San Diego County may appeal a $15,000...

San Diego County may appeal a $15,000 fine assessed against Edgemoor Geriatric Hospital for numerous violations linked to the death of two patients, county Health Services Director James A. Forde said. After an investigation of the death of a legless patient, Frank Richardson, 83, who fell out of bed Jan. 10 at the convalescent home and later died of a heart attack, state officials decided to levy the unusually stiff fine. Early this month, the state fined Edgemoor $5,000 for negligence in the death of a 66-year-old paralyzed woman who on Dec. 10 was left unattended in a bathtub and fell face down in the water. The county coroner’s office has concluded that she drowned. Forde said Tuesday that Richardson’s death was a coincidence, given his history of heart disease, and had nothing to do with the fall.