O.C.G.A.

O.C.G.A. § 16-5-100 (2019)

Definitions

✓ O.C.G.A. — 2019 edition (Public.Resource.Org Release 73)
Code text and O.C.G.A. statutory annotations on this page reflect the 2019 Official Code of Georgia Annotated (Public.Resource.Org Release 73, 2019-08-21; public domain per Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). The Syfert case-law annotations in Notes of Decisions, below, are current.
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As used in this article, the term:

(1) ‘‘Alzheimer’s disease’’ means a progressive, degenerative disease or condition that attacks the brain and results in impaired memory, thinking, and behavior. (2) ‘‘Dementia’’ means: (A) An irreversible global loss of cognitive function causing evident intellectual impairment which always includes memory loss, without alteration of state of consciousness, as diagnosed by a physician, and is severe enough to interfere with work or social activities, or both, and to require at least intermittent care or supervision; or (B) The comatose state of an adult resulting from any head injury. (3) ‘‘Disabled adult’’ means a person 18 years of age or older who is mentally or physically incapacitated or has Alzheimer’s disease or dementia. (4) ‘‘Elder person’’ means a person 65 years of age or older. (5) ‘‘Essential services’’ means social, medical, psychiatric, or legal services necessary to safeguard a disabled adult’s, elder person’s, or resident’s rights and resources and to maintain the physical and mental well-being of such person. Such services may include, but not be limited to, the provision of medical care for physical and mental health needs, assistance in personal hygiene, food, clothing, adequately heated and ventilated shelter, and protection from health and safety hazards. (6) ‘‘Exploit’’ means illegally or improperly using a disabled adult or elder person or that person’s resources through undue influence, coercion, harassment, duress, deception, false representation, false pretense, or other similar means for one’s own or another person’s profit or advantage, including, but not limited to, the illegal taking of resources belonging to a disabled adult or elder person when access to the resources was obtained due to the disabled adult’s or elder person’s mental or physical incapacity. (7) ‘‘Long-term care facility’’ means any skilled nursing facility, intermediate care home, assisted living community, community living arrangement, or personal care home subject to regulation and licensure by the Department of Community Health. (7.1) ‘‘Mentally or physically incapacitated’’ means an impairment which substantially affects an individual’s ability to: (A) Provide personal protection; (B) Provide necessities, including but not limited to food, shelter, clothing, medical, or other health care;

(C) Carry out the activities of daily living; or (D) Manage his or her resources. (8) ‘‘Resident’’ means any person who is receiving treatment or care in any long-term care facility. (9) ‘‘Sexual abuse’’ means the coercion for the purpose of self-gratification by a guardian or other person supervising the welfare or having immediate charge, control, or custody of a disabled adult, elder person, or resident to engage in any of the following conduct: (A) Lewd exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of any person; (B) Flagellation or torture by or upon a person who is unclothed or partially unclothed; (C) Condition of being fettered, bound, or otherwise physically restrained on the part of a person who is unclothed or partially clothed unless physical restraint is medically indicated; (D) Physical contact in an act of sexual stimulation or gratification with any person’s unclothed genitals, pubic area, or buttocks or with a female’s nude breasts; (E) Defecation or urination for the purpose of sexual stimulation of the viewer; or (F) Penetration of the vagina or rectum by any object except when done as part of a recognized medical or nursing procedure.

History

Code 1981, § 16-5-100, enacted by Ga. L. 2013, p. 524, § 1-1/HB 78; Ga. L. 2015, p. 598, § 1-1/HB 72; Ga. L. 2019, p. 81, § 3/HB 424. The 2019 amendment, effective April 18, 2019, added the language beginning with ‘‘, including, but not’’ and ending with ‘‘physical incapacity’’ at the end of paragraph (6). See Editor’s note for applicability.

Annotations

Cross references. - Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias State Plan, T. 49, C. 6, Art. 8.

Editor’s notes. - Ga. L. 2013, p. 524, § 1-1/HB 78, effective July 1, 2013, redesignated former Code Section 16-5-100 as present Code Section 16-5-101. Ga. L. 2019, p. 81, § 8/HB 424, not codified by the General Assembly, provides, in part: ‘‘Section 3 of this Act shall apply to offenses occurring on or after the effective date of this Act.’’ This Act became effective April 18, 2019. Law reviews. - For article on the 2015 amendment of this Code section, see 32 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 63 (2015).

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 21 cases (10 in the last 5 years), 2005–2026 · leading case: Wood v. State, 620 S.E.2d 348 (Ga. 2005).
Wood v. State, 620 S.E.2d 348 (Ga. 2005). · cites it 24× “Although OCGA § 16-5-100 does not define the terms "immediate charge or custody of," clearly such language was intended to include persons residing with the elder who had been entrusted with the care and custody of the elder either by express agreement or by voluntarily assuming…”
Cawthon v. State, 830 S.E.2d 270 (Ga. Ct. App. 2019). · cites it 6× “15 And under OCGA § 16-5-100 (3), " '[d]isabled adult' means a person 18 years of age or older who is mentally or physically incapacitated .”
Hawkins v. State, 830 S.E.2d 301 (Ga. Ct. App. 2019). · cites it 6× “" OCGA § 16-5-100 (6) (2013). Ms. McCargo's granddaughter testified at trial that "Hawkins was very adamant that Travis needed residential care," Hawkins "referred Katie McCargo to .”
Harper v. State, 738 S.E.2d 584 (Ga. 2013). · cites it 2× “See OCGA §§ 16-5-100, 16-9-6. As has been recognized, “[t]he care of aged persons in our society is a matter of great public concern.”
Bruster v. State, 662 S.E.2d 265 (Ga. Ct. App. 2008). · cites it 4× “2, (vi) that his care in custody violated OCGA § 16-5-100, and (vii) that the evidence at trial was insufficient to support his conviction.”
Adams v. State, 662 S.E.2d 782 (Ga. Ct. App. 2008). · cites it 2× “Pursuant to a negotiated plea agreement, Marion Adams pled guilty to a single count of cruelty to persons over the age of 65, in violation of OCGA § 16-5-100, for depriving his bedridden sister of adequate food, drink, and hygiene.”
Wilson v. State, 730 S.E.2d 500 (Ga. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 2× “Accordingly, the trial court could properly order that restitution be made directly to the Aarons even if they technically were not the direct victims of the crime. See, e.g., Adams, 291 Ga. App.”
Valerie West v. State (Ga. Ct. App. 2025). · cites it 12× ““Disabled adult” is defined in relevant part as “a person 18 years of age or older who is mentally or physically incapacitated,” OCGA § 16-5-100 (3), and “mentally or physically incapacitated” is defined as 16 an impairment which substantially affects an individual’s ability to:…”
Emmitt C. Austin v. State (Ga. Ct. App. 2020). · cites it 10× “]” OCGA § 16-5-100 (6) defines “[e]xploit” as: illegally or improperly using a disabled adult or elder person or that person’s resources through undue influence, coercion, harassment, duress, deception, false representation, false pretense, or other similar means for one’s own…”
Jatony Dupree v. State (Ga. Ct. App. 2025). · cites it 8× “” OCGA § 16-5-100 (3) defines “disabled adult” to mean “a person 18 years of age or older who is mentally or physically incapacitated.”
West v. Dougherty Cnty. (M.D. Ga. 2021). · cites it 6× “Plaintiff and his brother were charged with felony cruelty to an elder person in violation of O.C.G.A. § 16-5-100. Adams obtained arrest warrants for Plaintiff and his brother and arrested them on November 10, 2012.”
Jimmy L. Taylor v. State (Ga. Ct. App. 2025). · cites it 6× “9 “Essential services” means “social, medical, psychiatric, or legal services necessary to safeguard a disabled adult’s, elder person’s, or resident’s rights and resources and to maintain the physical and mental well-being of such person.”
— 16-5-100(3) — 1 case
Terrell Edmondson v. State (Ga. Ct. App. 2026).
— 16-5-100(4) — 1 case
West v. Dougherty Cnty. (M.D. Ga. 2021). “Plaintiff and his brother were charged with felony cruelty to an elder person in violation of O.C.G.A. § 16-5-100. Adams obtained arrest warrants for Plaintiff and his brother and arrested them on November 10, 2012.”
— 16-5-100(a) — 1 case
Wood v. State, 620 S.E.2d 348 (Ga. 2005). “Although OCGA § 16-5-100 does not define the terms "immediate charge or custody of," clearly such language was intended to include persons residing with the elder who had been entrusted with the care and custody of the elder either by express agreement or by voluntarily assuming…”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.