Attorneys for the estate of a 76-year-old woman allegedly killed at the hands of her boyfriend in a Waterbury nursing home have sued the facility, claiming it should have known about the man's violent history and protected the victim.

Police said 81-year-old John Jensen strangled Patricia Ann Way with her own scarf at Autumn Lake Healthcare at Bucks Hill in November 2018. Now, the woman's estate has filed suit seeking monetary damages against Autumn Lake.

The lawsuit, filed Monday in Waterbury Superior Court, says the facility and its employees “should have known that John Jensen posed a danger to other residents of Autumn Lake, including the plaintiff decedent.” It names as a defendant Bucks Hill Operations LLC, which is doing business as Autumn Lake Healthcare at Bucks Hill.

It's not clear how long Jensen and Way were romantically involved, or how long they were living at the nursing home. The lawsuit says Jensen “had violent tendencies,” and that Autumn Lake “failed to protect residents such as Patricia Ann Way from such tendencies.”

The lawsuit also says the facility was “directly warned” that Jensen posed a danger to other residents, but failed to act. It does not elaborate on or say who warned Autumn Lake about Jensen's alleged propensity for violence.

WFSB-TV, the state's CBS affiliate, reported that Jensen had a criminal conviction for armed robbery in 1966 and was arrested for driving while intoxicated in 1999.

The lawsuit also names former Autumn Lake administrator Patricia Leone-Tincher as a defendant.

“As the administrator, Patricia Leone-Tincher is responsible for the safety of all residents and they also have a responsibility to know about all of their residents,” Pamela Levin Cameron, the attorney who represents the family's estate, told the Connecticut Law Tribune Friday. “They just did not protect Patricia Ann Way from John Jensen.”

Cameron, a partner with Middlebury-based Moore, O'Brien & Foti, said she is seeking “at least seven figures” in damages from the nursing home, and that Way's family is reeling from the ordeal.

Cameron, who has been talking to Scott Way, administrator of his mother's estate, said, “Scott is still mourning his mother's death and is extremely upset about the way in which it occurred. The family is obviously distraught that she ultimately died after being strangled with her own scarf. There had to be some substantial suffering she went through that preceded her death. She had bruises on her which seemed to show this was a violent attack.”

Way, who was widowed, had seven children, according to news reports.

Jensen, who was charged with felony murder and has been declared incompetent to stand trial, is being housed in Middletown at the Whiting Forensic Hospital, a psychiatric inpatient center for individuals in the criminal justice system. Court records show Jensen will have his next competency hearing on June 25.

As of Friday, Autumn Lake had not assigned attorneys to the case. Administrator Leone-Tincher no longer works for Autumn Lake, and did not respond to a request for comment Friday. Autumn Lake's current administrator, Yosef Mervin, also did not respond to a request for comment, and the company does not have a legal department.