ALJDEC decisions subject to certification as final
15A-1211050-NUR · State Board of Nursing · 2018-05-02
IN THE OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
IN THE MATTER OF THE REGISTERED NURSE LICENSE NO. RN166026
ISSUED TO:
ASHLEY CAROL MORRIS,
RESPONDENT
No. 15A-1211050-NUR
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE DECISION
HEARING: March 27, 2018, with the record held open until April 12, 2018.
APPEARANCES: Respondent Ashley Carol Morris appeared on behalf of herself. Assistant Attorney General Suita Krishna appeared on behalf of the Arizona State Board of Nursing.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE: Velva Moses-Thompson
_____________________________________________________________________
Having heard the evidence and testimony and having considered the record in this matter, the undersigned Administrative Law Judge hereby makes the following Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and issues the following Recommended Decision to the Arizona State Board of Nursing.
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. Respondent Ashley Carol Morris holds Arizona Board of Nursing (“Board”) registered nurse license number RN166026.
2. On February 9, 2018, the Board issued a Complaint and Notice of Hearing setting the above-captioned matter for hearing at 9:00 a.m. on March 27, 2018, at the Office of Administrative Hearings in Phoenix, Arizona.
3. The Complaint and Notice of Hearing provides that the issue for hearing is, “whether grounds exist to take disciplinary action, including suspension or revocation against Ashley Carol Morris, registered nurse license number, RN166026 to perform as a nurse in the State of Arizona.”
4. The Board presented the testimony of Kirk Olson, Board Program Manager, and admitted exhibits 1 through 6. Ms. Morris presented her own testimony.
5. On September 30, 2012, Ms. Morris stole from a JC Penny store.
See Exhibit 1, Bates 0021. Ms. Morris admitted the theft to a responding police officer.
See Exhibit 1, Bates 0022.
6. On or about October 30, 2012, Ms. Morris was convicted of and plead guilty to Shoplifting, a class one misdemeanor, in Glendale City Court, case number CR2012018887, based upon the conduct which occurred on September 30, 2012.
7. On January 7, 2012, Glendale City Court set aside the judgement of guilt in case number CR2012018887. See Exhibit 1, Bates 0019.
8. Ms. Morris completed a RN/LN Investigative Questionnaire
(“Completed Questionnaire”) and signed it on March 12, 2013.
9. On or about July 29, 2013, Ms. Morris submitted the Completed Questionnaire to the Board. See Exhibit 1, Bates 0024.
10. The RN/LN Investigative Questionnaire would have been sent with a letter where the Board requested that the RN/LN Investigative Questionnaire be returned within 30 days.
11. Ms. Morris alleged in the Completed Questionnaire that she went to
JC Penny Store on September 30, 2012 to exchange items she had purchased.
Ms. Morris alleged that she performed the exchange herself because no one would help her. However, there was no evidence presented at hearing to show that Ms. Morris returned any items to JC Penny store.
12. On November 7, 2013, Ms. Morris stole items from a Basha’s grocery store. Ms. Morris was charged with Shoplifting the same day.
On or about December 17, 2013, Ms. Morris was convicted of and plead guilty to Shoplifting, a class one misdemeanor, in Maricopa County Court, case number 2013-0690, based upon the conduct which occurred on November 7, 2013. Ms. Morris was assigned to diversion and required to pay a fine of at least $1,000.
13. The Board’s investigator discovered the December 17, 2013 Shoplifting charge while it was still investigating Ms. Morris October 30, 2012 JC Penny theft conviction.
14. Ms. Morris did not reported the November 7, 2013 Shoplifting charge to the Board within 10 days of the date of the charge.
15. On or about January 14, 2014, the Board sent a second Investigative Questionnaire to Ms. Morris regarding the December 17, 2013 Shoplifting conviction.
See Exhibit 1, Bates 0030.
16. On or about April 7, 2014, the Board received the completed second Investigative Questionnaire from Ms. Morris. See Exhibit 1, Bates 0024. The second Investigative Questionnaire was signed on January 17, 2014. See Exhibit 1, Bates 0025.
17. Ms. Morris alleged in the November 7, 2013 charge would be dismissed. See Exhibit 1, Bates 0024-0025.
18. On May 15, 2015, the Board issued an Interim Order requiring that Ms. Morris submit to an evaluation by a Board approved evaluator. See Exhibit 4, Bates 0062 - 0063.
19. Ms. Morris called the office of a Board approved evaluator who held a Ph.D. (evaluator”), on June 19, 2014. See Exhibit 5, Bates 0067. The evaluator’s office returned Ms. Morris’s phone call several times, but Ms. Morris’s appointment was not scheduled until August 26, 2014. See id.
20. On August 26, 2018, the evaluator conducted a psychological assessment of Ms. Morris. Ms. Morris arrived 20 minutes late to her appointment with the evaluator. See id. Ms. Morris expressed no remorse about the shoplifting incidents to the evaluator. Ms. Morris told the evaluator that she stole to get back at her husband.
See id.
21. The evaluator noted that Ms. Morris struggled with depression and had a history of marital issues. See Exhibit 5, Bates 0066 and 0070. The evaluator opined that Ms. Morris possibly had a Narcissist component in her personality. See Exhibit 5, Bates 0069. The evaluator also opined that Ms. Morris could benefit from individual therapy to address ongoing depressive symptoms and “marital/family stressors”. See Exhibit 5, Bates 0070.
22. During the assessment, Ms. Morris often asked why she was being asked certain questions and rarely provided a forthright response. See Exhibit 5, Bates 0067. Within a span of 3 days after the assessment, Ms. Morris called twice demanding to know when she would receive the evaluation report. See id. The evaluator noted in her report that Ms. Morris was defensive and resistant to questioning during the evaluation. See id.
23. Ms. Morris did not report the incidents to the Board because she was terrified of what would happen, and she was terrified of losing her job. Ms. Morris testified that no similar incidents have occurred since that time. Ms. Morris testified that she has found her own way of developing a support system. Ms. Morris knows that she made horrible decisions. Ms. Morris testified that “some things got confused with the evaluator”. Ms. Morris stated that she had trouble scheduling the evaluation because she experienced scheduling conflicts.
24. Ms. Morris testified that she was told that she was not obligated to see a licensed psychologist. Ms. Morris stated that she has taken on-line classes on coping and that she never notified the board because she did not know that she was required to notify the Board. Ms. Morris stated that she was never assigned to diversion therapy or an activity. Ms. Morris stated that diversion was a payment. Ms. Morris does not recall saying that she did not have remorse. Ms. Morris testified that she did the best that she could at the time to explain the situation and to comply. Ms. Morris testified that she does not remember getting a second set of questionnaires.
25. Ms. Morris asserted that she has always responded to the Board and that she has no way of proving that she has had to pay for her mistakes every day.
Ms. Morris testified that she does not want her licensed revoked. She stated that she is a single mom of four children and wants to put everything behind her. Ms. Morris testified that she does not see how a revocation is useful.
CONCLUSIONS OF LAW
This matter lies within the Board’s jurisdiction under Ariz. Rev. Stat. section 32-1606(A)(8).
The Board bears the burden of persuasion to establish cause to penalize Ms. Morris’s registered nurse license. Ariz. Rev. Stat. section 41-1092.07(G)(2);
The Board’s burden is a preponderance of the evidence. Ariz. Admin. Code section R2-19-119.
A preponderance of the evidence is:
The greater weight of the evidence, not necessarily established by the greater number of witnesses testifying to a fact but by evidence that has the most convincing force; superior evidentiary weight that, though not sufficient to free the mind wholly from all reasonable doubt, is still sufficient to incline a fair and impartial mind to one side of the issue rather than the other.
Black’s Law Dictionary 1373 (10th ed. 2014).
The facts, as set forth previously, establish that Ms. Morris committed unprofessional conduct as defined by Ariz. Rev. Stat. sections 32-3208(A) and (D), Ariz. Rev. Stat. sections 32-1601(22)(b),(d),(e) (h), (j); A.A.C. R4-19-403(15) and (28).
Because Ms. Morris has committed unprofessional conduct, the Board has authority to impose discipline on Ms. Morris’s nursing license. Ariz. Rev. Stat. sections
32-1663(D); and § 32-1664(O).
Considering the facts and circumstances of this matter, it is recommended that Ms. Morris’s registered nurse license number RN168273 be revoked.
RECOMMENDED ORDER
Based on the foregoing, the Administrative Law Judge that the Board revoke Ashley Carol Morris’s registered nurse license number RN166026.
In the event of certification of the Administrative Law Judge Decision by the Director of the Office of Administrative Hearings, the effective date of the Order will be five days from the date of that certification.
Done this day, May 2, 2018.
/s/ Velva Moses-Thompson
Administrative Law Judge
Transmitted electronically to:
Joey Ridenour, RN, MN, Executive Director
State Board of Nursing
Transmitted electronically to:
Joey Ridenour, RN, MN, Executive Director
State Board of Nursing