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Colorado caregiver sentenced for abusing developmentally disabled man: "I know what I did was wrong"

Caregiver sentenced for abusing developmentally disabled man in Strasburg, Colorado
Caregiver sentenced for abusing developmentally disabled man in Strasburg, Colorado 02:29

An Arapahoe County judge on Monday sentenced Gerilynn Amaro, 72, to 90 days in jail and five years of probation for physically and mentally abusing her 55-year-old cousin, Oscar, who operated at the level of a 5 to 8-year-old child.

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CBS Colorado's Brian Maass interviews Gerilynn Amaro. CBS

 "I know what I did and said. It was wrong, no ifs, ands or buts -- it was wrong," said Amaro, minutes after the sentencing.

Amaro had pleaded guilty to two counts of assault on an at-risk person. She had been Oscar's legal caretaker for years. But in early 2024, one of her daughters secretly recorded her mother abusing Oscar at the family's Strasburg home. The daughter said the abuse had been going on for months.

The video showed Amaro forcing Oscar to exercise with a bar of soap in his mouth while the caretaker screamed and swore at him. Some clips showed Amaro pushing her cousin to the floor, kicking him and pulling on his hair.

"Get your f---ng arms down," she yelled at him during one clip. At one point, Amaro told him to start running in place again "right now or I'll kill ya."

Amaro and her attorney asked Judge Natalie Stricklin to sentence the caretaker to probation, noting she had no criminal record, had been taking anger management courses and seeing a therapist. But Stricklin said, "I did watch the video and I'm concerned by what I saw. It is abuse. You were in a position of trust."

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An image from one of the videos showing Gerilynn Amaro and Oscar. CBS

 She noted that Amaro's grandsons were present for the abuse.

"You taught children this was an okay way to treat another human being, an okay way to treat someone who is disabled," said the judge.

She ordered Amaro to report to jail at the end of February.

In an interview after the hearing, Amaro described the crime.

"I was totally at my wits end and not prepared for what was happening," she said.

She said Oscar had been physical and attacked her, which was not videotaped.

"You can only take so much. I'm not blaming anybody else. I did hit him," said Amaro, although she claimed there was only one single incident, which happened to be caught on tape.

"I was hoping she (Judge Stricklin) would see that wasn't the real me. I've never hit anybody. I love him and am sorry for what happened," said Amaro.

 She said after the videos were broadcast last year, her house was egged, someone spit on her in public and others yelled at her she should be in jail.

"I screwed up one time and this is what I get," said the former caregiver.

Ryan Brackley, assistant district attorney for the 18th Judicial District, called the videotapes "horrifying." He said being a caretaker for an at-risk adult is a difficult job.

"It's a job that one needs training or resources to be able to do. And when they subject these at-risk, vulnerable adults to harm either physical or mental or financial, they will be held accountable. Clearly, in this case, Ms. Amaro was not equipped to handle this responsibility. She violated the law, and she caused a lot of harm to Oscar, who was a very vulnerable and at-risk adult."

Brackley said the DA's office was pleased with the sentence.

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