Virginia T. Bigornia, 59, pled guilty to second-degree assault by omission, a section of the law that punishes reckless conduct that causes serious injury. The victim, Ushi Kaneshiro, died April 9, 2002, after being rushed from the care home to St. Francis Medical Center-West.

Bigornia was arrested for investigation of second-degree murder in January but she made a deal with the state attorney general's office, said deputy attorney general Michael Parrish. There was not enough evidence to support a murder charge, he said.

But as a care home operator, Bigornia had a duty to provide for Kaneshiro's health and welfare, including proper medical attention, Parrish said.

Bigornia's guilty plea comes with a sentence of 90 days in jail, five years probation, restitution to Kaneshiro's family, 100 hours of community service and an agreement that Bigornia not work in or operate a care home until she has completed her probation, Parrish said. She will start serving it sometime in January 2004.

In court today, Bigornia told Circuit Judge Dan Kochi that she "tried to take good care" of Kaneshiro.

"She got sick and I failed to bring her to the doctor," Bigornia said. "I called 911 that morning but it was too late already and she died."

Kaneshiro, a great-great grandmother, was the retired owner of Iwilei Chop Suey.

During an autopsy, the Honolulu medical examiner found that she suffered from infected decubitus ulcers that were the size of Kaneshiro's fist. They were so deep, bone was visible.

Her room smelled from the infection.

Somehow, one of her toes had been cut open and investigators found a trail of blood through the care home.

The cause of death was elderly neglect, which led to decubitus ulcers and a poisoning of the blood called septicemia, according to the medical examiner's autopsy report. Pneumonia was a contributing factor. The medical examiner ruled her death was a homicide.

The prosecution could not say how long Kaneshiro suffered from the decubitus ulcers.

"We can say, that within a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that decubitus ulcers were of a serious nature for a period of at least two weeks prior to her death," Parrish said.

Bigornia voluntarily closed her care home after an investigation by the Department of Health confirmed neglect.

In a three-part series in February, The Advertiser documented that at least 10 elderly people have died from neglect or abuse since 1999, and that during the past decade, 33 people age 65 and older died in cases where decubitus ulcers ­ pressure sores associated with neglect ­ were the underlying causes of death.