Carmel on the Case: Seidlin Lawsuit

The exploitation lawsuit brought by an elderly woman against former judge Larry Seidlin and several others is making its way through the legal system. At a recent deposition, there was a stand off when Seidlin tried to get close to the woman suing him.

Barbara Kasler is 84 years old. She has health issues and spends much of her time in bed at her Las Olas condominium.

Carmel Cafiero: "Is there one thing you'd want people to know?"

Barbara Kasler: "Well, look over your bills more carefully."

Carmel Cafiero: "To pay more attention to how your money is being spent?"

Barbara Kasler: "Yes."

The Seidlins aren't the only ones being sued. In all 15 individuals and business are named as defendants in the case everyone from Mrs. Kasler's former accountant to a former attorney.

[Kasler's attorney] Bill Scherer: "They weren't looking out after her interests."

So, when Mrs. Kasler recently sat down for her very first deposition in the case you can imagine how many lawyers gathered to hear what she had to say.

The wealthy widow is at the heart of a civil lawsuit that alleges she was exploited by former Broward judge Larry Seidlin, his wife and her parents. Earlier, a criminal investigation cleared Seidlin in connection with more than half a million dollars in gifts and property, Barbara Kasler gave to his family.

Full Article, Video, and Source:
Carmel on the Case: Seidlin Lawsuit

The Seidlin Family Circus

On one side, you have the politically connected Bill Scherer and his law firm, and on the other, you have Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler, former state Sen. Skip Campbell, and Florida Bar President-Elect Scott Hawkins.

Welcome to the civil suit involving former Judge Larry Seidlin, who became a national celebrity/clown during his tearful handling of the Anna Nicole Smith case, and the elderly neighbor who is claiming that Seidlin exploited her to take a sizable chunk of her multimillion-dollar fortune.

Hawkins, Seiler, and Campbell form the core of Seidlin's defense team, representing the judge; his in-laws, Oren and Barbara Ray; and family friend Dorothy "Danni" Coletto, respectively. Hawkins just took over for Russ Adler, who was knocked out after his law partner, Scott Rothstein, was implicated in a billion-dollar Ponzi scheme.

Scherer is representing the widow, Barbara Kasler. Also involved is Lyn Evans, who has been working with the Kasler family for some time and has most recently been working as an investigator for Scherer in his suit. Evans is also a part-time researcher for the Daily Pulp and provided the video.

Full Article and Source:
The Seidlin Family Circus





See Also:
Cryin Judge Seidlin Turns Author

Judge Chops Lawyers' Fees by $1 Million

Executives tired of paying big legal bills can take solace in this: North Carolina Business Court Judge Albert Diaz recently cut attorneys’ fees in a class-action case by $1 million because he thought lawyers had charged too much per hour and spent too much time working on the case.

Judges typically don’t get involved in fee arrangements between clients and their attorneys. But class-action cases are an exception because most members of the class don’t have an opportunity to negotiate a fee arrangement with the attorney that ends up representing them.

For that reason, judges have the power to act as a guardian or fiduciary for the class, says Press Millen, a Womble Carlyle attorney who was not involved in the Wachovia case but has experience with such issues. Judge Diaz, in a Feb. 5 order, exercised that authority and reduced the plaintiff’s attorneys fees down to just $932,622.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Chops Lawyer Fees by $1M

No Raise for Probate Judge Tommy Crosslin

Colbert County commissioners passed a resolution opposing a bill that would have increased Probate Judge Tommy Crosslin's salary by more than $50,000 a year.

The decision is likely unnecessary because the bill in its current form is unconstitutional and will not be introduced, State Sen. Bobby Denton, D-Muscle Shoals, said.

"As far as I know right now, there wouldn't be any need in pursuing this issue," Denton said. "I'd be foolish to introduce a bill that would be unconstitutional."

[State Rep. Marcel Black, D-Tuscumbia] said any effort to increase Crosslin's pay should be based on the duties of his office and have the input of the county commission, which pays his salary and employee benefits, including retirement.

Full Article and Source:
Judge's $50,000 Raise Dead

Rothstein's Wife Still Controls Properties

Bankruptcy lawyers handling the financial fallout from Scott Rothstein's mega Ponzi scheme are taking issue with the way federal prosecutors are dealing with the convicted felon's multimillion-dollar properties.

Of particular concern: Rothstein's wife Kimberly is still managing some of the houses and is living rent-free in one of them, the attorneys wrote in court filings.

"It has recently come to the attention (of the lawyers) that the government has apparently delegated its duty to properly manage and safeguard certain of the property subject to forfeiture to Scott Rothstein's wife — Kimberly Rothstein," wrote Paul Singerman, one of the attorneys handling the case for the bankruptcy trustee.

"More specifically, the (lawyers) have learned that the government has permitted Kimberly Rothstein to live rent free in one of the forfeited properties and to continue to rent out other properties to tenants," Singerman wrote.

Full Article and Source:
Scott Rothstein's Wife Still in Control of Properties

See Also:
New Website Tracks Scott Rothstein Bankruptcy

Bill Moyers: Justice for Sale

How would you feel if you were in court and knew that the opposing lawyer had contributed money to the judge's campaign fund? This is not an improbable hypothetical question, but could be a commonplace occurrence in the 21 states where judges must raise money to campaign for their seats — often from people with business before the court.

Though many states have elected judges since their founding, in the past 30 years, judicial elections have morphed from low-key affairs to big money campaigns. From 1999-2008, judicial candidates raised $200.4 million, more than double the $85.4 million raised in the previous decade (1989-1998).

According to retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, of all the fallout from the Citizens United decision, the most dangerous may be in judicial elections.

This week the JOURNAL revisits "Justice for Sale," a 1999 documentary about the impact of money on judicial elections in three states — Pennsylvania, Texas and Louisiana.


Full Article and Source:
Justice For Sale

See Also:
Watch Video

Read Transcript

•DANNY’S DIARY•

When every word and action is scrutinized, we must find a place within ourselves, within our spirit, that is our spine and our own personal declaration of independence. It is here we determine our words and actions and, coupled with the truth, all things false will fall by the way. This place in our soul, in our conscience, is the constant reminder of who we are, what we stand for and what we believe. With this spine, one can stand strong against any foe, any false claim, any errant wind. And, by faith, you will endure.

Source:
FreeDannyTate.Wordpress.com

See Also:
Danny Tate, Sandbagged!?

"Irreconcilable Differences"

An Upper Darby woman who admitted to bilking an elderly, partially blind Lower Merion woman for whom she worked as a home health aide apparently needs a new lawyer.

Aretha Wellington, who is awaiting sentencing on charges she stole more than $140,600 in cash and jewelry from the elderly woman, and her lawyers Gregory Noonan and John L. Walfish have developed "irreconcilable differences," according to papers filed Friday by the defense lawyers in Montgomery County Court.

Walfish and Noonan claimed Wellington has represented that she is unhappy with her present lawyers. The lawyers indicated they cannot continue to represent Wellington "under the present circumstances."

The lawyers have asked Judge William J. Furber Jr. for permission to withdraw from the case.

Furber has not yet scheduled a hearing on the matter.

Last May, Wellington, 33, pleaded guilty to felony charges of theft by unlawful taking and access device fraud, or credit card fraud, in connection with incidents that occurred between August and September of 2006.

Wellington, who remains in jail without bail pending sentencing, faces a possible maximum sentence of seven to 14 years in prison on the charges.

Full Article and Source:
Home Health Worker Who Bilked Elderly Client Needs New Lawyer

Family Upset About Dad's Forced Move

The family of an elderly man who lived at an Oroville nursing home was told he needed to move out, his son and daughter said.

Gordon Stout, a 79-year-old retired teacher, had lived in the dementia unit of Olive Ridge Care Center for more than a year.

That was a manageable arrangement, said his son, Wayne Stout of Magalia, and daughter, Linda Powell of Paradise. They were able to take their mother, who is 83, to visit her husband three or four times a week in Oroville. But now that he has been moved to a nursing home in Novato, in the Bay Area, frequent visits are no longer possible.

The younger Stout said Olive Ridge staff told him and his sister the dementia unit was being closed to make room for patients who were discharged from acute-care hospitals and needed to convalesce.

Stout said it appeared perhaps 30 of the approximately 40 people who lived in the dementia unit had been moved out recently.

Stout said Olive Ridge staff found a spot for his father at a nursing home in Novato. They said it was the closest suitable facility that could take him.

Stout said he didn't have any say in his father's move because his dad is in a conservatorship through the Butte County Public Guardian.

Full Article and Source:
Family Upset After Resident From Oroville Nursing Home

Michael T. Conahan Claims Immunity

Former Luzerne County Judge Michael T. Conahan claimed he has "judicial and legislative immunity" from the latest in a series of lawsuits filed in the aftermath of the Luzerne County kids-for-cash scandal.

Conahan, acting as his own attorney, asked to be dismissed from a lawsuit filed in December in which a former juvenile defendant claimed he was sentenced to six months at a private detention facility based solely on the number of birds perched on the ledge outside the courtroom.

Conahan, who served as the county's president judge from 2002 to 2006, said he was acting "legislatively" when he forced the closure of the county-owned detention center in 2003 and asked county commissioners to fund an exclusive agreement with the private facility.

Conahan and the former judge who allegedly issued the bird-brained sentence, Mark A. Ciavarella Jr., have already been hit with civil-rights claims from hundreds of other juveniles and a 48-count racketeering indictment for allegedly pocketing $2.8 million in kickbacks from the backers of the private facilities.

Full Article and Source:
Conahan Claims Immunity in Latest Kids-For-Cash Suit

Arenac County Votes to Keep Public Guardian Office

The Arenac County Board of Commissioners voted Feb. 16 to keep the Public Guardian office open at this time.

“It will continue operating the way it has been,” Board Chairman Ray Daniels said.

“We have a new guardian that’s doing the work and doing a good job,” [Richard] Vollbach said.

The commissioners initially discussed discontinuing the position at the end of March, after former guardians Sherilyn Jones and Robert Romps were both charged with embezzlement in December 2009.

An investigation by the Michigan State Police that began June 2009 found more than $300,000 in funds were misappropriated from about 50 clients from 1999 to 2009.

The Michigan State Police arrested Romps and Jones, along with Jones’ mother, Sally Lebeau, on Dec. 8. Lebeau was charged with conspiring to embezzle over $200 but less than $1,000.

Full Article and Source:
Commissioners Vote to Keep Public Guardian Office

See Also:
Investigation of Public Guardian

Drugged Into Silence - and Death

Psychotropic drugs were used to control residents who didn't need them at a Kern Valley Healthcare District center, complaint alleges. Three people died.

An an elder abuse case described by one investigator as the most outrageous he has ever seen, three former top managers at a Kern County nursing home have been arrested in the deaths of three residents who allegedly were given needless doses of psychotropic medications.

The state attorney general's office contended in a criminal complaint that more than 20 residents at a skilled nursing center run by the Kern Valley Healthcare District were drugged "for staff convenience." Many of them experienced side effects that included dramatic weight loss, slurred speech, tremors, loss of cognition and even psychosis, according to the complaint.

"These people maliciously violated the trust of their patients by holding them down and forcibly administering psychotropic medications if they dared to question their care," state Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown said.

All three have been charged with elder abuse. [Former nursing director Gwen] Hughes and [former chief pharmacist Debbi C.]Hayes, who are accused of administering shots by force and without consent, also face charges of assault with a deadly weapon.

Source:
Three Arrested in Nursing Home Deaths in Lake Isabella

See Also:
CANHR Report: Toxic Medicine

Task Force Calls for Overhaul of IL Nursing Facilities

A sweeping overhaul of the state's long-term care system is needed to address violence stemming from a "toxic" mix of frail elderly and younger mentally ill residents in Illinois nursing homes, a government task force said.

Gov. Pat Quinn's task force on nursing home safety released its final report with 37 recommendations, including increased staffing levels and higher fines, fees and taxes on facilities to pay for more government oversight and discourage violations -- requirements that the nursing home industry opposes.

Quinn said he'd evaluate the report and work with others to "make these reforms a reality." The recommendations "point the way to a system of long-term care that respects the needs and rights of all residents," Quinn said in a written statement.

The recommendations would add more teeth to laws governing the state's 1,200 nursing homes and expand other types of housing.

More than any other state, Illinois has relied on nursing homes to house younger adults with serious mental illnesses, an Associated Press analysis found. Elderly residents have been victimized by stronger, younger residents living next door -- or sometimes in the same room. A Chicago Tribune series of articles spurred Quinn to form the task force.

Full Article and Source:
Task Force Calls for Overhaul of State's Nursing Homes

$18.5 Million Zyprexa Settlement

Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel on Tuesday announced an $18.5 million settlement of a lawsuit with Eli Lilly & Co. over off-label marketing of the anti-psychotic drug Zyprexa.

Zyprexa was approved to treat schizophrenia and certain types off bipolar disorder in adults. McDaniel's lawsuit alleged that the company engaged in "illegal and fraudulent off-label marketing of Zyprexa," pushing its use to treat dementia, aggression, depression and sleep disorders among adults.

The suit also alleged the company promoted the drug for unapproved use in children.

"They didn't care what they were doing to taxpayers and to children," McDaniel said at a news conference at the state Capitol.

Eli Lilly admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement.

Full Article and Source:
Arkansas Attorney General Announces $18.5 Million Drug Settlement

Ohio Judge Retiring

After more than three decades on the bench, Judge Richard Evans has decided to hang up his robe.

"I used to think that 37 years was an inconceivably long time," Evans said.

But Evans was just a few years short of his predecessor in probate court, Judge C.M. Ross, who was with Coshocton County Probate and Juvenile Court for 37 years. Evans is the seventh common pleas judge to hold the office here since the position was created in 1917.

In 1980, he ran for common pleas general division judge and has held the seat ever since.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Evans Hanging Up His Robe

The People's Rights

NASGA reprints here only one sentence from an email sent from Broward County Commissioner Ilene Lieberman to activist Warence Mae Smith (posted in Bob Norman's blog, source listed below) about the courthouse the commission decided to build for $328 million against the will of its constituents, who voted it down by a 70-30 58-42 margin:

"... You may not realize that the courthouse is where people's rights are protected, whether it be an adoption, divorce, probate, guardianship, small claims court (the people's court) or other type of lawsuit. "

In direct response to only that one sentence, advocate Tom Fields also emailed Warence Mae Smith:

Dear Mae,

I followed a link from NASGA’s blog to the material posted at http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/pulp/2010/02/ilene_lieberman_courthouse.php. Although I've barely glanced at the material, I couldn't help but notice Broward County Commissioner Ilene Lieberman's remark "You may not realize that the courthouse is where people's rights are protected."

My reply to that is that Ms. Lieberman apparently does not realize that the courthouse is where people's rights are violated. I know my own were, and I'd like to share with you the evidence from that experience, about which Joe Roubicek, a police detective who works for the Florida State attorney in Broward County, has unofficially written:

“The obvious contradictions abound and one would wonder what the judge was thinking. As for the lawmakers and what they can do about it … You've suggested putting specific safeguards in place for legislation ... it seems to me that in your case there is no way that your father should have been recognized as having capacity while in his deathbed. There should have been laws in place to prevent that and prevent any judge from doing what this one did.”

Do you want to expose what goes on inside our courthouses? Do you want to expose the negligence and frauds of Florida lawyers and judges? Do you want to confront these lawyers and judges with practical proposals for preventing their abuses? If so, would you be interested in material which I have shared with Joe and can provide you? If so, start by looking at the evidence which I describe and link online at http://home.roadrunner.com/~tvfields/dir.htm and http://home.roadrunner.com/~tvfields/ILF_Links/Frameset001.htm

Our legal system functions more like a brothel than a protector of people’s rights, and Ms. Lieberman sounds like a courthouse pimp.

Sincerely,
Tom Fields

Full Lieberman Email and Source:
The Lieberman Letter

See Also:
NASGA Affiliate Tom Fields Addresses Ohio Elder Abuse Commission

Financial Abuse of the Elderly; A Detective's Case Files of Exploitation Crimes, by Joe Roubicek

ExploitationElderly.com

WI Considering Updates to Durable Power of Attorney Laws

The state Legislature is considering updates to Wisconsin’s durable power of attorney laws which would provide more protection for principals, agents and third-party institutions.

Proposals in both the Senate (SB 529) and Assembly (AB 704) modernizes current law to give people, especially those that may be incapacitated, a better ability to have their power of attorney documents accepted by banks or other financial entities.

It also establishes a revised statutory form that clearly outlines the responsibilities and limits of an agent in an effort to curb abuses of power of attorney.

Committees in both the Senate (SB 529) and Assembly (AB 704) held public hearings last week on the bills which are based on the 2006 Uniform Power of Attorney Act.

Sen. Fred Risser is a co-sponsor of the bill and a spokesperson from his office said Wisconsin is following the trend of other states that have used the uniform act as a model for changing local statutes.

And attorneys in the trusts and estates and elder law areas say the updates are overdue.

Full Article and Source:
Legislature Looks to Make Power of Attorney More Durable

Denver Post Investigation: Probate Court Rife With Lapses

When retired librarian Jeanne Hamer needed help, the Denver probate court appointed a guardian who sold many of her belongings to himself and billed her hundreds of times for walking with her and reading poetry to her. And, as a protected person, she nearly starved to death.

A 50-year-old Denver man with early dementia and the AIDS virus engaged in unprotected sex while under a guardian's supervision. And after that, the Denver probate court heard nothing about him from his guardian for five years.

William Gostele and a female friend racked up $83,517 in expenses on behalf of his brother before the Denver probate court asked why a single, elderly man was paying for frequent plane flights and spending up to $1,300 a month for groceries.

Four years after a state audit found some Colorado guardians reported nothing about people they were appointed to protect, and that its courts inadequately reviewed reports that were filed, The Denver Post has learned that the state still cannot say how many of its most vulnerable residents are being protected in accordance with the law.

A review of Denver probate court records found that some clearly are not.

Despite a state law requiring each guardian of a ward's health and each conservator of a protected person's finances to file detailed yearly reports, many guardians reported nothing for five years.

• Expense reports showing a guardian kept ignoring a court order were not questioned for four years.

• The roster of wards currently protected by the courts includes people who have been dead for years.

• The state court system cannot tell how many guardians are informing judges about the people they're protecting because reporting methods vary from court to court.

• The probate system lacks standards and training for family members appointed to protect people no longer capable of making important decisions for themselves.

Full Article and Source:
Probate Court Rife With Lapses in Training, Oversight

Note: Cases 1-3 supplement this investigation and are posted below

Case One: Ward Untracked for Years

George damaged his brain by sniffing paint and petroleum fumes and drinking too much alcohol, court records show. At the age of 50, he was diagnosed as suffering from early dementia.

It wasn't his only affliction. He also was infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

The court appointed George's sister as his guardian in 2001, and she moved him to a nursing home.

Twice in 2003, reports to the court deemed him an inappropriate resident at the nursing home. The first noted that he "elopes from the facility and engages in substance abuse" and "has reported engaging in sexual encounters while eloping."

The second disclosed that three long-term care facilities had rejected him because of behaviors that "include sexually accosting other residents, stealing, eloping and allegedly having sexual encounters."

In November 2003, George's sister reported that he was still at the same nursing home, that he had stayed with her for two days at Thanksgiving and that "he goes to Central City, bingo and church" for social and spiritual activities.

Then she sent no more reports.

In February 2009, Caroline Cammack, a probate court employee, discovered that George's guardian was sending no information about an HIV-positive ward.

"In those five years, we never knew where George was or his condition," Cammack said. And when she asked why, she said another court employee responded, "We're not sure if this man is alive."

Full Article and Source:
Case One: "High HIV Transmission Risk" Went Untracked for Years

Case Two: Conservator's Expense Reports

As a Denver librarian, Jeanne Hamer was surrounded by friends. When a new library was built in 1982, nearly 200 of them gave her a surprise party there.

But in her retirement, Hamer grew more isolated from family and friends. Her only child, a daughter afflicted with a mental illness, died in 2000. After that, her closest relative was a cousin in Massachusetts.

She came to depend on an old friend and former library employee, Robert Shaklee. In 1990, she signed a form giving him power of attorney to make medical decisions. Nine years later he became her court-appointed conservator.

The turning point in her retirement came in 2001, when she wandered away from her south Denver home and was reported missing for three days.

After she was found, Shaklee took her to an assisted-living facility in Denver without explaining where she was going and placed her there, never to return home.

A court battle ensued, pitting Shaklee against Hamer's distant relatives, a close friend, a Denver lawyer and Hamer's ex-husband.

Four years passed before anyone at the court noticed that Shaklee had not sold Hamer's house. However, he had submitted detailed expense reports. For example:

In 2001, when Hamer was missing for three days, he had charged her $1,198 for his time, including $45 an hour to drive around looking for her and $104 a night to sleep at her house in case she showed up. After putting her in Sunrise, he had charged her $13 a day for three weeks to feed her cat.

Over the years, he paid himself hundreds of times for picking up her mail, visiting her, walking with her or reading to her. For more skilled services — taking her to a doctor or dentist, meeting with the Sunrise staff, discussing her with his lawyer, paying bills — he charged $45 an hour.

Nobody challenged any of these expenses until November 2006. That month, court employee Caroline Cammack noted the various house-related expenses for a ward in an assisted-living home — and labeled some conservator charges "ludicrous."

Full Article and Source:
Case Two: Conservator's Expense Reports for Woman in Assisted Living Raised Red Flags

Case Three: "Expenses"

Nine years ago, James Gostele needed help from the Denver probate court.

He had been diagnosed as suffering from dementia and was recovering from a month-long hospitalization that left him with an unpaid $197,000 bill.

A brother in Illinois was willing to assist him. The court approved William Gostele as the guardian of James' health and conservator of his assets.

In that role, Gostele successfully negotiated a reduction of the hospital bill and paid it by refinancing his brother's house. But probate records also show a pattern of late and missing reports that persisted for five years before anyone questioned how James' money was being spent.

And after the court discovered in 2006 that much of $83,517 in expenses had paid for Gostele's flights to Colorado and reimbursements to a woman he would marry, it neglected again to collect his expense reports.

Full Article and Source:
Case Three, As Guardian Expenses $60,491 in Three Years

Fox 5 Special: Elder Abuse

Caregivers can be hired to help care for the elderly, but authorities say some help themselves to their clients' life savings instead. Some of these caregivers commit the ultimate betrayal and some pay for their crimes with prison time.

"My aunt developed Alzheimer's, I needed extra help at home," said Eleanor Flanagan of her aunt Frances Lindsey.

Lindsey's family turned to caregiver Felicia Harvey in 2006, when their then 87-year old aunt needed around the clock care.

"People are hard to find you feel like you can trust like that," said Flanagan.

Nearly a year after Harvey took the job, the elderly woman's family made a devastating discovery. Thousands of dollars were missing from Lindsey's account.

"We were stunned when I first found the evidence on the bank statements. I thought the bank made a mistake. It honestly never crossed my mind that Felicia would do that. I just did not want to believe it," recalled Flanagan.

Flanagan said Harvey admitted to the family and Gwinnett County authorities, that she stole over $17,000 dollars from Lindsey over a seven week period in 2007.

Full Article and Source:
Fox 5 Special: Elderly Abuse

Woman to be Sentenced

A woman paid by her elderly former father-in-law to care for him exploited the man by obtaining credit cards using his identification, Volusia County sheriff's investigators said. By the time the fraud was discovered, Santillo had racked up credit card bills totaling $8,500, the report said.

Darlene Santillo, 50, pleaded no contest to charges of exploitation of the elderly and fraudulent use of personal identification Tuesday, said State Attorney's Office spokesman Chris Kelly. Santillo faces up to 10 years in prison and is in the Volusia County Branch Jail awaiting sentencing, Kelly said.

Full Article and Source:
Woman Awaits Sentencing for Elderly Exploitatiom

Sealing Britney Spears' Records?!

BRITNEY SPEARS’ lawyers have filed legal papers in a bid to keep the singer’s personal and medical records confidential.

Attorneys for the hitmaker’s conservatorship, Geraldine Wyle and Jeryll Cohen, fear Spears’ “critical information” and that of her sons, Sean Preston and Jayden James, will end up in the public domain.

They have now launched a legal bid to have the documents protected by a court order.

Full Article and Source:
Spears' Lawyers Fight to Keep Her Personal Records Confidential

See Also:
Britney Still Conserved

200 Hours Community Service and Two Years Probation

Janet Unger figures the rift in her family will never be repaired.

After her sister was accused of wrongly taking more than $100,000 from her elderly parents' savings, their relationship disintegrated.

"My reaction was: Someone had shoved a sword through my chest," Unger told a judge Monday before her sister, Eloise Russo, was sentenced for embezzlement.

"Eloise has been secretive, deceitful, evasive and manipulative," Unger went on to say, urging jail time.Russo, 53, did not get jail but instead was ordered to serve 200 hours of community service and placed on two years probation in Ottawa County Circuit Court. She'll have to pay restitution as determined by a probate judge.

Russo was appointed guardian to her parents, Tom and Ada Sherwin, of Hudsonville, in early 2007. Relatives claim the Sherwins had life savings of $279,000 at one point, but now it's substantially depleted.

Full Article and Source:
Woman Urges Judge To Give Sister Jail Time for Taking More Than $100 Thousand From Parents

See Also:
Family Not Happy With Plea Bargain

Financial Exploitation Using Power of Attorney

A trusting 82-year-old 'Aiea man is struggling to restore his financial footing after giving away his durable power of attorney to a female acquaintance who used it to raid his bank account and obtain credit cards and a reverse mortgage that plunged him into staggering debt.

Friends who are helping the elderly man said cash losses and new debt from years of financial exploitation could top $750,000, with no guarantee of getting any of it back.

The 'Aiea man's predicament, now under investigation by the state Department of Human Services Adult Protective Services, is an example of how powers of attorney — used since ancient times to allow individuals to act on behalf of others in business transactions and other affairs — have become a license to steal from the elderly.

Most often the thieves are relatives or caregivers who take advantage of a senior's poor health or diminished mental capacity to gain control of bank accounts, homes and other assets for their own benefit, according to elder law experts and other advocates for the elderly.

"It's a huge problem," said Bruce Bottorff, associate state director of AARP. "We continue to do education and outreach because it is so prevalent and, frankly, underreported. People need to be vigilant as the population grows older."

Full Article and Source:
More Hawaii Seniors Financially Exploited

See Also:
Couple Helping Exploited Widower Pick Up Pieces

New Website Tracks Scott Rothstein Bankruptcy

The bankruptcy attorneys cleaning up the wreckage of Scott Rothstein's $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme have set up a new Web site to keep creditors informed of their efforts in the fast moving case.

The Web site www.rra-bk.com includes court filings, upcoming court dates, important documents, a full court docket, and an e-mail address for creditors to submit questions.

Since the bankruptcy case was filed Nov. 10 -- just days after the massive fraud scheme imploded -- there have been 350 court filings in the bankruptcy case.

On the Web site, creditors, or just the curious, can take a look at the clawback suits that have been filed against Rothstein's former law partners, the trustee's monthly financial reports and periodic notifications about what steps are being taken to recover investors' money.

Full Article and Source:
New Rothstein Bankruptcy Website Provides Documents, Updates

Former Rothstein Firm Partner Sued

The bankruptcy trustee for jailed attorney Scott Rothstein's defunct law firm set his sights Thursday on equity partner Stuart Rosenfeldt, claiming $8 million in excessive compensation and linking bonuses to political contributions.

Rothstein has pleaded guilty to racketeering, fraud and conspiracy in a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme based on fake structured settlements sold through the 70-lawyer Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler.

Federal prosecutors accused Rothstein of funneling some of the tainted money to employees of the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based firm for political campaign contributions to avoid federal and state election donation caps.

Herbert Stettin, the firm's court-appointed trustee, is demanding the return of $7.94 million from Rosenfeldt and his wife, claiming he was entitled to a maximum $1.15 million in the past four years but received much more. Rothstein and Rosenfeldt were the firm's only equity partners.

Full Article and Source:
Former Rothstein Firm Partner Sued for $8 Million

See Also:
Scott Rothstein Pleads Guilty

Scott Rothstein's Mother's Tears

I had a lengthy sit-down with Scott Rothstein's mother this past week. Gay Rothstein defended her only son as you'd expect a mother would, even if her son now sits in federal detention awaiting a possible 100-year sentence after he admitted running a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.

Gay said she doesn't understand how or why Scott went from a legitimate attorney to a convicted criminal, betraying close friends and family along the way.

"I don't have the answers," she said. "It's not that I won't tell you the answers, it's that I have none."

Full Article and Source:
Scott Rothstein's Mother: No Answers, Just Tears

Danny Tate - Sandbagged?!

Source:
FreeDannyTate

See Also:
Press Release: Danny Tate Conservatorship

Misnomers

What does the word "Guardian" make you think of?

A protector? A defender? Someone who watches over the vulnerable? An angel?







How about "Conservator"?
Someone who is going to conserve and protect your money for you? Pay your bills and tend to your financial needs? Perhaps even make your savings grow?



"Fiduciary"? The legal definition: A fiduciary is expected to be extremely loyal to the person to whom they owe the duty (the "principal"): they must not put their personal interest before the duty, and must not profit from their position as a fiduciary, unless the principal consents. The fiduciary relationship is highlighted by good faith, loyalty and trust, and the word itself originally comes from the Latin "fides," meaning "face", "fiducia"

That automatically means a fiduciary can be trusted; right?



The "Ward"?
Nameless, faceless, unthinking, unfeeling - the Ward is treated as a nonperson.





"The children of the Ward"?
The judge calls you a "child of the Ward." If you're six or 60, you're still a "child." The rest of the participants in the case have adult titles, and get respect. You're not only called a child; you're treated as one, too!

Source:
StopGuardianAbuse.org

Straight Talk About Saving Gary Harvey

The story of Gary Harvey is not unique and, sadly, could become more common. But when I heard from his loving wife Sara recently, it occurred to me that this is a case that everyone should be made aware of because it is about a couple who should never have been made to suffer simply because one of them became severely disabled.

Before I share Sara’s plea, I want you to know why Gary Harvey is so important to each of us who believe in human dignity, human rights and human personhood.

Until January 2006, Gary Harvey was leading a normal life. Then, one day, he suffered a heart attack and fell down a flight of stairs. On that day, his life and the lives of his loved ones changed forever. The injuries he suffered left him permanently, severely disabled.

Gary Harvey was placed in Chemung County Nursing Facility - and a familiar battle began. Sara, Gary's wife, started complaining about the quality of care - or lack thereof. After pushing their own allegations, the facility was successful [in 2007] in having Sara removed as her husband's guardian, severely limiting contact and removing any right to make decisions on her husband's behalf.

From that point forward, Sara has been struggling against all odds to save her husband from what she fears could be the same fate that confronted the Schindler family’s beloved Terri Schindler Schiavo — death by starvation. When I spoke to Sara on the phone yesterday, she said again, “I just want to bring Gary home.”

Full Article and Source:
Help Save Gary Harvey's Life

See Also:
HelpBringGaryHome.com

Help Bring Gary Home Website

We are family & friends of Gary & Sara Harvey.

We come from various walks of life, but share a common goal.

We seek justice and compassion for the helpless, who have fallen victim to a system of madness and injustice in the guise of being the law.

Today, we are here for Gary & Sara Harvey!

Tomorrow, we will be here as well!

Will you join us in the fight to bring Gary home?

Source:
HelpBringGaryHome.com

Gary E. Harvey, Veteran in Peril

HE PROTECTED US; SHOULDN'T WE DO THE SAME FOR HIM?

Gary E. Harvey served in the Army as a Special Force Ranger during the Vietnam War. He was honored with a National Service Defense Medal and as an expert M16 rifleman. He was honorably discharged in 1971. After suffering a serious accident, Gary became a ward of the state.

He is now confined in a hospital and denied the comfort of his home and life with his wife.

His wife, Sara, is only permitted to visit Gary on a pre-determined schedule and "under guard." All medical decisions, including those of life and death, are made by strangers.

Please pray for him.

Source:
StopGuardianAbuse.org

Lawyers Ordered to Repay Thousands

For three months, a pair of attorneys hired by a dying Harwich Port millionaire's family were paid to be his guardian.

Their fee? Half a million dollars.

The duo — Dennis-based lawyer E. James Veara and Boston attorney Gerald Nissenbaum — also spent $20,000 of their client's money on a private investigator they hired to watch Kenneth Simon's wife, Anne Flaherty Simon.

Both men are now being ordered by a judge to repay hundreds of thousands of dollars to Simon's family, which sued the attorneys after he died in 2005.

Plymouth County Probate & Family Court Judge Stephen C. Steinberg chastised Veara and Nissenbaum for unethical behavior that includes overcharging the 71-year-old's estate as the retired Harwich Port financial manager lay dying at Pleasant Bay Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Brewster.

"Nissenbaum and Veara wildly spent the ward's money," Steinberg wrote in the Jan. 14 decision.

Veara, who has been practicing at his father's Dennis law firm, Zisson & Veara, for nearly 20 years, called Steinberg's decision "retaliatory."

"Anyone who knows me, knows I'm honest, fair, hard-working and, frankly, I didn't do anything wrong here," Veara said. "I'll pursue my right to appeal."

'Lawyers lost their way'
The two attorneys "paid themselves approximately $500,000 for a temporary guardianship that lasted 83 days," Steinberg stated.

An expert witness for the case claimed guardianship lasting that amount of time should cost between $20,000 and $40,000, according to court documents.

Judge Steinberg ordered Veara to repay $107,741.45, and Nissenbaum to repay about $199,000. They were also ordered to repay the $20,000 spent on a private investigator hired to get dirt on Flaherty Simon.

The Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers office has an open investigation of the case, and the two lawyers could be penalized further, said Charles Waters, of Sheehan, Phinney, Bass & Green, of Boston, who represented Simon's two sons in the case against Veara and Nissenbaum.

"I think this is a sad story for two lawyers who lost their way ... instead of following their fiduciary duties, they acted in their own self-interest," Waters said.

Full Article and Source:
Lawyers Ordered to Repay Thousands

IL Attorney Recommended for Disbarment

A Naperville attorney awaiting trial for allegedly stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from his clients and former law firm partners has been recommended for disbarment.

Members of the Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission's hearing board have concluded Steven D. Gustafson should forfeit his license to practice law. The ARDC, an agency of the Illinois Supreme Court, investigates and prosecutes attorneys suspected of or charged with malfeasance.

He faces trial in DuPage County Circuit Court in Wheaton on a total of 12 felony charges of theft, forgery, financial institution fraud and continuing a financial crimes enterprise. A Feb. 24 status date is set in that case.

DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett last year accused Gustafson of writing unauthorized checks to himself between 2001 and 2006 that were drawn against a trust fund bank account held by the firm. He then allegedly cashed the checks or deposited them into his personal bank account.

Full Article and Source:
Disbarment Sought of Lawyer Accused of Stealing

Ex-Judge Accused of Theft

Former state District Court Judge E. Karl Prohl was indicted Friday on a felony charge of theft by a public servant concerning $34,706 received from public coffers, reportedly for travel-related expenses, records show.

Prohl, who retired in September after 18 years on the bench, was booked into the Kerr County Jail on Friday evening and released on a personal recognizance bond.

“He's distressed about the publicity, but he feels like he'll be exonerated,” said defense attorney Roy O. Minton.

The indictment, issued after months of investigation by the state's attorney general, details 17 payments to Prohl between 2004 and 2007 by Kerr County, two probation departments, and the district attorney's office.

The payments to Prohl were for travel-related expenses, said Minton, who said the former judge had offered to make restitution.

Full Article and Source:
Ex-Judge Prohl Accused of Theft

Broker Pleads Guilty to $2 Mil Ponzi Scheme

A former Ponte Vedra Beach financial broker pleaded guilty this afternoon to using $2 million he stole from 22 elderly investors to pay for cars, credit card purchases and other luxury items.

Michael Joseph DiMare, 51, pleaded guilty to mail fraud for selling 22 people fake investment opportunities he said would show quarterly returns of about 8 percent. Many of the investors in what became a Ponzi scheme were from Northeast Florida, including some in their 80s.

One 87-year-old woman invested about $1.4 million with DiMare and had $72,000 stolen, said Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Tysen Duva.

Duva told U.S. Magistrate Thomas Morris that DiMare is now under further investigation following allegations of his involvement with bank fraud, but details were not provided.

DiMare was freed after signing for a $100,000 unsecured bond and promising to look for work and not attempt to seek investments from anyone. He faces up to 20 years in prison on the mail fraud charge.

Full Article and Source:
Former Ponte Vedra Beach Broker Accused of Bilking Elderly Out of $2Mil in Ponzi Scheme

Family of Late Judge John Phillips Sues Park Slope Nursing Home

The family of a Brooklyn judge has slapped a Park Slope nursing home with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit charging that shoddy treatment led to his death.

The $10 million suit alleges the Prospect Park Residence - where Judge John Phillips lived for eight months until his death two years ago - refused to give him a diabetic menu and frequently missed giving him required insulin shots.

"He had diabetes that was supposed to be controlled," said lawyer John O'Hara, also a longtime friend of Phillips. "They kept screwing up. ... They killed him."

Phillips - known as the "Kung Fu judge" during his 17 years on the Civil Court bench for his habit of making martial arts moves in court - died at 83 in February 2008 after collapsing in a Prospect Park Residence elevator.

He had been declared mentally incompetent in 2001, a move some charged was politically motivated because he had announced plans to challenge Brooklyn District attorney Charles Hynes.

A series of court-appointed guardians allegedly squandered Phillips' assets, and he died owing more than $1.5 million in taxes and other debts.

Phillips' nephew, the Rev. Samuel Boykin, who is managing his estate, said he noticed signs of trouble soon after Phillips moved into the Prospect Park West nursing home.

"Looking at him, you could tell his health was going downhill fast," he said. "I was afraid that his life was in danger."

He insisted poor care - not just advancing age - led to Phillips' decline, noting the judge was "a health fanatic."

"My uncle was a 10th-degree black belt in Asiatic martial arts," he said. "He never drank. He never smoked cigarettes. He went to bed every night at 8 o'clock.

"The justice system that he served let him down. It's been devastating."

Full Article and Source:
Family of 'Kung Fu Judge' John Phillips Sues Nursing Home Over Death, Allege Missed Insulin Shots

Contact John O'Hara: OHara007@comcast.net
See Also: FreeJohnOHara

See Also:
Even a Judge is not Safe

YouTube: Background Information on Judge John Phillips Case

Source:
YouTube: Hardfire trailer CORRUPTION IN THE DA's OFFICE / JOHN O'HARA

The People vs The People

Petition to Pardon John Kennedy O'Hara

A top state court has moved to rectify a longstanding miscarriage of justice by restoring the law license of the only New Yorker convicted of a crime simply for voting since suffragist Susan B. Anthony was put on trial in 1873.

The Brooklyn Appellate Division wisely let political activist John O'Hara again serve as an attorney despite his automatic disbarment as a felon. In doing so, the court officially recognized the patently unfair nature of O'Hara's prosecution.

It is beyond doubt that O'Hara was the victim of a criminal justice vendetta ginned up by enemies in the Brooklyn Democratic Party who were fed up with his constant challenges. As a special committee of lawyers reported to the court: "Mr. O'Hara, accurately it appears, claims that the machine went gunning for him."

The weapon of choice was Brooklyn District Attorney Joe Hynes, who hauled O'Hara into three trials on seven felony charges that carried the potential for years in jail.

Source:
FreeJohnOHara.com

Sign the Petition for Gubernatorial Pardon of John O'Hara

See Also:
YouTube Video: The People vs The People

Disbarred NY Attorney Suspended in FL

A disbarred New York attorney who stole more than $6,000 from two clients’ escrow accounts has been suspended from practicing in Florida and ordered to close his North Naples office.

The Florida Supreme Court suspended the license of Gary W. Gramer, 63, indefinitely and gave him 30 days to protect his clients’ interests and shut down Gramer & Associates, a personal injury practice on Southbay Drive, to protect his clients’ interests.

The Florida Supreme Court ruling was handed down Dec. 14, but the suspension wasn’t effective until 30 days later so he could close his firm. The order was made public Jan. 29, when The Florida Bar published its list of disciplined attorneys.

The court made its ruling after The Florida Bar received a Nov. 30 notice about his indictment and sentence in New York. Authorities there tracked him to Naples, where he was arrested in November 2007.

New York Supreme Court records show Gramer was suspended on Oct. 26, 2005, due to his “serious physical illness and resultant medical disability,” and all pending disciplinary proceedings were stayed until further order. The court ordered a medical examination to determine whether he could practice law. If the medical expert determined he was incapacitated, the order said he would immediately be suspended and his clients’ files would be inventoried to protect them.

Full Article and Source:
N. Naples Lawyer Suspended Due to Thefts in NY"

Judge Reverses Ruling in Novack Estate

On Monday, Narcy Novack was celebrating a bittersweet victory after a judge paved the way for her to cash in on her slain husband's $10 million fortune.

Her victory was short-lived.

By Thursday, Novack -- a suspect in last year's killing in New York of her husband, Ben Novack Jr. -- no longer held the purse strings and, according to court records, she may also be tangled up in a federal criminal investigation.

Noting an ``imminent'' federal grand jury probe in New York -- and the fact that her two criminal attorneys wanted to collect more than $1 million from her husband's estate -- he overturned his decision Monday to hand her control of the estate.

Under the judge's new order, Narcy Novack must post a $5 million bond before she can be named personal representative. The liquid assets of the estate will be placed in a court depository, where the money cannot be touched without court approval.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Reverses Ruling That Gave Widow Control of Novak Estate

See Also:
Novack's Widow to Control $10 Mil Estate

NJ Sheriff's Officer Indicted

A Monmouth County Grand Jury has handed up three separate indictments with a total of 22 counts against a suspend Monmouth County Sheriff's Officer accused of bilking the elderly aunt of his ex-wife and others using fraudulently obtained credit cards.

Christopher Donadio, 44, of Middletown faces three separate counts of second-degree official misconduct for each of the indictments, and two counts of second degree hindering of his own apprehension. Also included in the three indictments is a lone count of second degree misapplication of entrusted funds, and various charges of credit-card theft, identity theft, forgery, fraudulent use of credit cards, and other charges.

Donadio faces a 10-year prison sentence, with a minimum five years without parole eligibility, if convicted of official misconduct and the other second-degree crimes contained in the indictment. He faces an exposure of more than 120 years behind bars if he is convicted on each of the charges contained in the three indictments.

Donadio has maintained his innocence. He remains free on $75,000 bail.

Full Article and Source:
Grand Jury Indicts Monmouth County Sheriff's Officer

Medicaid Fraud Investigation Leads to Arrest

A Medicaid fraud investigation has led to the arrest of a 33-year-old Lincoln man, who now is charged with abuse of a vulnerable adult.

Spencer Owen is accused of improperly spending $5,171.03 from his grandmother's account.

In court records, Douglas Klaumann, an investigator with the Medicaid Fraud & Patient Abuse Unit of the Nebraska Attorney General's Office, said that Owen spent $7,768.96 on himself since his grandmother went to the nursing home.

The nursing home where Owen's grandmother has lived since October 2007 contacted the fraud unit last March on allegations he was spending his grandmother's Social Security check and not paying for her care.

Klaumann said a review of her bank statement showed purchases at restaurants, convenience stores, gas stations, an online ticket site, clothing stores, a tattoo parlor and a skateboard shop, among others, since she has been at the nursing home.

They believe Owen, a co-guardian for his grandmother, made the purchases for himself.

Full Article and Source:
Medicaid Fraud Investigation Leads to Local Man's Arrest"

CANHR Report: Toxic Medicine

CANHR is pleased to announce the release of "Toxic Medicine: What You Should Know to Fight the Misuse of Psychoactive Drugs in Nursing Homes."

The new guidebook covers all of the basics regarding psychoactive drugs in nursing homes, from a description of their uses and side effects to an examination of the applicable laws.

Most importantly, the guide gives practical tips for nursing home residents or their family members to prevent misuse of psychoactive drugs. Releasing the guide is just the first stage of CANHR's 2010 Campaign to End Inappropriate Drugging of California Nursing Home Residents.

Source:
TOXIC MEDICINE: What You Should Know to Fight the Misuse of Psychoactive Drugs in California Nursing Homes

See Also:
California Adovcates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR) website

IL Revokes Nursing Home's License

A Chicago Tribune investigative report has been succesful in exposing a lack of compliance to Illinois laws for admitting and caring for nursing home residents. Criminal background checks and risk assessments were not being conducted on new residents, allowing for mentally ill patients and convicted felons to become rent-free residents of Medicaid nursing homes and placing senior residents at risk.

Seniors who do not have personal assets and a monthly income to pay for nursing home costs can qualify for ongoing care in a nursing home paid for by Medicaid, a state and federally funded program. Owning a Medicaid nursing home can be compared to owning an apartment complex which is always rented - as long as you can admit qualifying patients, the government will pay the rent each month.

One nursing home housed 18 felons and drew attention after 17 assualts and 2 incidents of sexual violence were reported.

Somerset Place in Chicago housed more than 300 residents and the federal government has pulled the plug on their Medicaid payments. However, it took good reporting to make this happen - another indicator that the state nursing home inspection reports do not provide all the answers for maintaining quality nursing homes. Felons belong in prisons, not nursing homes.

Full Article and Source:
Illinois Revokes Nursing Home's License

Caregiver Accused of Exploitation

Attorney General Jim Hood says a Jackson woman who worked as a caregiver is accused of exploiting one of her clients.

Hood said in a news release that 34-year-old Stephanie Fields has been indicted on charges that include identity theft and exploitation against a vulnerable adult.

Authorities have accused Fields of using the elderly man's name and Social Security number to run up credit charges in excess of $6,700 and attempting to charge an additional $2,000.

Full Article and Source:
Woman Accused of Exploiting Elderly Patient

Press Release: Danny Tate Conservatorship

***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

Fame, fortune, addiction. The fortune part is what makes Danny Tate prisoner of a Tennessee conservatorship.

Danny Tate, successful rock musician and composer, is forced to fight a formidable team, led by his own brother; a team seeking permanent control of all aspects of his life—his finances, in particular. The motives of the entire team against Danny Tate, including attorneys, mental health professionals and even a Tennessee judge, are being called into question.

Nashville, TN, February 11, 2010 When Danny Tate relapsed in 2007 after eighteen years of sobriety, his world unraveled in typical fashion. During the spiral, he called on his older brother, David, for short term assistance. But, that regrettable request opened a door, and David Tate stepped through. That door is the door that swings open to conservators in Tennessee who might wish for any reason, altruistic or otherwise, to wrangle full control of another’s assets and life.

These days, Danny Tate cannot enter into business contracts, access his hard earned money, or even write a check. He has been rendered helpless to rebuild his life, a life that once included lucrative deals in the music industry. Though Danny Tate is back to managing his addictive tendencies just as he did for eighteen years prior to 2007, his fight to regain control of what is left of his assets and his life consumes his days.

"An out-of-control probate court rendered a conservatorship on my life that has wrought nothing but personal, professional and financial ruin to the benefit of probate attorneys who prey on the unsuspecting,” says Tate. “Many are victimized by conservatorships all across our country. My hope is my case will shed light on this shadowy corner of the law.”

Beyond his personal battle, Danny Tate vows to change Tennessee laws related to conservatorship abuse. Without money, the freedom to act in his own behalf, or, indeed, a place to always stay, he wages war from Nashville as only a resourceful person with virtually no resources can--through the help of friends and the press.

Read of Danny Tate’s fight for freedom at:
FreeDannyTate.wordpress.com

Source:
Barbara Neff
Volunteer Public Information Representative
Free Danny Tate
(303) 408-6335
palms2pines@aol.com
www.freedannytate.wordpress.com/

See Also:
Court-Ordered Hell

Good News for Danny Tate

In the light of recent events, it looks as if the legal Titanic is beginning to turn. In open court this morning, Randy Kennedy, though angry and frustrated, realizes his political and legal future is in question.

That said, he denied a final order making Danny Tate a permanent ward of the court, and followed the instructions of the Appellate Court to allow a final hearing which will result, finally, in an evidentiary trial with adversarial counsel representing Danny Tate.

In truth, this has never happened in the entirety of this case. This is the first single item granted in favor of Mr. Tate in this entire debacle and it’s obvious that public outcry influenced this decision.

Trial date is set for May 25, 2010.

The true battle has just begun. It will probably exhaust every dime left in Danny Tate’s retirement account to stage this trial considering he will be billed for all depositions, evaluations, etc. of both sides. Let’s make sure the criminal activity on the part of the judge, the attorney, but especially the conservator, Danny Tate’s brother, has a chance to come to light. This should NEVER happen to another soul again. This is potentially GOOD NEWS!

But it’s far from over…

Source:
FreeDannyTate.wordpress.com

See Also:
Court-Ordered Hell

Case Against Former Attorney Jessica Miller Growing Stronger

Prosecutors have grown one witness stronger in their case against former Port Richey attorney Jessica Miller.

Miller's former paralegal and office manager, Kristen Collins, pleaded no contest to four counts of grand theft last month. The plea was not the result of negotiations with the Pasco-Pinellas State Attorney's Office, but Collins has agreed to testify against her former boss when Miller goes on trial March 15 on theft charges.

Collins, 31, of Hudson, likely won't be sentenced until the conclusion of Miller's trial, said Assistant State Attorney Chip Stanton. Collins faces up to 40 years in prison, but she's more likely to receive a sentence closer to the low end of the state's sentencing guidelines. In her case, the guidelines call for a minimum sentence of 23 months in prison.

Full Article and Source:
Ex-Employee to Testify Against Former Pasco Lawyer

See Also:
Grand Theft Charges

27 Years in Litigation

A family feud over a father's will that has raged for more than a quarter-century - pitting two sisters against their brother in a Bronx court - may finally be over.

Diana Sakow and Evelyn Breslaw were naive young women when their father, real estate investor Max Sakow, died of a heart attack in 1956.

Now retired golden-agers, the sisters have been awarded part of their father's holdings, capping one of the longest-running probate battles in the city.

"My father wanted us to have this when we were young," said Breslaw, 69, who was 15 when her father died. "He didn't want us to have to go to court for it."

The fight began in 1983, when the sisters claim they discovered that their older brother, Walter Sakow, had hidden their father's one-page, handwritten will.

"I was told when my father died that we were impoverished," said Diana Sakow, now a retired high school teacher living in New Rochelle.

In fact, the will left a third of their dad's estate - which the sisters say totaled more than 100 properties - to his wife, with the remainder split equally among the kids.

Walter Sakow, with the support of their mother, told the sisters the family was deeply in debt and the properties had to be sold off, they claimed.

A law school grad who never joined the bar, the brother secretly used his father's properties to build up a real estate business for himself, they charged.

There was no bad blood until 1983, when the curious sisters discovered the will in a Bronx courthouse. They confronted their mother at the family's home in Morris Park. When she denied knowing about a will, they drove to the brother's home on Long Island, where he called the cops on them.

They've been in court ever since.

The sisters say they're heartbroken by the family betrayal and frustrated by the slow grinding of the wheels of justice.

"There's no end," Diana Sakow said. "He will litigate until everyone is dead, because the system allows it."

Full Article and Source:
Family Feud Lasts 27 Years in Court

$4.6 Mil Medicaid Fraud Case Trial Delayed

The California trial of a Marlborough woman accused of participating in a $4.6 million Medicaid fraud case has been pushed back to June.

Fe Filart, 59, is charged with health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud.

U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feess continued the trial to June 29, according to court documents.

A June 25, 2009, indictment alleges that unlicensed nurses provided services to disabled California Medicaid patients, many of them children with cerebral palsy or other developmental disabilities, from 2004 to 2007. Filart was one of the unlicensed nurses, who all operated out of southern California, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien said he believes the case to be the largest alleging fraud of Medi-Cal, the California Medicaid program, ever filed in the state.

The organizer of the ring, Priscilla Villabroza, pleaded guilty in federal court in 2008 to five counts of health care fraud, O'Brien's office said. Villabroza and others allegedly hired unlicensed nurses to provide care to disabled patients and then billed Medi-Cal nearly $4.6 million as if they were licensed.

Full Article and Source:
Marlborough Woman's Medicare Fraud Trial Postponed to June

18+ Years For Elder Abuse

Attorney General Terry Goddard announced today that Linda Darlene Giles, 58, of Tucson, has been sentenced in Pima County Superior Court to 18.5 years in prison for financial abuse of a vulnerable adult and emotional abuse of a vulnerable adult. She must also pay $540,000 in restitution.

In March 2009, Giles was sentenced to 10.5 years in prison for manslaughter in the death of James Carafas, who was 85 years old. The sentence for abuse will be served concurrently with the manslaughter sentence.

According to investigators, Carafas had known Giles for approximately 35 years. At the time his wife passed away in 2003, Carafas suffered from two types of cancer, as well as being both hearing and sight impaired.

During the 15 months she lived with Carafas, Giles gained control over $3 million in real estate and more than $100,000 in cash belonging to Carafas.

Full Article and Source:
Tucson Woman Gets 18 Years in Prison for Abuse of Elderly Man

Guardianship and Code Enforcement

James McLeod just wants to be left alone.

The 68-year-old Franklin County man lives in the home where he grew up. He even has a 1959 black flatbed truck that has been in his family since it was new.

But Franklin County officials are trying to get McLeod to clear away some of his old vehicles, saying he has a junkyard on his nearly 8 1⁄2 acres on Road 56.

The county is asking a Franklin County Superior Court judge to order McLeod to remove eight broken-down vehicles and other debris from his land.

County law allows McLeod to have one inoperable vehicle, or two if they can’t be seen from public view.

McLeod’s collection includes a school bus, three tractors, two trailers, the flatbed truck, a pickup and a crane.

McLeod is a disabled former Pasco firefighter. He was injured in 1971 when he crashed his 1948 Taylorcraft fabric plane, [John]Schultz [McLeod's lawyer]said.

He has dementia and various limitations because of his injury that make it difficult for him to deal with change and carry out a plan, according to a mental examination the court required.

McLeod has lived alone since his mother died several years ago. He maintains the property and uses one of his tractors to mow it.

Because of his disability, McLeod should have had a guardian when the county began its administrative actions against him, Schultz said.

When it became apparent McLeod needed a guardian, the county prosecutor petitioned for one. Court documents that the county filed state that McLeod’s attorney had not brought up the need for a guardian, and a guardian isn’t required during an administrative action.

The county first appointed a guardian in 2006, and a new court action wasn’t started until 2007, according to court documents.

Documents that county prosecutors filed in 2007 argued that just because McLeod didn’t have a guardian when the county started code enforcement doesn’t mean the case has to be dismissed.

Schultz and McLeod are asking the judge to throw out the county’s claim, terminate the guardianship and order the county to foot the guardianship bill, which isn’t specified.

Schultz said that instead of helping McLeod deal with the county complaint, guardian Nancy May hired a lawyer to get power to manage McLeod’s assets, which McLeod doesn’t want.

Schultz also argues that the county is abusing its power. He said if McLeod’s property was developed into 23 homes, each lot could have three to four vehicles. McLeod has nine.

Full Article and Source:
Franklin Count Wants Pasco Man to Remove Vehicles

Anonymous Complaint 'Didn't Raise A Red Flag'

An anonymous complaint accusing two former Luzerne County judges of “glaring” ethical violations “didn’t raise a red flag” with the state Judicial Conduct Board because it appeared to have been authored by a courthouse insider, the current chairman of the board said.

“In my mind, there’s so much detail in what we got — even in its condensed form — it was someone within the court system who wrote that — not an outsider who was angry at so and so,” John R. Cellucci told a state panel.

The complaint, accusing former Judges Michael T. Conahan and Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. of nepotism, cronyism and case fixing, “didn’t raise a red flag, in my opinion, that we’ve got to get on this immediately,” Cellucci said.

The timing of the complaint led conduct board members and staffers to immediately suspect it had been authored by former Judge Ann H. Lokuta, Francis J. Puskas, the board’s deputy chief counsel, said earlier.

The complaint arrived at the conduct board’s office on Sept. 28, 2006, a day after a deadline for Lokuta to accept a plea bargain in her own misconduct matter.

Full Article and Source:
Anonymous Complaint Didn't Raise Red Flag With Conduct Board

See Also:
PA Judicial Conduct Board Could be Held in Contempt

Pursuit of Lokuta Helpful to Ciavarella, Conahan?

The state Judicial Conduct Board devoted so much of its limited staff and resources to prosecuting misconduct charges against former Luzerne County judge Ann H. Lokuta, it was ill-equipped to investigate an anonymous complaint against the two ex-judges later accused in a kids-for-cash scandal, a conduct board attorney said.

Attorney Paul H. Titus admitted last week that the board's inaction, compounded by budget constraints and an intense focus on the Lokuta case, missed critical questions about the judges' handling of civil cases and their relationship with an attorney involved in the corruption scandal.

"If you have a prosecutor who is actively pursuing somebody, who thinks they have charges that can remove them (from office), you're going to get quicker reaction," Titus said. "Lokuta was taking all of the time. That's the problem."

Full Article and Source:
Was Conduct Board's Pursuit of Lokuta Helpful to Ciavarella, Conahan

See Also:
Lokuta's Attorneys Say Due Process Ignored