guilty to five counts of theft of a controlled substance, neglect of a vulnerable adult and exploitation of a vulnerable adult. She was sentenced to 5 years in prison suspended to 30 days in jail and 3 years of probation.