On Sunday, January 24th, a nursing supervisor at Three Rivers Medical Center contacted the Grants Pass Department of Public Safety to report a patient in their facility with suspicious injuries believed to be caused by neglect.
The patient, 59-year-old Martha M Vencill, was in critical condition due to the extent of her injuries. Prior to admittance to the hospital, Vencill had been receiving full-time in-home care due to developmental disabilities.
During the course of the investigation, Page E Backus was identified as Vencill’s caregiver, whom Vencill had lived with for nearly 10 years. She and another resident received fulltime care from Backus. On Saturday, January 9th, Vencill suffered a fall in her room. Backus was unable to assist Vencill back into bed and left her on the floor for nine days, until January 18th. By January 23rd, Vencill’s injuries were so severe she was transported by ambulance to Three Rivers Medical Center.
The extent of injuries were determined to be a result of Backus’ failure to provide care or seek medical attention for Vencill. On Tuesday, January 26th, at 11:44am, Detectives from the Grants Pass Department of Public Safety arrested Backus for Criminal Mistreatment in the First Degree. The other resident for whom Backus was responsible was removed from her home and placed in a safe location.
On January 26th, Vencill died from her injuries. After an extensive investigation, Backus was indicted by the Josephine County Grand Jury on February 9th. On February 10th, 2021, Backus was again arrested and lodged her at the Josephine County Jail on charges of Murder II, and Criminal Mistreatment I.
