Deltona, FL - A Deltona nurse assigned to take care of an 18-year-old male who cannot breathe on their own is arrested after abandoning his patient.
Volusia County Sheriff's Office is reporting the arrest of 55-year-old David Buchmann, following an incident that happened just after New Years Day on January 2nd.
The mother of the patient spoke to VCSO investigators about what happened with Buchmann.
According to their report, shortly after 6 p.m. on January 2nd, Buchmann, who is a Licensed Practical Nurse, arrived at his normally scheduled shift of 5:30 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. at a home in Deltona.
Once he arrived, Buchmann was told that the family had to leave for dinner for her daughter's birthday.
Buchmann would need to watch her son, as her son suffers from cerebral palsy and Lenox Gastaut Syndrome, which is a severe form of epilepsy.
Because of his condition, he needs to be under 24/7 supervision and care.
Close to 7:30 that night, she received multiple Ring doorbell notifications on her phone that there was activity at her front door.
She reviewed the footage in the app and watched as Buchmann left the residence, carrying his belongings with him, and went to his car.
After watching the footage, she immediately told her boyfriend that her son was home alone because Buchmann had left. Her boyfriend made several attempts to call Buchmann but to no avail.
The boyfriend decided to rush home and check on her son.
When he arrived, he found the 18-year-old male falling out of his chair. He also noticed that his lips were blue as he was lacking oxygen because his ventilator was not hooked up properly. Not long after he would begin to have a seizure.
Not long after her boyfriend, the mother would race back home to help him. When she arrived she noticed her son's medication list sitting on the counter. She also found out that her son had never received any of his medication.
A few minutes past 8 p.m., the mother sent Buchmann's wife a text message, asking if she would know why Buchmann would leave her disabled son home alone without notifying anyone.
Buchmann's wife said he was just about to head back.
When Buchmann arrived, he found that she had called law enforcement and saw that VCSO was present at the residence.
Their report shows when Buchmann arrived, the family began to get aggressive with Buchmann, yelling at him and asking why he left, but the narratives show that Buchmann had just laughed in response.
Buchmann told deputies that he wasn't feeling well and that he had some "family drama" back at home. After believing he heard someone upstairs, he decided to leave.
A couple of weeks later, Buchmann was arrested at his residence, charged with neglect of a disabled adult.
The report shows that Buchmann has worked for the family before, and in November of 2018 the boyfriend believed he had caught Buchmann smoking marijuana in the house.
