Tustin : Retarded Woman, 22, Is Found in Diabetic Shock
A 22-year-old mentally retarded woman who had been missing for a week was found in Santa Ana over the weekend in diabetic shock, her mother said.
Linda Stadel of Costa Mesa, mother of Valorie Rice, said that her daughter was in stable condition Sunday at UC Irvine Medical Center. The daughter had been rushed to the hospital late Friday afternoon after being found by Santa Ana Fire Department paramedics in shock, said her mother.
“I’m not sure where the paramedics found her,” Stadel said. She added that she was grateful for their prompt response “because the doctors told us Valorie would have been dead in 24 more hours.” Rice suffers from diabetes, and she only took a limited supply of insulin with her when she walked away from her group care home in Tustin on April 26.
Rice had no insulin and was without any identification when she was found Friday, her mother said. A nursing supervisor at the UCI Medical Center identified Rice from newspaper photos, Stadel said.
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