A patient who suffered blows to the head and was found dead in her room a week ago at Crownsville Hospital Center had been attacked by another patient earlier this month, state officials disclosed yesterday.
Michael D. Golden, spokesman for the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, said the earlier attack against Soo-Jung Kong initially was not reported to police.
He said it was unclear whether the incident had any connection to her death. The 36-year-old woman was found lying dead in her bed at 12:20 a.m. last Sunday at the state psychiatric hospital on Route 178. Mr. Golden declined to reveal circumstances of the earlier attack. The matter was "handled internally," and Ms. Kong should have been advised of her right to report the incident to police, he said.
State police spokesman Michael J. McKelvin said police investigators are looking into the circumstances of Ms. Kong's death. They are waiting for results of an autopsy to determine whether her death was a homicide.
Health officials also are conducting an internal review.
Philip Livingstone, president of the Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Anne Arundel County, said security at Crownsville has never been an issue for his organization.
"It's an unfortunate incident, and we'll have to find out what they learn from the investigation," Mr. Livingstone said.