Did racial slur prompt nose-bloodying spat at midstate care home?

The men were both in their late 70s. They were roommates at a care home. They reportedly came to blows in early April. The pair were residents at Bolingreen Health & Rehabilitation, which sits along Interstate 75 below Bolingbroke in south Monroe County. On April 11, a Monroe sheriff’s deputy was called to the home by a manager who said one of the men, 79, had punched another guy, 77, in the nose. The younger fellow, according to a sheriff’s report, told the deputy that he had been socked because he had the remote control to the older man’s television. But when asked what caused the fray, the older man, who is black, said it wasn’t because of the TV remote. The deputy’s write-up said, “He told me he asked (the younger man) to move away from the bathroom door, and (the younger man, who is white) stated, ‘(racial slur), you are not boss.’” And that was why he punched his roommate, the report added. Neither man was cited, though they were moved to separate rooms.

This story was originally published May 11, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Did racial slur prompt nose-bloodying spat at midstate care home?."