Edward Abbott Ravenscroft Fights Fiduciary

Edward Abbott Ravenscroft is a wealthy 49-year-old Scottsdale heir. His net worth is over $5 million, and his income is $180,000 a year.

But he has had troubles.

A judge appointed the Maricopa County Public Fiduciary as Ravenscroft's guardian and the Sun Valley Group, a private fiduciary, to oversee his money. By August 2009, Ravenscroft was sober and in February was living on a friend's couch.

Sun Valley was paying the friend $200 a week out of Ravenscroft's assets for his room and board. Ravenscroft said he chose the couch to stop Sun Valley from putting him into a skilled care center.

Ravenscroft went to court early this year to take back control of his life and fortune. In March, a judge permitted the public fiduciary to exit the case, but Sun Valley, using Ravenscroft's money, fought to still manage his finances, saying they were complex and vulnerable to exploitation.

In May, a judge canceled Sun Valley's control of the money and appointed another private fiduciary with Ravenscroft's approval.

Ravenscroft is back in his Scottsdale home. He said his trip through court cost him $800,000 in attorney and fiduciary fees.

"I'm not doing 'Oh, poor me' " Ravenscroft said. "I'm saying, 'How can I help other people so they don't get caught up (in Probate Court)."

Full Article and Source:
Maricopa County Probate Court - Wealthy Heir Fights Against Fiduciary

See Also:
Edward Abbot Ravenscroft Wins Some Say

Judges Do Little to Help

Gary Nichols had seen enough.

As his attorney dueled with other lawyers over how fees would be charged to his mother's trusts, Gary decided a prolonged fight would only deplete her savings. So he told attorney Thomas Asimou to "shut down" the case.

Later, when sanctioning Asimou for ethical violations for his claims about a fee deal among the attorneys involved, Judge Karen O'Connor would call his withdrawal "quite telling." He had "distracted (from) the true focus of the case - resolving the issues in the best interest of Dixie Nichols," she said.

But Gary believed if the judge really cared about his mother's interests, she would have intervened to slash the attorney fees.

"It was and remains my perception that my mother's assets and estate, and her interests, were not being adequately protected by her attorneys," Gary told the court. "I recall that I used the term 'bellying up to the bar' to describe my perception."

O'Connor had raised the possibility of a criminal probe when she removed Gary's sister, Nancy Cork, as her mother's guardian and conservator. The judge ordered Nancy to account for expenses to "allow the parties to discover any alleged financial exploitation," which is a crime. Asimou argued that such a finding would have prevented Nancy from paying her attorney's fees out of her mother's assets. Nancy was never charged with a crime. With the settlement, she agreed to step down as her mother's trustee and relinquish her inheritance and any say in her mother's finances.

O'Connor explained in an e-mail: "No financial exploitation was proven in this case, nor was there an agreement by the parties that it existed."

Asimou appealed the $46,000 fine to the Arizona Court of Appeals alleging the judge abused her discretion.

Full Article and Source:
Maricopa County Probate Court - Judges Do Little to Help

Lindsey Lohan Possibly Facing Conservatorship

Court could appoint a third party for Lindsay Lohan to act as a legal guardian over her affairs.

“Under the California Welfare and Institute Code for Mental Disorders and Chronic Alcoholism, the courts may determine Lindsay unfit to care for herself even though she is an adult,” Fox News quoted former California prosecutor, Robin Sax, as telling Pop Tarts.

“This would be subject to another court hearing separate to the criminal case, and could be determined from a mental health evaluation made when and if she returns to rehab.”

Los Angeles-based criminal defense lawyer and law professor, Jeffrey W. Steinberger, believes Lohan needs someone responsible to legally manage her personal affairs, although the process may take some time.

“What she needs is an emotional conservator, she needs somebody to run the balance in her life and they (the courts) can appoint people to supervise where she is going. They can probably do that after she does this one more stint in jail,” he said.

Steinberger said that Judge Fox, who is currently residing over Lohan’s DUI case, is known to be “compassionate,” and may begin to look for an appropriate conservator between now and Lohan’s Oct. 22 hearing.

Full Article and Source:
Lilo Could Be Placed Under Conservatorship By Court

NASGA Supports HALT's 'Lawyer Discipline Best Practices Petition'

Make sure your voice is heard - sign HALT's Lawyer Discipline Best Practices petition. We need every member of the legal reform movement to stand up and be counted.

Every year, tens of thousands of people who pour hard-earned money into lawyers' pockets find themselves battling the very person they hired to help them. And every year over 100,000 Americans who file complaints against lawyers with their state's disciplinary agency walk away unhappy. In 2006, more than 123,000 complaints were filed against lawyers, but 92% led to no discipline or only informal "private" discipline. Less than 1% led to disbarment.

Signing HALT's petition is one way you can demand action on ten common-sense reforms that push discipline agencies to:

*Disclose a lawyer's complete and disciplinary history so that consumers can make informed decisions about whether to hire an attorney.
*Host a user-friendly Web site that is easy to find and provides helpful information about the discipline process.
*Discipline lawyers with formal, serious and public measures.
*Permanently disbar lawyers who commit abusive practices against clients.
*Abolish gag rules that prevent people from speaking publicly about complaints they've filed.
*Publicize the availability of lawyer discipline programs through required client notification and local advertising.
*Open lawyer discipline hearings to everyone to increase the public trust.
*Provide ordinary citizens with a majority voice on the panels that decide attorney misconduct cases.
*Grant clients and witnesses immunity from civil liability for any information given to the agency during a disciplinary investigation.
*Allow citizens to appeal initial complaint dismissals and hearing panel discussions.

HALT's reform efforts are having an impact. Oregon, California and Nebraska are just three states that have implemented reforms that improve transparency and accountability.

But we need to show that legal reformers support HALT's efforts in every state. Will you please help?

Our goal is to collect 1,000 signatures from each state.

Sign HALT's Petition

Texas Couple Fights for Custody of Adult Daughter

An Arlington couple is fighting to regain guardianship of their daughter after being stripped of their rights by a judge.

They weren't notified about the hearing and didn't get to tell their side of the story. They found out after it was a done deal.

But what happened was completely legal.

The Covingtons were not notified before their rights were stripped. The ruling came in an ex parte hearing where a judge hears evidence only from the complaining party. The other side isn't given notice of the hearing and doesn't get to respond.

"You just don't understand how this can happen in a democracy." Frank said.

The Covingtons are asking to be reinstated as their daughter's guardians at an upcoming hearing.

"I don't know how we're gonna get her back." Chila said.

The Covingtons are devastated by what's happened. They've accumulated $55,000 in legal bills and they're fearful for their daughter.

But they've made a commitment to keep fighting.

Full Article, Video, and Source:
Couple Fights for Custody of Adult Daughter

See Also:
Families Lose Guardianship in Secret Hearings

Las Vegas Lawyer Under Scrutiny

Las Vegas attorney Stanley Walton is not having a good month.

One week after he was arrested for contempt of court in a probate case involving millions of reportedly missing dollars he was supposed to safeguard, Walton failed to file a formal answer to a Nevada State Bar complaint alleging he misappropriated $20,000 given to him by a client in an unrelated case.

Along the way, Walton is alleged to have violated several rules of professional conduct that Nevada lawyers are required to follow, particularly as they relate to relationships with clients.

The complaint, signed by State Bar of Nevada General Counsel Rob Bare, details Walton's relationship with Xiao Ping Wang, which began in 2003 when Walton was appointed a special prosecutor in a domestic violence case in which Wang was the victim.

A month later he was her divorce attorney, and for a brief period, they were intimate. Walton continued to represent Wang in a variety of legal matters and, according to the Bar, she considered him her "general practitioner" lawyer.

According to the Bar, Walton might have offered Wang a deal that sounded too good to be true: A $20,000 investment that just 22 days later would yield $100,000.

Because Walton failed to file a written answer to the Bar complaint within the required 20 days, his law license is imperiled. The Nevada Supreme Court has final control over law licenses.

Potential disciplinary measures range from a private reprimand to permanent disbarment. It is also possible the Bar could file a second complaint regarding the probate case.

In its four allegations of rule violations, two claim Walton had a conflict of interest with Wang, one accused him of failing to protect her property, and the fourth -- and arguably the most serious -- charges him with misconduct for engaging in conduct "involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit or misrepresentation."

Full Article and Source:
State Bar of Nevada Acts to Discipline Las Vegas Lawyer

Sister, Fiduciary Had the Same Lawyer!

For years, Dennis Ball was his mother's [Eleanor]caregiver, helped create her trusts and managed her money.

But in 2004, Eleanor was hospitalized, and her estranged daughter, Carol, got a restraining order against Dennis and petitioned the court for temporary guardianship.

Although Eleanor initially protested the petition, she later agreed to the appointment of a neutral third-party conservator and guardian. She specifically asked that the court allow her to continue living at home and keep her estate plan.

The court appointed Southwest Fiduciary to manage her money and care, even though Southwest's attorney was also Carol's attorney.

Billing records show that over the next 22 months, Southwest and its attorneys managed Eleanor's assets and care, consulting more with Carol than Dennis. .Southwest sold off Eleanor's home and rental properties. It assumed control of her trust, took over her bank accounts and placed Eleanor in a nursing homeDennis said Southwest left his mother penniless. An accountant retained by Dennis found that 76 percent of her estate paid Southwest's legal and administrative fees.

Southwest owner Greg DoVico would not discuss the Ball case. But in answering complaints to the Arizona Supreme Court's fiduciary board, the company said Dennis refused to cooperate with the court, was sanctioned by a judge for filing a frivolous motion and financially exploited his mother, which he denies. The company said his complaints were based on half-truths.

Full Article and Source:
Maricopa County Probate Court - Sister, Fiduciary Had Same Attorney

Maricopa Probate Court - Life Savings, Freedoms Taken Away

Outside of being imprisoned, no action in the American justice system deprives a person of so many rights as being declared incapacitated in Probate Court.

First, a judge rules that you can't care for yourself. Then strangers can be given control of every aspect of your life. All that you've worked for and love - your savings, property, even your ability to contact your family - can be taken away and given to professionals to manage, at enormous expense to you.

Wills, trusts and powers of attorney may not matter.

Probate Court is meant to be a safe harbor for people in crisis because of advanced age or illness, a place where a judge helps protect their assets and well-being.

But an Arizona Republic investigation has found that Maricopa County Probate Court allows the assets of some vulnerable adults to become a cash machine for attorneys and for fiduciary companies, which manage their affairs.

The fees charged can drain the savings of even wealthy individuals in less than a year.

Among the investigation's findings:

Issue I: Disputes trigger the problems. Fights among family members lead to protracted, costly legal battles. Judges often fail to step in early to stop the feuding and contain costs.
Issue II: Fees mount quickly. Bills for attorneys, fiduciaries and others can escalate at a staggering pace. Family members contend that professional fiduciaries bill people's assets aggressively.
Issue III: Cozy relationships raise questions. Close ties among judges, attorneys and fiduciaries can result in apparent conflicts of interest. These relationships can endanger the court's ability to hold attorneys and fiduciaries accountable for their billings and other practices.
Issue IV: Objectors take the blame. Relatives or lawyers who try to fight fiduciaries' bills may instead find themselves blamed by the court for causing delays and held responsible for extra costs.
Issue V: Oversight is lax. Judges, who have ultimate responsibility for a vulnerable adult's care and assets, are allowed to scrutinize and reject fees, but substantial denials are rare. The state board that licenses fiduciaries does little to question their conduct, especially if a judge already has ruled on a case.

[C]osts begin to mount when a judge appoints a professional fiduciary because no family member is willing or available to run the person's affairs. The judge also appoints a fiduciary when family members are feuding.

And when family members disagree with one another or with the fiduciary, costs can soar: All parties may have one attorney or more, and most of them are allowed to bill the incapacitated adult's assets.

Lawyers and fiduciaries defend their work, saying they help settle family feuds and arrange care when no one else will. Still, many acknowledge the system needs reform.

Critics say Probate Court has become a vehicle for exploitation.

Full Article and Source:
Maricopa County Probate Court - Life Savings, Freedoms Taken Away

Maricopa Probate Court - Fees Mount Quickly

In a matter of months, lawyers and fiduciaries appointed by the court can rack up tens of thousands of dollars in bills. People who enter the court system flush with cash can end up destitute.

One reason the fees mount so quickly is the number of parties billing.

• The court may appoint two attorneys for the incapacitated person, the ward. One represents the ward's desires, the other the ward's best interests. The two may conflict.

• The ward's trust, which holds assets, also may have an attorney who bills the assets.

• The private fiduciary and its attorney bill the assets.

• One or more of the ward's relatives may have attorneys who may bill the assets.

A probate lawyer charges $175 to $400 an hour. Many private fiduciaries in Arizona charge $100 or more an hour. Attorneys and fiduciaries often discount their fees and perform some tasks for free.

Phoenix attorney Candess Hunter, who represents fiduciaries, says fees have become a huge profit center for some in the probate system: "It all has to do with a few people who have discovered how to create a billing machine to gather significant wealth."

Attorneys and fiduciaries charge for seemingly every task their offices perform - opening mail, writing checks, answering the phone. A judge often reviews the bills only once a year and rarely makes big reductions.

Relatives grow especially angry when a fiduciary delays or denies paying for a ward's needs while still billing for its own fees.

Family members of Dave Coppes, 85, of Carefree, who died last year, say a fiduciary, the Sun Valley Group, paid itself $27,000 in December 2008 about the same time it told them that Coppes could not afford hearing aids.

Full Article and Source:
Maricopa County Probate Court - Fees Mount Quickly

Help Bring Rita Denmark Home

Pennsylvania member Holly Peffer is involved in a pivotal hearing on Friday, October 8, 2010 at 2:30 P.M. at the McKean County Pennsylvania Orphan's Court.

NASGA asks for your support on behalf of Holly and her Mother, Rita Denmark. The State of Florida is currently holding Rita captive in an abusive guardianship and won't let her come home to Bradford, PA.

She is not a criminal. She has done nothing wrong. But, for over three long, miserable years, she has languished in a Florida nursing home, completely isolated from her family and friends, while her daughter, Holly, has battled the legal system for Rita's freedom. Florida doesn't want to let Rita go. But, Rita's not a resident of Florida. She's just caught up in the system and red tape. It's up to the State of Pennsylvania to bring Rita home.

The October 8th hearing is critical.

Please show your support for Rita Denmark and her right to come home and happily live her life with her loving family and friends instead of dying prematurely, alone and afraid in a stark and cold institution, held captive against her will.

You can make a difference! Please show up for the hearing and help send the message that it's not only time for Rita Denmark to come home, it's her right as an American citizen.

After the hearing, a reception will be held at Holly's home. Everyone is welcome!

Please contact Holly Peffer (hlpeffer@yahoo.com) for directions and more information.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
McKean County Court House
500 West Main
East Smethport, PA

Friday, October 8 · 2:30pm - 4:30pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

See:
Congressman Joe Sestak's Letter Supporting NASGA Member Holly Peffer

FL: Maggots Found in Eye Socket of Nursing Home Patient

Maggots have been discovered in the eye socket of a 76-year-old man under the care of a Gainesville nursing home with ownership ties to Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast, his outraged daughter said.

A state investigation is under way.

"It's absolutely inexcusable," Patrice Ripley said. "Quite frankly, I'm angry."

Her father John Stumpp had been under the care of Gainesville Health Care Center when the maggots were found in an examination at a Veterans Administration facility, according to Ripley.

The Gainesville nursing home is part of a chain that includes Glades Health Care Center in Pahokee, controlled by the family of executive Maxcine Darville of Okeechobee. An investigation by The Palm Beach Post last year found Darville and family members enjoyed salaries above industry norms and spent money on luxury cars and hot tubs while two of three nursing homes in the chain, including the Gainesville home, received the lowest possible one-star rating from state regulators.

A Veterans Administration official confirmed the agency filed a report with the Adult Protective Services unit of the Florida Department of Children and Families.

By November 2009, AHCA had flagged 39 violations at Gainesville Health Care Center in the previous two years on matters ranging from sanitary food storage to maintenance of sprinklers and ventilation. An overall one-star rating from AHCA places the nursing home in the bottom 20 percent of nursing homes in its region.

The nursing home is licensed to the Gainesville Council on Aging, which lists Darville as its registered agent.

"I can't let this go," Ripley said. "I can't let this go for my dad and I can't let anybody else be mistreated either."

Full Article and Source:
Maggots Found in Eye Socket of Man in Nursing Home With Palm Beach County Ties

PA Judge Facing Discipline for Road Rage Incident

A district judge faces disciplinary charges stemming from accusations that he brandished a gun while driving and talked tough about juvenile crime and graffiti in news stories, which would violate a conduct code for judges.

The Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board announced seven charges Friday against Erie District Judge Thomas Carney, who took office in January 2006.

The state Court of Judicial Discipline will hear the charges and can discipline Carney if he's convicted, up to removing him from office.

Last year, state police say Carney made an obscene gesture with his hand toward another driver and held a gun out his car window, though he did not aim it at the driver. Carney pleaded guilty to two counts of disorderly conduct.

Carney is also accused of violating a conduct rule that calls for judges to refrain from commenting publicly about ongoing court proceedings.

Full Article and Source:
PA Judge Faces Discipline for Road Rage With Gun

Nurse & Teacher Sentenced to 5 Years Plus Restitution

A nurse and a part-time kindergarten teacher were sentenced to nearly five years in prison and ordered to repay $839,252 they stole from a 94-year-old man in their care.

Deborah G. Johnson, 53, and Anita Esquibel, 69, each pleaded guilty to one count of theft and one count of money laundering in Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

Johnson, the nurse, and Esquibel, the teacher, gained the trust of Peter Svaldi after meeting him in the apartment building they managed near Graceland Shopping Center. After gaining power-of-attorney for Svaldi, they used his accounts to buy real estate, a car, jewelry and dental work.

A bank officer alerted police after discovering large transactions being made from the accounts of the elderly man, who was known for his frugality.

Full article and Source:
Nurse, Teacher Sentenced for Bilking Elderly Man

See Also:
Nurse and PT Teacher Charged With Theft

Shelter Directors Back Executive Director

New Horizons for New Hampshire's board of directors is backing executive director Michael Tessier despite state and federal criminal investigations into whether he played any role in the case that landed his brother, disbarred Manchester attorney Thomas Tessier, in prison for stealing $2.3 million from relatives.
A Probate Court judge said in a recent order that Michael Tessier, 57, a retired Manchester police captain, "was complicit in those illegal activities, primarily by being both an active and passive conduit for funds taken by his brother, Thomas Tessier."

Scott Colby, chairman of the board of Manchester's non-profit homeless shelter and soup kitchen, said the board has met with Michael Tessier and supports him.

In fact, the board was aware of the investigations when Michael Tessier was hired, according to his lawyer, Mark Howard of Manchester.

Full Article and Source:
Shelter Directors Stand by Tessier as Probe Unfolds

Fmr. Probate Court Judge Edward E. Casey Case Postponed

A trial to determine who should supervise the financial affairs of a well-known retired judge was postponed to Nov. 8 to allow a lawyer to complete an independent evaluation of the case.

A hearing had been scheduled Monday to settle the issue of whether current state Rep. and former City Councilor Bill Bowles will remain conservator of the estate of former Probate Court Judge Edward F. Casey.

Bowles, with the support of Casey's family, was appointed temporary conservator earlier this year.

But the 85-year-old former judge, who suffers from short-term memory loss, is now opposing Bowles's involvement.

Overshadowing the case is the involvement of City Councilor Kimberly Allard, the judge's paid caretaker, who Bowles charges in a separate lawsuit used undue influence and accepted ownership of a $328,000 house paid for by the jurist. Allard, who is not involved directly in the current litigation, said she has done nothing wrong and has faithfully executed the judge's wishes.

Both Bowles and Allard say they are longtime friends of the judge and have his interests at heart.

In an attempt to get to the bottom of the charges, Judge Frances McIntyre appointed attorney Neal Winston last month as a guardian ad litem to conduct an independent review.

However, the lawyer informed the court late last week that he needs more time to review documents and interview witnesses.

Full Article and Source:
Trial Over Judge's Financial Affairs Postponed

See Also:
Conservatorship Battle Over Former Probate Court Judge
Edward F. Casey

CT: Accountant Involks 5th Amendment

F. Robert LaSaracina, a Norwich accountant accused of defrauding a family trust fund of $2.2 million and whose office was recently targeted by federal investigators, declined to testify today in the ongoing trial of former Mashantucket Pequot chairman Michael Thomas.

LaSaracina appeared in a New London Superior courtroom with high-profile attorney Hubert Santos and promptly asserted his 5th Amendment privileges against self incrimination.

Santos said the federal investigation, and search warrant served at LaSaracina’s West Town Street office, had changed the circumstances.

LaSaracina had previously testified to his role in dealing with some of Thomas’ finances. Thomas is being sued by Sovereign Bank which claims he defaulted on a multi-million dollar line of credit.

Considering LaSaracina’s new position, Thomas’ attorney Lawrence Rosenthal, asked Judge Joseph Koletsky to strike LaSaracina’s previous testimony. The motion was denied.

Full Article and Source:
Norwich Accountant Invokes 5th Amendment in Thomas Trial

Is Probate Court Injustice So Rare?

Hurrah. The leaders of Connecticut's probate court system are suddenly concerned about Bryan Meccariello's behavior now that an oversight panel has censured the Southington judge for "egregious" mistakes and "evasive and disingenous" testimony.

"While the mishandling of a case is rare, even a single instance is unacceptable," Probate Court Administrator Paul J. Knierim said.

This is more than ironic. Over the last few years I have uncovered a stream of these rare mishandled cases in the murky world of probate court.

From Waterbury to Greenwich to North Haven to East Hartford to Southington, these single instances are piling up. If most of our probate judges are doing a good job - and I don't necessarily disagree -- how is it that a newspaper columnist who spends a few days a month paying attention to probate finds so much injustice?

The problem is that probate operates out of the public eye with too-little scrutiny over the qualifications of judges, who are elected, and the lawyers who work for and appear before the court. This allows for a handful of bad apples to sour the entire reputation of probate court.

As with the latest case in Meccariello's court, the issue again involves a judge who allows a court-appointed conservator to plunder the civil rights of an elderly, sick person. When nobody pays attention, this is what you get.


Full Article and Source:
Is Probate Court Injustice so Rare? I Wonder....

CT: Probate Judge Bryan T. Meccariello Censured

The Council on Probate Judicial Conduct unanimously agreed to publicly censure Probate Judge Bryan T. Meccariello for judicial misconduct in his handling of Josephine Smoron's estate.

The five-member council was asked to investigate the matter after Smoron's heir Samuel Manzo complained that her conservator John T. Nugent had disinherited him by creating and funding two trusts giving all her land to three local churches. Meccariello approved the trusts at meeting only he attended on May 12, 2009.

"I'm not shrugging it off and unfortunately the underlying issues have to get resolved," Meccariello said, adding that he is working to mediate a settlement over the land.

Manzo's initial complaint implied a possible conspiracy between Meccariello, Nugent and the town to funnel Smoron's land to local developer Carl Verderame who needs it to build an $18 million sports arena. A purchase agreement between Nugent and Verderame would enrich the churches.

Meccariello said Tuesday's council finding, although harsh, vindicated him on the corruption charges.

Full Article and Source:
Probate Council Censures Meccariello

See Also:
Read the Report From the Council on Probate Conduct

Judge Bryan Meccariello Faces Misconduct Charges

Whatever Happened to the Kidds?

In this edition of "Whatever Happened To," Heather Hays updates one of the most asked about stories FOX 4 has ever aired -- an elderly Dallas couple, Michael and Jean Kidd, and their emotional homecoming, after battling the state for their freedom.

Source and Video:
Whatever Happened to the Kidds?

See Also:
Scrutinizing the Guardian

Advocate Addresses Her Local Free Holder's Meeting

Source:
YouTube

Former Atty Pieter J. DeJong Charged With Stealing From Client's Estate

A disbarred attorney who lives in Long Valley was arraigned Tuesday on charges of stealing $265,552 between 2005 and 2008 from a deceased woman's estate.

Pieter J. DeJong, 62, was indicted by a Morris County grand jury on Sept. 3 on three theft-related charges that allege he stole between February 2005 and June 2008 money that belonged to the estate of Jane Davis.

DeJong did not speak during the brief arraignment in state Superior Court, Morristown, but defense lawyer Thomas Fischer entered a not guilty plea on DeJong's behalf.

DeJong, who was licensed to practice law in 1972, was disbarred by the state Supreme Court in September 2009 after he failed to respond to allegations of misappropriation of monies. His practice consisted mainly of real estate law.

He previously was reprimanded in 1985 for gross neglect and lack of diligence, and five times between 1992 and 2008 was on the state Supreme Court's list of attorneys ineligible to practice law because he didn't pay an annual attorney fee to the New Jersey Lawyers' Fund for Client Protection, according to state records.

Full Article and Source:
Ex-Attorney Pieter DeJong Who Ran Flanders, NJ, Practice Charged with Stealing Over $265,000 From Client's Estate

NY: Two Charged With Felony Elder Abuse

Two Cappahosic residents are facing felony charges in connection with the life-threatening wounds of an 87-year-old woman who was in their care and later died.

Erick Wilson, 48, and Gigi Garner, 44, have been charged with abuse and neglect of an incapacitated adult.

An investigation is continuing into the circumstances surrounding Regina Wynn's care at the hands of Wilson, her nephew, and Garner, a friend of Wilson's, said Gloucester Sheriff's Lt. Scott Little. He declined further comment.

Wilson and Garner will next appear in Gloucester General District Court on Oct. 28.

Full Article and Source:
Care of Elderly Woman Leads to Charges in Gloucester

Website: Probate Sharks.com

Our mission is to expose and remedy corruption in the Probate Court of Cook County, Illinois. We assist, educate and enlighten families of the dead, the dying, the disabled and the aged to better understand their rights in order to protect themselves from the excesses of the Probate Court of Cook County.

ProbateSharks.com is dedicated to networking the human element of people to people. We join together in reforming the corrupt Cook County Probate Court system.

Source:
ProbateSharks.com

Potential Breakthrough in Understanding Alzheimer's

Researchers with the University of South Florida have made a potential breakthrough in the battle against Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers realized years ago that patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) had less of a chance of Alzheimer's than those without, but no one knew why until recently.

Scientists at the Byrd Alzheimer's Institute at USF have found people with RA have a protein released in their bloodstream that might protect against the disease.

According to Bay News 9's partner paper, the St. Petersburg Times, the USF team conducted the studies on mice, and human testing could be next. The study has been published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

Full Article, Video and Source:
USF Researchers Make Advances in Understanding Alzheimer's Disease

Britney Spears Seeks Her Regain Control of Her Estate

After being hospitalized in January 2008 for a very public meltdown in 2007, pop star Britney Spears has had her personal and professional affairs controlled by her father Jamie Spears. A judge at the time ruled that he and lawyer Andrew Wallet should be made co-conservators of her business affairs. But lawyers involved in her case now believe that the singer is "more than ready" to take control of her own estate again.

Speaking with E! News, an insider revealed:

"Everyone involved believes she has the necessary proof that she is competent to be in charge of her affairs. She's more than ready."

Full Article and Source:
Britney Spears Seeks to Control Her Own Life and Finances

Caught on Camera

A shocking case of elder abuse in Jersey City is caught on camera. The woman in the video is 91 years old. It's a case that has even seasoned cops shaking their heads. Mike Gilliam reports.


Source and Video:
Elder Abuse Case Caught on Camera

CT: Judge Bryan Meccariello Faces Judicial Misconduct Charges

Rare is the chutzpa so shamefully displayed by Southington Probate Court Judge Bryan F. Meccariello.

The judge who presided over a court process that expunged Sam Manzo, a humble farmhand, from Josephine Smoron's will, now wants to be the hero.

Meccariello told the Council on Probate Judicial Conduct this week that it was but a small mistake that he ignored Smoron's will in May 2009 when he gave the OK to the creation of two trusts that allowed the Smoron Farm to be acquired by a local developer.

The judge said he was merely trying to bring Smoron home before she died in June 2009at age 92.

At the time, Smoron lay dying in a nursing home. Her wish was to give the family farm, worth at least $1.5 million, to Manzo, her long-time caretaker. Meccariello hadn't seen her in more than a year. The man he appointed as her conservator — local lawyer John Nugent — never bothered to meet her. ("I don't speak dementia," Nugent artfully explained to the council this week.)

A Democrat who channels both Richard Nixon and Eddie Haskell, Meccariello told the council that he was merely adhering to a plan — a secret one unbeknownst to anyone but the judge — that would have brought dear old Josephine Smoron back to her beloved farm.

"The game plan," Meccariello declared, "was to create the vehicle that would allow her to get back to her house … My intentions were to get her back to that farm … I was blinded by the fact that this woman wanted to go home."

Manzo, who mortgaged (and lost to foreclosure) his home to help pay for some of Josephine Smoron's bills and who was removed by Meccariello as her conservator in 2008, could only shake his head. After Meccariello appointed Nugent, "there was no plan,'' Manzo told me.

Meccariello is the man who allowed the entire mess to unfold, who never would have been caught were it not for Manzo's complaint about a railroad job unfolding in the Southington Probate Court. This is the judge who, as Smoron's sad fate unfolded before his court over her last year, never bothered to find out how she was doing in the hospital or nursing home.

Yet he had a plan to save her.

Wednesday was the third time that Meccariello testified under oath before the council, but the first time he mentioned "the plan." He is before the council because he failed to notify Manzo about the hearing at which Meccariello changed the will. "A mistake," Meccariello said.

This mistake created two trusts that handed the farm to three local Catholic churches after Smoron's death. The churches, under an agreement arranged by Nugent, were then to sell the farm to a local developer. The developer, Carl Verderame, has already submitted plans for an indoor sports arena for the property, which is just off I-84.

All of this occurred despite the fact that in a 1996 will, Smoron stated that she was "intentionally" omitting any churches.

Full Article and Source:
Southington Probate Court Judge Bryan Meccariello Faces Judicial Misconduct Charges

See Also:
Appeal Filed in Smoron Case

IA: Legisltors Will Review State Laws on Elder Care

Jennifer Berg was no longer allowed to push her 76-year-old mother's wheelchair into the sunshine outside the nursing home, take photographs of her, or be alone behind a closed door.

Those were among the changes that occurred after the state took authority over the elderly woman's care.

Berg told two state lawmakers Thursday how her life and her mother's life had changed for the worse after officials of Iowa's Department of Human Services decided the elderly woman was not being supervised well enough at home. The department obtained a court order that prevents relatives from making any decisions regarding her housing, health care or finances.

"There was no allegation of abuse against me, and yet I was not allowed to do anything," Berg said during a meeting at the Iowa Capitol. "We were treated as if we were abusers."

After getting complaints from 13 families about how their elderly loved ones' care had spiraled out of their control once the DHS stepped in, two lawmakers said Thursday that they would press for changes in Iowa law.

"You have a problem. I think the department is broken. It needs to be fixed," Sen. Dennis Black, D-Grinnell, told top DHS officials Thursday.

Sen. Jack Hatch, D-Des Moines, tempered those comments by saying he believed DHS employees had made thousands of good decisions for thousands of elderly Iowans.

But Hatch agreed that more needed to be done to ensure families get the best possible services and to reduce conflict with authorities. "I'm taking this as an opportunity for us to learn and to strengthen the system," he said.

Full Article and Source:
Iowa Legislators Will Review State Laws on Elder Care

Daughter Happy to Care for 101 Year-Old Mom

They sit side-by-side on a sofa in a Wauwatosa home, the daughter who is 60, the mother who is 101.

"God's grace," the daughter says. "I do believe he's sustaining her. We're learning a lot of lessons about kindness and patience."

For nearly nine years, Dorothy "Dotty" Williams has been the principal caregiver for her mom, Margaret "Margie" Hunt Dunn.

It's a story of love and faith. And it's not all that unusual - family members and friends provide the bulk of care for older adults in America.

Last week, at Wilson Park Senior Center, Williams testified during a field hearing of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging. She spoke movingly about her mom and caregiving, about the benefits of caring for someone you love so much, but also, about the emotional toll it can take.

Many in the crowd applauded. They knew, from firsthand experience, what Williams was going through.

Dunn has dementia. Two years ago, carrying her plate from the patio to the kitchen, she fell and broke her hip. Emergency surgery saved her life. She celebrated her 99th birthday in a hospital bed.

What's often lost in this society-wide tale of age and mortality is this: Caregivers need help, too; moments to shop, to take in a movie, to go for medical appointments, even to go out on a date with a spouse.

The National Family Caregiver Support Program has provided Williams with help, a small amount of money for what's known as respite care, to bring in someone else to watch a loved one for a few hours. In Milwaukee County, the program is administered through the Family Caregiver Support Network at Interfaith Older Adult Programs Inc.

Full Article and Source:
Daughter Happy to Care for Mom, 101, Despite Challenges for Both

CA: Class Action Against Skilled Healthcare Group Settles for $62.8 Mil

A class action involving violations of nursing home staffing regulations at Skilled Healthcare Group nursing facilities in California settled for $62.8 million on Sept. 8.

The parties came to an agreement after a jury in the Humboldt County Superior Court awarded the class plaintiffs $671 million for violations of state nursing home staffing requirements in July (Vinnie Lavender, et al. v. Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc., No. DR060264, Calif. Super., Humboldt Co.).

Source:
California Nursing Home Class Action Settles For $62.8 Million

See Also:
Motion for Mistrial or New Trial Denied to Skilled Healthcare Corp, Inc.

Couple Accused of Bilking Elderly Member

A Swansboro couple is accused of stealing thousands of dollars from an elderly family member.

Angela Carter and her husband William are charged with stealing more than one-hundred-fifty thousand dollars from a relative.

Angela Carter is being held on a 20-thousand dollar bond while her husband is in state prison on other unrelated charges.

Full Article and Source:
Swansboro Couple Bilk Elderly Family Member Out of Thousands

DSHS Vows to Toughen Oversight of State's Adult Homes

In an attempt to overhaul Washington's adult family-home system, the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) is seeking new laws to boost the cost of opening new homes, raise training requirements and hike enforcement penalties for violators.

In addition, an adult-home-industry group asked DSHS to stop licensing new homes in three key counties — King, Snohomish and Clark. High vacancy rates are threatening to put dozens of owners out of business while reducing residents' quality of care.

The proposed changes are in response to a continuing investigation by The Seattle Times, Seniors for Sale, which found 236 deaths of vulnerable adults that indicate neglect or abuse but were not reported to the state or investigated.

Washington has licensed nearly 3,000 adult homes to provide board and care for up to six adults. Adult homes are less-regulated, less-expensive elder-care options than nursing homes, and are touted as providing personalized care in cozy, neighborhood settings.

But The Times found that hundreds of seniors have been injured or died prematurely from substandard care, often through neglect by scantly trained caregivers.

State Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Kent, chair of the Health and Long Term Care Committee, said: "We have work to do. We're going to have to push forward and take action. We cannot afford to have the kind of awful cases The Times uncovered to continue. We must put a stop to it."

Full Article and Source:
DSHS Vows to Toughen Oversight of State's Adult Homes

What's so Surprising About the Huguette Clark Inheritance Scandal?

It seems that almost every day now there’s a new story in the papers about Huguette Clark, the reclusive 104-year-old Manhattan heiress who is reported to have abandoned her luxurious homes for a simple hospital room, even as questions swirl about the conduct of her trusted financial advisors. The controversy has a number of complex layers, but at the core it has essentially become a public debate about whether or not an elderly rich person has been taken advantage of by the very individuals hired to protect her, namely her accountant, Irving Kamsler, and her attorney, Wallace Bock. Clark’s family members have filed suit, and New York City prosecutors are reportedly looking into allegations that these two advisers have fleeced their elderly client.

Whenever a vastly wealthy patriarch or matriarch reaches inheritance-splitting age, family disputes inevitably follow. Such disputes typically fall into one of two categories. First, there are the squabbles among the descendents themselves, each of whom generally wants to avoid getting less than any of the others, even if it means counting down to the very last penny. And second, there are battles between family members and wealth advisors, specifically the individual advisors who are closest to the aging (or recently deceased) holders of the family assets.

Full Article and Source:
What’s So Surprising About the Huguette Clark Inheritance Scandal?

Iowa Supreme Court Disciplinary Board Disciplines Stephen J. Lickiss

Charles L. Harrington and Wendell J. Harms, Des Moines, for complainant.Stephen J. Lickiss, Altoona, pro se.

This matter comes before us on the report of a division of the Grievance Commission of the Supreme Court of Iowa. See Iowa Ct. R. 35.10. The Iowa Supreme Court Attorney Disciplinary Board alleged the respondent, Stephen J. Lickiss, violated ethical rules in four probate matters by neglecting these matters, failing to respond to clients' inquiries for information, taking probate fees without prior court approval, failing to notify his clients that he had ceased to represent them, and failing to respond to the board's inquiries. The grievance commission found Lickiss violated the Iowa Rules of Professional Conduct and recommended a three-month suspension. Upon our respectful consideration of the findings of fact, conclusions of law, and recommendation of the commission, we find Lickiss committed several ethical violations and suspend his license to practice law indefinitely with no possibility of reinstatement for three months.

Full Document and Source:
IOWA SUPREME COURT ATTORNEY DISCIPLINARY BOARD, Complainant, v. Stephen J. LICKISS, Respondent.
No. 10-0363.

OH: 3 Other County Judges Under Investigation

Three other county judges are coming under scrutiny after they were mentioned in the bombshell federal indictments announced that accused County Commissioner Jimmy Dimora and two Common Pleas Court judges of corrupt activity.

One is the brother of former county Auditor Frank Russo, who pleaded guilty to 21 corruption charges. County Probate Court Judge Anthony Russo has not been charged but fits the description of Public Official 11, described in the indictment of Dimora.

Then there's county Domestic Relations Judge Cheryl Karner. She isn't named in the indictment, but the description of Public Official 8 matches her description.

The federal indictment also involves an unidentified Common Pleas Court judge. Prosecutors said Dimora used his influence on the judge to arrange a meeting involving a halfway house that's been linked to bribes and a trip to Las Vegas that Dimora went on in April 2008.

Judge Steven Terry was charged with judicial corruption after being accused of accepting bribes and political help from Russo, in return for helping Russo's friend in a civil case.

And Judge Bridget McCafferty was accused of lying to FBI agents about her secret dealings on court cases with Frank Russo and Dimora.

Full Article and Source:
Investigator: Three More Cuyahoga County Judges Show Up in Indictments

OH: Judge Anthony Russo Denies Wrongdoing

Cuyahoga County Auditor Frank Russo is accused of helping an employee get a second job in exchange for the worker hosting a campaign fundraiser for the auditor's brother, Judge Anthony Russo, who now oversees the Cleveland Metroparks system.

Cuyahoga County Probate Court Judge Anthony Russo responds to questions about the indictment of his brother, recently resigned Cuyahoga County Auditor Frank Russo.
Jerry Skuhrovec helped raise $8,200 for the judge's 2008 campaign and also paid unspecified bribes to the auditor for help in landing an appraiser's job with the Sheriff's Office, according to new charges released by federal prosecutors.

Anthony Russo went on to win his bid to become presiding judge of the Cuyahoga County Probate Court, an especially powerful position responsible for the appointment of the three Metroparks commissioners.

[T]he judge denied any wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime. "There were no accusations against me," said Russo.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Anthony Russo Benefited From Brother Frank's Misdeeds, Feds Say

CA: The Heat's on Public Guardian John Williams

The heat continues to be turned up on Public Administrator/Guardian John Williams in the wake of his involvement in the controversial firing of Senior Deputy District Attorney Todd Spitzer.

As Voice of OC reported Tuesday, the California Coalition of Law Enforcement Associations sent a letter to Attorney General Jerry Brown calling for an investigation the into Williams' role in the firing and his handling of an elder abuse case that Spitzer had inquired about.

The letter also linked the current imbroglio to grand jury investigations last year that were critical of how Williams handled his budgets.

Williams responded with a letter to Brown's office that provided more details regarding Spitzer's behavior and stated that the law enforcement group is misleading the public by trying to provide a "nexus" between his handling of an elder abuse case and the grand jury investigations.

"I don't see any correlation between our current elder abuse investigation and this department's human resources/personnel and budget practices other than like most public entities in California, including the Attorney General's Office I'm sure, we are understaffed and underfunded," Williams wrote.

Full Article and Source:
Spotlight Remains on Public Administrator/Guardian

TX: Families Lose Estates in Guardianship Battles

When Doris Preston died, the former schoolteacher left behind a small estate, no will and a single heir: her adopted son, Deartis, a mentally disabled 52-year-old she’d raised in her Denton home.

Doris’ close-knit siblings say they rallied around their nephew like they had for a lifetime, bringing him to Bay City to live with the family and using part of the inheritance to purchase a house for him two blocks away. But when they went to probate court to iron out the details of the estate, their plans disintegrated.

A Denton County probate judge determined Deartis needed a court-appointed guardian and attorney to advocate for his interests. Those appointees argued that the money left in the names of Doris’ siblings should rightfully belong to Deartis, and that her siblings were making poor financial decisions on his behalf.

In the five years of legal wrangling since Doris’ death, the court has approved payments of nearly $450,000 to these appointed officials, private attorneys for the family say, depleting the amount of money left to care for Deartis.

“We went innocently into probate court so we could go on and take care of the family,” says Michael Preston, Doris’ brother. “Instead, we got the most corrupt thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Full Article and Source:
Families Lose Estates in Guardianship Battles

Families Lose Guardianship in Secret Hearings

Frank and Chila Covington could hardly be mistaken for cruel. They cared for their disabled daughter at home in an era when many parents turned to institutions — showering Ceci, who has Down syndrome, with love, affection and opportunity. After her brother and cousins went off to college, they enabled Ceci to "graduate" in her own way: They found her a group home with two other young women.

But when the Covingtons argued with a group home provider who insisted that Ceci needed psychotropic medication, they lost their daughter entirely. After the provider accused the Covingtons of “cruelty,” a Tarrant County judge called a secret hearing and removed the parents’ guardianship, barring them from seeing the child they’d spent four decades raising.

“Ex parte,” or emergency, removal hearings have been legal in Texas guardianship cases for nearly two decades. They're designed to rescue incapacitated people in immediate danger. But in some courts around the state, advocates say, they’re being used to remedy even routine disagreements, effectively denying parents, adult children or other guardians the chance to defend themselves before their loved ones are seized.

Probate judges and court-appointed attorneys contend that they must protect those who can’t protect themselves, and that some cases demand drastic and immediate action. They say guardians who are removed can appeal and get reinstated if they’ve been wronged. “The Legislature has said we’re out here to protect the individual, not to protect the guardian,” says Travis County Probate Judge Guy Herman, the presiding probate judge in Texas. “What you have going on here is people who have done something wrong coming down to the Legislature, going to the newspaper, instead of trying their case in a court of law. In essence, they’re trying to intimidate judges.”

The Covingtons never got their day in court. On July 13, 2009, they were notified that there had been an ex parte hearing in a Tarrant County courtroom and that, as a result, they were no longer Ceci’s guardians. For nearly two months, the Covingtons were kept away from her — unable to even speak to her on the phone. They frantically studied Texas’ complex probate code and called attorney after attorney trying to find someone to help them. They begged Ceci’s “advocates” — the attorney and guardian the judge had appointed to protect her — to let them see their daughter for one hour a week, and to bring her home for Thanksgiving and Christmas. On these visits, the Covingtons say, Ceci was often so drugged she could hardly stay awake.

Every conversation, every call to the court, added to the Covingtons’ legal bills, which have now surpassed $55,000.

The Covingtons aren’t the only ones fighting this battle. Across North Texas — and Tarrant and Denton counties in particular — families who have lost guardianship rights under similar circumstances have mobilized, reaching out to the media and demanding action from lawmakers. Debby Valdez, a San Antonio mom who runs an organization called GRADE (Guardianship Reform Advocates for the Disabled and Elderly), says the common thread among these cases is that families advocated aggressively for their relatives, and care providers used guardianship removal proceedings to retaliate.

“The bottom line is that constitutional rights are being trampled,” says Valdez, who has an autistic child and fears her own family could face such a nightmare someday. “This decision is made that the guardians suddenly aren’t suitable — they don’t qualify. And families aren’t getting the opportunity to defend themselves.”

Full Article and Source:
Families Lose Guardianship in Secret Hearings

Fiance's Concerns of Abuse and Neglect Ignored

David Rector has been my friend for over 25 years.

And now he's dying in a dump in San Diego, lying in his own filth, neglected and abused in a so-called health care facility.

18 months ago, David suffered an aortic dissection and stroke. It left him brain damaged and briefly in a coma. At first he received excellent care. His fiancee Roz -- who has been by his side constantly, from the moment of the attack in their home, through all the initial surgery and rehab -- kept me updated regularly. He was treated at UCSMDC (University of California San Diego Medical Center). Then he was moved to a Long-Term Acute Care Facility called Kindred, where he also -- initially -- received excellent care. His trach was eventually removed, and he started, slowly, to regain function.

But then David's cousin stepped in. Said cousin suddenly decided he didn't want Roz in the picture anymore. Roz is "just" the love of David's life. She isn't a blood relative. And in the infinite wisdom of our legal system, blood is thicker than water, and Roz is water. [T]hough Roz offered repeatedly to fly him out to San Diego on her own dime, he has never taken her up on her offer. In fact, he's done worse: he's tried to get her legally barred from even visiting David, let alone make any medical decisions for him.

Roz continues to spend every day with him, cleaning him up, especially around his colostomy bag, which she's not allowed to change, even when it's overflowing, communicating with him -- orally as well as in writing, on a chalkboard -- doing all the things the staff refuses to do. She has been spending gobs of money trying to fight this in the courts, she has contacted every legal, policy, and advocacy organization out there, every elected official, every everyone who might possibly be able to help, and has been stymied at every turn by the legal system.

David has since been moved to "Care With Dignity." The photographs Roz has been sending me all along have changed from images of progress and hope to images of filth and despair. Anything Roz has brought in to help David has been stolen. Radios, TVs, CD player, iPod, headphones, earbuds, computer with language-assisting software, you name it. David gets no rehabilitation anymore. The progress he made early on is rapidly eroding. He's being neglected and abused, just like hundreds of thousands of other patients in similar hellholes around the country.

Bottom line: she's not a blood relative. She doesn't count. Her evidence of David's abuse doesn't count. Her evidence of his progress -- stunning given the circumstances, and thanks only to her efforts -- doesn't count.

She's afraid he's going to die in there. So am I.


Full Article and Source:
They are Killing David Rector

CA: Nurse Arrested on Felony Elder Abuse Charge

A registered nurse working at a hospital near Lake Isabella has been arrested on charges of abusing an elderly patient.

Rene Gachon Gotico, 65, a resident of Delano, was arrested Monday night at the Kern Valley Healthcare District hospital in Mountain Mesa after the hospital reported an incident to authorities.

A Kern County Sheriff's Department spokesman said a 79-year-old patient was sitting on the edge of her bed when she asked Gotico to help her to the restroom. According to a witness, Gotico refused to help, said sheriff's spokesman Ray Pruitt.

When the patient tried to stand up on her own, Gotico allegedly grabbed the patient around the neck with one hand and pushed her back onto the bed.

The hospital's nursing supervisor witnessed the alleged incident and immediately informed the emergency room director, who called the Sheriff's Department, Pruitt said.

When deputies arrived, they reported finding red marks on the patient's neck.

Full Article and Source:
Nurse Arrested on Felony Elder Abuse Charge

Seniors for Sale - Death in Adult Homes Hidden and Ignored

The deaths of hundreds of seniors at adult family homes may have been the result of neglect or abuse, but were never investigated.

Some fell to the floor and bled to death internally. Others choked on food and suffocated. Still others languished for weeks as bedsores burrowed to the bone, ultimately killing them.

In neighborhoods throughout Seattle and across the state, hundreds have died prematurely, many in avoidable misery, while living at state-licensed adult family homes.

A Seattle Times investigation has uncovered at least 236 deaths that indicate neglect or abuse in these homes but were not reported to the state or investigated.

Dozens of suspicious deaths occurred in adult homes with long histories of violations, including some whose owners employed caregivers with little training or forged credentials.

In the first accounting of such deaths, The Times identified these cases by analyzing death certificates of 4,703 Washington residents who died at adult homes from 2003 through 2008.

Adult homes are a less-regulated, less-expensive elder-care option than nursing homes, and are touted as providing personalized care in cozy, neighborhood settings
But The Times also found that adult-home deaths indicating neglect occur at strikingly higher rates than comparable deaths at nursing homes:

• Pressure-sore deaths in adult homes occur at a rate more than 3.5 times higher.

• The rate of deaths from falls is four times higher.

• For choking deaths, the rate is 15 times higher.

Adult family homes are regulated by Washington's Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), which licenses home owners to rent out spare bedrooms and provide long-term care for up to six seniors.

Full Article and Source:
Seniors for Sale - Death in Adult Homes Hidden and Ignored

See Also:
How to Prevent Pressure Sores

Washington State: DSHS Neglect Referrals Drop

Last month, officials from the state Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) said that the agency was referring far fewer cases of suspected elder abuse and neglect to law enforcement.

DSHS made the revelation to a 24-member task force that is studying how to better safeguard seniors in adult family homes. The group, made up of community advocates and public officials in the senior-care field, was formed earlier this year in response to The Times' ongoing series about adult family homes.

At the meeting, several task-force members expressed surprise at the sharp drop, which began after 2007. They questioned how suspected neglect cases could be dropping when more people than ever rely on long-term care and the number of adult homes continues to rise, according to participants.

DSHS offered no explanation in reply.

Full Article and Source:
DSHS Referrals for Neglect Drop

To Our Helpless Elderly

A letter written to a court commissioner Steven N. Grovdahl:



Source:
YouTube

'The Adele Chris Act'

Read proposed legislation submitted by Marked for Destruction's author, John Caravella, to the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security at their request for a Model Law" to combat abusive guardianships: The Adele Chris Act


View the May 25, 2010 Subcommittee Hearing

Contact the Committee and voice your support

What Adele Fraulen might have thought to be nothing more than a meaningless bad dream one night in 1935 would actually come true. At age 79 she would find herself living a nightmare -- a struggle for her life, simply because she innocently trusted the wrong professionals to help with her portion of a Million Dollar inheritance; they would steal her very existence. Her neighbors, Chris and Patricia Zurillo, would realize that Adele's life was going terribly wrong and dedicate themselves to freeing her from captivity. “Marked For Destruction” is a rare book that exposes an ever-expanding crime against our elderly.

Source:
MarkedForDestruction.com


A Free Gift From Adele's Neighbors - Read 'Marked for Destruction' online

Johnson & Johnson Being Sued for Drug Conspiracy

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is the subject of a California lawsuit alleging that the "family company" colluded with pharmaceutical consultant Omnicare to push its drugs on nursing home residents. Among the charges are allegations that J&J violated federal Medicaid laws with its schemes to maximize profits.

According to the suit, J&J was paying kickbacks to Omnicare to promote its drugs above those of other manufacturers, and convincing doctors that switching to J&J drugs was in their patients' best interests. The arrangement also included whitewashing these kickbacks as "performance rebates" that would be issued as "year-end bonuses."

"Residents were overcharged for their medications, had additional medications administered and were unlawfully switched to Johnson & Johnson drugs," explains the lawsuit. These medications included Floxin, Levaquin, Risperdal, Ultram, Duragesic, Procrit and Aciphex.

During their joint meetings to discuss "performance goals," J&J allegedly trained Omnicare employees to use "scripted communications" to convince physicians to switch their patients to J&J drugs as opposed to whatever they were currently on. This was included as part of the J&J's "Active Intervention Program," which basically is just a fancy name pushing its drugs on seniors.

Full Article and Source:
Johnson & Johnson Being Sued for Drug Conspiracy

Jury Finds in Favor of Rita Hunter - Against Dolores Forste

A Jasper County Circuit Court jury on Friday found in favor of Rita Hunter, former county public administrator, and Charlene Kelly, her deputy, in a lawsuit brought by the daughter of a former ward, accusing the former county officials of malicious prosecution.

The jury deliberated for just on hour before returning the verdict, with 11 members in favor of the finding, and one opposed.

Dolores Forste sued Hunter and Kelly for damages, contending she was the victim of malicious prosecution when she was arrested and jailed for nearly a month for refusing to return her mother to Jasper County. Forste’s mother, Emma France, then a 95-year-old Carthage resident, had been made a ward of the office in a court action that was later voided after the court found no attempt was made to notify relatives and that France was not allowed to be at the hearing, both requirements of state law.

Lynn Myers, Forste’s attorney, expressed disappointment, adding “the jury had to decide on what were able to tell them, and there were some limitations.

“We will definitely appeal,” he added.

Doug Harpool, the Springfield attorney representing Hunter and Kelly, emphasized in closing arguments that Forste admitted on the witness stand that she took her mother from the county without Hunter’s permission and refused to return her, saying that’s what formed the basis of the charges. He said a prosecution cannot be considered malicious if it starts with truthful statements to police.

Hunter is the subject of other lawsuits filed by former wards of her office, which she occupied from 2005 to 2008. She also is the subject of federal investigation into operations of the administrator’s office. A state investigation was launched after Hunter left office in December 2008 and took with her files from the county office. Some computer records also were erased. Hunter later turned over boxes of files, and others were recovered via a search warrant served by the Missouri State Highway Patrol. Later, the state probe was taken over by federal investigators.

Full Article and Source:
Jury Finds in Favor of Former Jasper County Officials

See Also:
Motions Argued in Lawsuit Against Former Public Administrator, Rita Hunter

Investigated Pair Still Controls Huguette Clark's Fortune

A judge on Thursday rejected the request of Huguette Clark's relatives to appoint a guardian for the 104-year-old heiress, saying their claim relies on hearsay. The judge left her affairs in the hands of an attorney and accountant who are being investigated by the district attorney.

Without a hearing, Judge Laura Visitación-Lewis of New York County Supreme Court said the relatives' petition was "insufficient in its hearsay, conclusory and speculative assertions" on the capacity of Clark to handle her affairs.

A parallel criminal investigation by the Manhattan district attorney continues into the handling of Clark's wealth, estimated at $500 million.

Full Article and Source:
Investigated Pair Still Control Huguette Clark's Fortune

Huguette Clark's Attorney Defends Himself

The attorney for 104-year-old heiress Huguette Clark has responded to an effort by her relatives to oust him as her attorney, ridiculing them as Johnny-come-latelies.

The detailed statement from Wallace "Wally" Bock provides his first account of the health, history and well-being of the reclusive Clark, whose fortune is estimated at $500 million.

The Queens, N.Y., attorney also said he has carried out Clark's wishes to the letter, and acknowledged that he solicited a gift of $1.5 million from his client for a community where his family lives. He also maintained it wasn't his place to fire Clark's accountant after the man pleaded guilty to a felony.

One item Bock declined to address, however, is whether or not he is named in his client's will.

Three of Clark's distant relatives, Ian C. Devine, Carla Hall Friedman and Karine Albert McCall, went to court Friday in New York City, asking that a guardian and a financial institution be appointed to protect her from potential financial abuse by Bock as well as her accountant, who is a registered sex offender.

He ridiculed the family who filed the petition as "very distant relations" "who have only recently appeared on the scene" and "do not claim to have any personal relationship with her." [Note, the family's petition was denied. See article above.]

Full Article and Source:
Attorney for 104-Year-Old Heiress Defends His Handling of Her Finances

See Also:
Huguette Clark's Lawyer Fires Back!

IL: Family Sues Nursing Home Over Woman's Death

Family members are suing a Hinsdale nursing home, saying negligence and overmedicating caused the death of a 74-year-old woman less than a month after she arrived at the facility.

In a lawsuit, the family of Dolores Howorth claims the Western Springs resident died of kidney failure caused by dehydration because ManorCare Health Services chemically restrained her.

The suit claims she was given medication that wasn't necessary to treat her dementia and was physically restrained with a wheelchair lap restraint.

The family seeks damages in excess of $50,000 on each of the seven counts in the lawsuit.

Howorth was admitted to ManorCare's Arcadia dementia unit on March 20, 2009, the suit stated. Within 48 hours, she was prescribed Ativan, a sedative. Four days later she was prescribed Seroquel, an anti-psychotic. The lawsuit stated that Howorth lost 16.1 pounds in her first 12 days at ManorCare.

Howorth was rushed from ManorCare to Adventist Hinsdale Hospital April 15, 2009, and was pronounced dead a few hours after admission. The Illinois Department of Public Health investigated and cited ManorCare for improper care, neglect and improper restraint of Howorth, according to documents provided by the law firm representing the family.

Full Article and Source:
Family Sues Hindsdale Nursing Home Over Woman's Death

Man Sentenced to 3 Years for Bilking Elderly Couple

Two days after an Aspen Hill man was sentenced in Montgomery County Circuit Court on Monday to three years in state prison for stealing more than $189,000 from a semi-lucid 91-year-old widow and her late husband, that woman's legal guardian had a message to deliver.

Bethesda-based attorney Robert McCarthy said anyone aspiring to be like James Brian Gendimenico should take note.

"If you mess with these little old ladies and Bobby McCarthy finds out, you are going to the state penitentiary," McCarthy said. "When people are doing a cost-benefit analysis of committing this kind of crime, we want them to think about (this)."

Full Article and Source:
Aspen Hill Man Sentenced to Three Years for Bilking Money From Elderly Couple

'Josie May' to Reunite With Family

Ethel May Helmbright is considered an "ariki" back in New Zealand, a person of high regard to the Maori people. She was the last of her generation, the last living member of eight brothers and sisters who abruptly set off for Alaska three decades ago.

How she ended up homeless on the streets of Waikiki for 10 years -- confused, unwilling to accept help and unable to even remember her own name -- might remain a mystery forever.

But the bigger question is how the gaunt and frail woman known in Honolulu as "Josie May Bright" will adjust to life back home in New Zealand, reunited with a family she cannot recall.

"She's confused," said her court-appointed Hawaii guardian, Roger Petticord. "She doesn't understand what's happening."

The Hawaii Office of the Public Guardian has handled "Jane Doe" cases before, but nothing like the mystery of 83-year-old Josie May Bright, Petticord said.

"This one's unique," he said.

Full Article and Source:
'Josie May' to Reunite With Family

No Guardian for Huguette Clark!

A New York judge has rebuffed a request to appoint a guardian for a reclusive, 104-year-old heiress to a Montana copper fortune. Her relatives fear her lawyer and accountant are manipulating her for their benefit.

The judge's ruling Thursday says the relatives are relying on secondhand and speculative claims that Huguette Clark (hew-GET') is incapacitated and needs a guardian.

Full Article and Source:
NY Judge: No Guardian for Copper Heiress, 104

Your Honor?

Juli Alexander, Executive Director of Redress, Inc. candidly discusses the present condition of the American judicial system. Examples of life destroying decisions void of common sense, morality and law handed down by judges are cited.



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Woman Pleads Guilty to Elder Exploitation

He made people laugh as a writer for such television series as "All in the Family," "Welcome Back Kotter," and "Chico and the Man." He died alone in his house in Hurley, a victim of elderly exploitation by a woman whom George Bloom's family said had convinced them that she was taking care of him.

On Aug. 18, Vallie Phillips, 67, pleaded guilty to two, third-degree felony charges of forgery and four, fourth-degree felony counts of forgery in connection with Bloom's exploitation. As part of a plea agreement, Phillips was ordered to pay restitution of $16,900 by Wednesday to Bloom's estate, which has been paid. She also was placed on five years probation, with a conditional discharge, meaning that after she completes her probation there will be no criminal record of a conviction.

"He was living in a home infested with mice," according to a statement that Bloom's family - his son, George Bloom III, and his daughters, Eva Bloom, Laura Bloom and Alison Bloom - prepared for the court. "He had little food, no running water and no heat and there were mice feces everywhere. The stench in his house was unbearable.

"This is a human tragedy," George Bloom III said. "The day he died, the only reason she (Phillips) cried, if she cried at all, was because she knew the money train was over. We just don't want this to happen to anyone else."

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Woman Pleads Guilty in Elder Exploitation Case