TALIHINA, Okla. (AP) - Three agencies are investigating another death of a resident at the Oklahoma Veterans Center in Talihina.

The Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office recently finished an examination of the body of 70-year-old Leonard Smith. The cause of death is pending the results of toxicology tests, the Tulsa World (https://bit.ly/2jG76fK ) reported.

Investigations are also ongoing by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Oklahoma Department of Human Services’ Adult Protective Services program.

According to a spokesman for the Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs, the center’s officials determined incident to be a “sentinel event,” which is an unexpected incident in a health care setting that results in death or serious injury to a patient, unrelated to natural course of the patient’s illness. Once an incident is determined to be a “sentinel event” the center is required to report the death for further investigation by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Oklahoma Department of Human Services’ Adult Protective Services program.

“We don’t want to give any information out that could be contradicted by the investigation,” said Shane Faulkner, public information officer at the state Department of Veterans Affairs. “We want to let the investigation play out and go from there.”

Smith’s death comes just four months after the death of a resident who was discovered with maggots in a wound. State lawmakers have recently filed emergency legislation to try to shut down the facility.

Republican Sen. Frank Simpson proposed a bill in January to relocate the veterans at the Talihina center. If approved, it would take effect immediately.

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Information from: Tulsa World, https://www.tulsaworld.com

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