A licensed practical nurse (LPN) was arrested on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, for felony child neglect after an investigation revealed she failed to properly care for a medically vulnerable child under her supervision.
Kelly Rita Perrigo, 62, was taken into custody by the Cape Coral Police Department following a months-long investigation into allegations of neglect.
The case began on September 15, 2024, when officers responded to a home in northwest Cape Coral after the child’s mother reported concerns about Perrigo’s care. The child, who has multiple medical conditions requiring 24/7 care, is dependent on home healthcare nurses for feeding and monitoring. According to the mother, Perrigo was the night nurse assigned to care for the child.
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The mother told investigators that on the morning of September 14, Perrigo claimed the child had low blood sugar and had consumed all of their nighttime bottles.
However, after reviewing surveillance footage from the child’s room, the mother discovered that Perrigo had not fed the child properly throughout the night. The footage showed Perrigo heating the child’s bottle, attempting to feed the child for only 2-5 minutes, and then placing the child back in the crib with the bottle still full.
Perrigo was also seen on kitchen surveillance cameras placing an empty bottle in the sink, leading the mother to believe Perrigo had dumped the contents of the bottle in the bathroom sink.
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Further review of the surveillance footage revealed that Perrigo had not fed the child any of their bottles since August 17, 2024. The mother reported that since Perrigo began caring for the child in February 2024, the child had experienced significant health issues, including difficulty gaining weight, lack of energy, and liver failure.
Nurses are instructed to feed the child through a gastrointestinal (GI) tube if the child does not consume their bottles, but the surveillance footage showed no evidence of this being done.
Perrigo, a licensed practical nurse, was responsible for providing critical care to the child during her 12-hour shifts. The Cape Coral Police Department’s Special Victims Unit took over the investigation, and the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) was notified. After reviewing the evidence, officers determined that Perrigo’s actions constituted felony child neglect.
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On February 5, Perrigo voluntarily came to the Cape Coral Police Department, where she was arrested and charged with one count of felony child neglect under Florida Statute 827.03(2)(d). She was transported to the Lee County Jail, where she remains in custody.
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