One of New Jersey’s best nursing homes is going through a public relations nightmare right now.

It looks like their lawyers are in charge of their PR strategy. Things are not going very well.

The nursing home has always been considered as one of the finest in the area -- exactly where you want Dad or Grandma to live if and when the time comes. It’s clean and modern with a caring staff and looks well managed.

But all that good will is threatened today because of the actions of a rogue employee who abused an elderly patient by repeatedly striking her on the head. The abuse was caught on camera by a "nanny-cam" the family secretly placed in her room. The woman died a day after the latest abuse, although police said it didn’t cause her death.

Family members said they reported bruises they noticed to hospital authorities several times and got no results. So they decided to put in the nanny-cam. Good for them.

This is a time when effective crisis communications is so critical. But take a look at the nursing home’s official comment as reported in the media: "Subsequent to our reporting of this issue to the New Jersey Department of Health, they conducted an onsite review of the issue and determined that the … was in compliance with all federal and state licensing regulations that apply." Wow! Guess we need more government regulations because this nursing home did everything right!

That’s more like a legal brief than an effective public relations statement. It’s completely lacking any compassion or sympathy, acceptance of responsibility or determination not to let it happen to another patient. It’s probable that this was part of a larger statement, but that doesn’t matter. That’s why we write short concise statements -- to lessen the risk of unfavorable editing.

This is barely better than the dreaded "no comment" (which is like wearing a "kick me" sign in front of the media). Some attorneys convince the client to say practically nothing under the idea that anything said can only hurt their legal position. They don’t care if the business goes down in flames while they dispense these boring legalisms.

Ever hear the old joke, "the operation was a success … but the patient died." That’s what can happen when crisis communications are strict legalisms that have no public relations value.

I can remember working with one lawyer for a public agency who didn’t want me to repeat a statement to the media that had already appeared in a legal brief filed with the court -- a statement that was very helpful to our client. That was baffling to me.

I can also cite many other cases where our firm has worked effectively with great attorneys to protect a client’s image without damaging their legal position. These attorneys realize that winning in the court of public opinion is also important to the client.

As PR professionals, we understand that the legal issue must take precedence -- that the lawyers have to drive the bus, and we will not say anything without their approval. In 30 years, we haven’t harmed one legal case yet. But a good attorney also understands that crisis communications is an important part of any comprehensive strategy to deal with a potentially disastrous situation.