The Berkeley County Probate Court has joined Charleston County in an effort to limit court-approved fees that can drain the estates of incapacitated elderly persons taken under the court's protection.
Keith W. Kornahrens, chief judge of the Berkeley County Probate Court, said he is going to go along with the fee restrictions set in place last year by the Charleston County Probate Court.
"I do think guardian fees are too high, even at the reduced rate," Kornahrens said.
He said he will issue an order this week limiting the fees for lawyers and guardians who handle cases involving incapacitated adults. He said he would adopt the same limitations issued last year by Irvin G. Condon, Charleston's chief probate judge.
In Dorchester County, Chief Probate Judge Mary Blunt said she will take a look at what Charleston and Berkeley counties have done because "it's nice when counties get in line." But, she said, she doesn't know if there is really any point because her court rarely uses professional guardians, preferring instead to search as hard as necessary to find a relative, friend or someone else to serve in that position. And that service generally is for free.
In addition, she said, the Dorchester County Probate Court has long limited attorneys in incapacitated adult cases to fees of no more than $125 an hour, half of what many normally charge. She said she views it as a form of community service for many of the elderly people who find themselves before the court and have little income or savings.
Condon limited certain fees after The Post and Courier's Watchdog began a review of court-approved charges made by lawyers, guardians and conservators, and questioned him about the rationale for some of them. Watchdog revealed in a series called "The Price of Living" that the Probate Court, which is supposed to protect vulnerable adults from financial exploitation, approved fees that in many cases drained tens of thousands of dollars a year from some of the adult wards' savings, leaving them broke within a year or two.
In [one] case, the Probate Court approved a guardian's $100-per-hour fee for taking his elderly ward a birthday card and flowers.
Shortly after that series ran in November, Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal told the newspaper, "I will be taking action to move this issue forward."
Rosalyn W. Frierson, director of Court Administration for the Supreme Court, said the high court probably wouldn't take any unilateral action until after they receive a report from a working group on the guardian issue. That working group has not been named at this time.
Frierson said she did not know if any other probate courts had limited fees other than those in Charleston and Berkeley counties.
Kornahrens' order will:
--Limit attorneys to no more than $200 an hour. Some had been charging as much as $270.
--Guardians will be placed on a scale of $45 an hour to $75 an hour based on experience and training. Some previously charged as much as $140 an hour.
--Certified professional guardians will be allowed to charge $80 an hour. Some higher or lower charges might be allowed at the court's discretion.
Full Article & Source:
Probate Court to Limit Fees Paid to Lawyers, Guardians
See Also:
The Price of Living
Is System Draining Our Seniors' Assets?
Monday, February 28, 2011
Woman Who Defrauded Elderly Man Sentenced
A woman who pretended to be a licensed vocational nurse has been sentenced to nine months in Placer County Jail and ordered to pay back $240,000 to an 85-year-old man whom she defrauded over a period of years.
Debra Leigh Kelly, 55, of Foresthill was sentenced Wednesday by County Superior Court Judge Frances Kearney after pleading guilty to a felony count of theft or embezzlement from an elder. Judge Kearney also placed Kelly on four years probation.
Kelly had also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of impersonating a licensed vocational nurse and practicing a trade without a valid license, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.
In a court hearing earlier this month, Kelly repaid $30,400 to the victim, leaving a balance of $209,600 that she must repay.
Kearney also banned Kelly from being in the presence of elderly adults unless a legal guardian or licensed caregiver is there to supervise.
According to prosecutor Jim Deslaurier, the case began in early 2005 when the victim hired Kelly to help care for his ailing wife. Kelly had falsely advertised herself as a licensed vocational nurse.
The victim's wife died a few months later, but Kelly befriended the man, telling him she was owed a significant amount of money from a civil lawsuit stemming from a horse-training accident.
Full Article and Source:
Woman Who Defrauded Elderly Man Sentenced to Placer County Jail
Debra Leigh Kelly, 55, of Foresthill was sentenced Wednesday by County Superior Court Judge Frances Kearney after pleading guilty to a felony count of theft or embezzlement from an elder. Judge Kearney also placed Kelly on four years probation.
Kelly had also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor counts of impersonating a licensed vocational nurse and practicing a trade without a valid license, according to a Placer County District Attorney's Office news release.
In a court hearing earlier this month, Kelly repaid $30,400 to the victim, leaving a balance of $209,600 that she must repay.
Kearney also banned Kelly from being in the presence of elderly adults unless a legal guardian or licensed caregiver is there to supervise.
According to prosecutor Jim Deslaurier, the case began in early 2005 when the victim hired Kelly to help care for his ailing wife. Kelly had falsely advertised herself as a licensed vocational nurse.
The victim's wife died a few months later, but Kelly befriended the man, telling him she was owed a significant amount of money from a civil lawsuit stemming from a horse-training accident.
Full Article and Source:
Woman Who Defrauded Elderly Man Sentenced to Placer County Jail
Sunday, February 27, 2011
'Kennedy Lied, But What's New?'
We’ll get to the point.When Kennedy announced from the bench in open court that the Danny Tate conservatorship was terminated nunc pro tunc (now for then), it was a calculated lie. He had no intention of terminating the conservatorship, he just wanted the bad press and supporters to go away.
The Temporary Letters of Conservator have yet to be dissolved. In other words, the Tate conservatorship was NEVER terminated.
Kennedy’s robes are almost laughable except for the horrific results forced upon the citizens he’s supposed to serve. Kennedy does not serve the people, he serves attorneys and politicians. He’s been given control of quite a deep purse of other people’s money and has no problem giving it away.
Source:
ImpeachRandyKennedy
2010 State Judicial Discipline
In 2010, as a result of state judicial discipline proceedings, seven judges or former judges were removed from office. In addition, 18 judges resigned or retired in lieu of discipline, pursuant to agreements with judicial conduct commissions that were made public, and agreed not to serve in judicial office again. One former judge was barred from serving in judicial office in the state again.
100 additional judges (or former judges in approximately six cases) received other public sanctions in 2010. (Two judges are counted twice because they were disciplined twice). In approximately half of those cases, the discipline was imposed pursuant to the consent of the judge.
Seventeen judge were suspended without pay, ranging from five days to one year, two of which were stayed in whole or in part with conditions. Nine of those suspensions included a censure, reprimand, fine, or probation. In addition, 17 judges were publicly censured; one of the censures was “severe,” one censured former judge also agreed not to serve again, one censure was based on the judge’s agreement to resign, and one censure also barred a former judge from serving in judicial office again.
Conduct commissions publicly reprimanded 42 judges (one reprimand also included a $5,000 fine, and one included a $6,000 fine), publicly admonished 19 judges, and publicly warned one judge. Three former judges were sanctioned in attorney discipline proceedings for conduct while they were judges. One judge was ordered to pay a $2,400 civil penalty.
Those figures do not include pending recommendations or decisions that were pending on appeal at the end of 2010, two of which have been decided in 2011.
Article and Source:
2010 State Judicial Discipline
100 additional judges (or former judges in approximately six cases) received other public sanctions in 2010. (Two judges are counted twice because they were disciplined twice). In approximately half of those cases, the discipline was imposed pursuant to the consent of the judge.
Seventeen judge were suspended without pay, ranging from five days to one year, two of which were stayed in whole or in part with conditions. Nine of those suspensions included a censure, reprimand, fine, or probation. In addition, 17 judges were publicly censured; one of the censures was “severe,” one censured former judge also agreed not to serve again, one censure was based on the judge’s agreement to resign, and one censure also barred a former judge from serving in judicial office again.
Conduct commissions publicly reprimanded 42 judges (one reprimand also included a $5,000 fine, and one included a $6,000 fine), publicly admonished 19 judges, and publicly warned one judge. Three former judges were sanctioned in attorney discipline proceedings for conduct while they were judges. One judge was ordered to pay a $2,400 civil penalty.
Those figures do not include pending recommendations or decisions that were pending on appeal at the end of 2010, two of which have been decided in 2011.
Article and Source:
2010 State Judicial Discipline
Saturday, February 26, 2011
'Granny Snatching'
I became involved in elder law when my mother, then aged 91, moved from her apartment near Albany, New York, to my home in Connecticut on December 22, 2008. She had lived alone for nearly a decade after my father died, most of that time capable of handling herself and her affairs, but she was hospitalized in December 2008 suffering from dehydration and potassium deficiency.As a result my siblings attempted to force her into a nursing home against her will –personnel from the nursing home were in the hospital preparing to move her out when I was notified.
I intervened, offering my home as an alternative, which was fine with everyone until my mother realized that my sister had kept her checkbook, which didn’t go over well with Mom.
With proper nutrition and some much needed sleep Mom rebounded quickly after her hospitalization and spent the week after Christmas 2008 in a series of fruitless attempts to convince my sister to relinquish the checkbook. My sister refused so ultimately Mom rescinded the limited power of attorney she had given my sister, and moved her finances to new accounts in Connecticut.
After which my sister, brother and some of their offspring joined in a lawsuit against Mom, the aim of which was to force her to return to New York, to be placed in an Alzheimer’s ward, even though she was not suffering from that disease, and to give my sister guardianship over my mother’s body, property, social life, and her money; all of it.
Full Article and Source:
Granny Snatching T-Day Tomorrow; New Laws for CT Elderly?
********************************************************************
It's safe to believe in the American Dream … isn't it? We live in a country where we take quality education, careers, nice homes, and the wherewithal to raise a family for granted.We are well fed. We're warm. We keep up with the latest fashions. Our legal system provides swift justice and righteousness prevails. We solve problems, not create them! Right?
We anticipate a safe and secure retirement where we hold hands with our life's partner during leisurely strolls on golden sands - waving palms overhead and perfectly sized waves breaking on the shore beneath a glowing sunset. Each evening we are submerged in the warmth of a life lived long and well, and the promise that tomorrow will be just like today.
And then … KA-POW! A giant wrecking ball tears in from stage right, smashing the palm trees, digging huge furrows in the perfect sand, and dumping the gently setting sun into a black sea of hissing steam. Darkness falls upon us and our world is turned upside down as family members appear from nowhere, seizing us, dragging us toward an unanticipated and unwanted future, penniless, powerless, confined in the clutches of "elder care."
Source:
RonaldWinterBooks.com
Pearl Harbor Survivor Allegedly Victimized by Caregiver
Arnold Bauer, a 93-year-old resident of San Diego who survived the attack on Pearl Harbor, has been moved to a nursing home after suffering neglect at the hands of his caregiver, reports The Associated Press.Bauer served on board the USS Vestal, a coal ship that was damaged during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in World War II. Long after he survived the war, Bauer developed dementia and prostate cancer, leaving him reliant on a caregiver.
Last month, however, authorities found Bauer in poor condition in his El Cajon house, which was reportedly filled with decomposing garbage and rat droppings.
Stephanie Le Chevalier, Bauer's daughter, told the source that her father has since moved to a San Diego-area nursing home, where he continues to receive treatment for the abuse he suffered. Meanwhile, his caregiver, Milagros Angeles, pleaded not guilty after she was charged with elder abuse, theft and false imprisonment.
Full Article and Source:
Pearl Harbor Survivor Arnold Bauer Moves to Nursing Home After Suffering Abuse
Friday, February 25, 2011
Rogue Lawyer Makes Smoron Probate Mess Even Messier
It would be difficult to find a more dubious lawyer to represent you than Jacek Smigelski.
He's been caught overcharging clients. He lied to a judge. He often fails to show up in court. There's a long record of his habit of violating the Rules of Professional Conduct for lawyers. He is facing a 15-month suspension of his law license.
Earlier this week a judge ordered him to come up with the nearly $300,000 he owes in connection with one of his client-scams — or face arrest on Feb. 28.
How does this rogue lawyer keep getting clients? How does he still have a law license?
Which might be the story, were it not for the fact that Smigelski is closely involved with the infamous Smoron Farm case in Southington, a tale that has taken another turn for the weird: Smigelski is now messing up a solution to this probate court outrage.
The Smoron Farm, you will recall, was given to longtime farmhand Sam Manzo under the will of Josephine Smoron, who died in 2009. But under the questionable oversight of former Southington Probate Judge Bryan Meccariello, Smoron's estate was dramatically altered and a plan devised to funnel the coveted property into the hands of a local developer, Carl Verderame. Local planning officials even approved Verderame's proposed sports center development, despite the fact that the land is still tied up in court.
Meccariello — who left office in disgrace to form (what else?) a probate consulting service — was censured by a state oversight panel for removing Manzo from the will. The lawyer who changed Smoron's will, John Nugent, hired Smigelski to represent him in court and in mediation proceedings designed to clean up the mess that Meccariello created.
Instead, Smigelski has assisted Nugent in blocking a resolution that would allow Manzo to inherit the farm.
"I'm trying to figure out what he's doing. I want to get this resolved,'' said Hartford lawyer Elliot Gersten, who is representing Manzo.
Most observers agree that Smoron's original will, which gives the farm to Manzo, should be adhered to. But Nugent and Smigelski are balking, using delaying tactics, filing motions and wasting court time, to block this sensible solution. Nugent, meanwhile, also faces disbarment proceedings for his role in the Manzo case.
Smigelski "knows he has certain rights within the system,'' said William Sweeney, who represents Stanley and Kazimierz Kosiorek, two brothers who were charged outrageous fees by Smigelski in a case that dates to 2006. "He pushes those rights until the very end."
Full Article and Source:
Rogue Lawyer Makes Probate Mess Even Messier
See Also:
CT: Probate Stench
He's been caught overcharging clients. He lied to a judge. He often fails to show up in court. There's a long record of his habit of violating the Rules of Professional Conduct for lawyers. He is facing a 15-month suspension of his law license.
Earlier this week a judge ordered him to come up with the nearly $300,000 he owes in connection with one of his client-scams — or face arrest on Feb. 28.
How does this rogue lawyer keep getting clients? How does he still have a law license?
Which might be the story, were it not for the fact that Smigelski is closely involved with the infamous Smoron Farm case in Southington, a tale that has taken another turn for the weird: Smigelski is now messing up a solution to this probate court outrage.The Smoron Farm, you will recall, was given to longtime farmhand Sam Manzo under the will of Josephine Smoron, who died in 2009. But under the questionable oversight of former Southington Probate Judge Bryan Meccariello, Smoron's estate was dramatically altered and a plan devised to funnel the coveted property into the hands of a local developer, Carl Verderame. Local planning officials even approved Verderame's proposed sports center development, despite the fact that the land is still tied up in court.
Meccariello — who left office in disgrace to form (what else?) a probate consulting service — was censured by a state oversight panel for removing Manzo from the will. The lawyer who changed Smoron's will, John Nugent, hired Smigelski to represent him in court and in mediation proceedings designed to clean up the mess that Meccariello created.
Instead, Smigelski has assisted Nugent in blocking a resolution that would allow Manzo to inherit the farm.
"I'm trying to figure out what he's doing. I want to get this resolved,'' said Hartford lawyer Elliot Gersten, who is representing Manzo.
Most observers agree that Smoron's original will, which gives the farm to Manzo, should be adhered to. But Nugent and Smigelski are balking, using delaying tactics, filing motions and wasting court time, to block this sensible solution. Nugent, meanwhile, also faces disbarment proceedings for his role in the Manzo case.
Smigelski "knows he has certain rights within the system,'' said William Sweeney, who represents Stanley and Kazimierz Kosiorek, two brothers who were charged outrageous fees by Smigelski in a case that dates to 2006. "He pushes those rights until the very end."
Full Article and Source:
Rogue Lawyer Makes Probate Mess Even Messier
See Also:
CT: Probate Stench
Financial Elder Abuse Caught on Tape
In October, a trio of thieves took a senior citizen suffering from dementia from store to store and tricked her into opening up credit card accounts. Store surveillance video shows the suspect standing right next to the victim as she fills out credit applications. After the stores granted her thousands of dollars in credit, the suspects went on a spending spree. Family members say what happened in the stores ruined the victim's life "they got away with more than $10,000 worth of goods and haven't been caught," the victim's brother said.
Source:
Disturbing Elder Abuse Case - "Part of Growing Trend"
Source:
Disturbing Elder Abuse Case - "Part of Growing Trend"
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Texas Guardianship Abuse
Probate courts are supposed to oversee guardians. Yet oversight is erratic and superficial. Absence of constant oversight and no accountability...
Incidents of abuse, neglect and exploitation of incapacitated adults by their guardians have raised a number of controversial issues regarding the courts' administration and oversight of guardianship's.
Source:
YouTube
Incidents of abuse, neglect and exploitation of incapacitated adults by their guardians have raised a number of controversial issues regarding the courts' administration and oversight of guardianship's.
Source:
YouTube
State Moves to Suspend Lawyer
The Indiana Supreme Court’s Disciplinary Commission filed an emergency petition to suspend the law license of local attorney Daniel E. Serban, citing criminal charges filed against him.
Serban, of Roanoke, faces charges of corrupt business influence, forgery, and two counts of theft. Charged last September, he is accused of failing to distribute money paid into the Serban Law Office’s Trust Account to clients or to those entitled by court order to receive it.
After his arrest, Serban told police some of the money he used to pay off the original client, after he was confronted, had been taken from money put into the trust account for an estate. He told investigators he forged the name of the estate’s personal representative on the check.
Attorneys are required to keep escrow-type accounts where money either coming from or going to their clients will be kept. Those accounts are to be treated with extreme fiduciary care, and attorneys have a strong ethical responsibility to protect that money.
Full Article and Source:
State Moves to Suspend Accused Roanoke Lawyer
Serban, of Roanoke, faces charges of corrupt business influence, forgery, and two counts of theft. Charged last September, he is accused of failing to distribute money paid into the Serban Law Office’s Trust Account to clients or to those entitled by court order to receive it.
After his arrest, Serban told police some of the money he used to pay off the original client, after he was confronted, had been taken from money put into the trust account for an estate. He told investigators he forged the name of the estate’s personal representative on the check.
Attorneys are required to keep escrow-type accounts where money either coming from or going to their clients will be kept. Those accounts are to be treated with extreme fiduciary care, and attorneys have a strong ethical responsibility to protect that money.
Full Article and Source:
State Moves to Suspend Accused Roanoke Lawyer
Owner's Death Means Caretaker Might Keep Home
A 74-year-old man fighting a Medicaid-related eviction order might not have to move because the homeowner died and willed her house to him, an attorney said.Alma Ruth O'Brien, 94, had shared her Northwest Side home with Murrell Lewis for nearly 38 years and planned to leave him her entire estate.
But because she went into a nursing home in 2009, O'Brien's court-appointed guardian said Lewis had to buy the house, pay rent or leave so that it could be sold to comply with Medicaid asset rules.
O'Brien's death changes the debate, said Lewis' attorney, David Belinky.
"They're going to have to close the guardianship, and I assume (Lewis will) be named executor," Belinky said. "It's a little weird right now."
The guardian, Columbus attorney Amy Himmelrick, couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.
She has said that Lewis made matters worse by refusing to cooperate with her and with adult protective services, which started an investigation after a doctor said that O'Brien's health was deteriorating under Lewis' care.
Belinky said he isn't sure how much money is owed to Medicaid, the program that pays for health and nursing-home care for the poor and disabled. He and Lewis say it might not be much, as O'Brien had a monthly income of about $5,000 in retirement and insurance benefits and so barely needed Medicaid.
Attorney fees and other costs from the guardianship likely would need to be paid from the estate.
Full Article and Source:
Owner's Death Means Caretaker Might Keep Home
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Hearing Loss Linked to Dementia
Adults with hearing loss are significantly more likely than adults with normal hearing to develop dementia, according to a new study out from researchers at Johns Hopkins and the National Institute on Aging. The study — which finds that the greater the hearing loss, the higher the risk — may open a new avenue of research into dementia and Alzheimer's disease.Men and women in the study who experienced severe hearing loss were five times more likely to develop dementia than those with normal hearing. But even mild hearing loss doubled the risk of dementia.
Researchers found that those with hearing loss at the beginning of the study were much more likely to develop dementia by the end, even after taking into account age and other risk factors. The risk of dementia only began to rise once hearing loss began to interfere with the ability to communicate — for example, in a noisy restaurant. The study also found that hearing loss increased the risk of Alzheimer's disease, but the two were not as strongly linked as hearing loss and dementia.
Full Article and Source:
AARP: Hearing Loss Linked to Dementia
The New Business of Old Age
The Times reports on the development of technologies that may help to keep aging Americans out of long-term care facilities.
Longevity-focused researchers…are betting that baby boomers, unlike generations past, will not go gentle into the good night of long-term care. In fact, a few research groups at institutions like Oregon Health & Science University, M.I.T. and Stanford, along with foundations and the private sector, are devising policies and systems for an alternate scenario: older adults living independently at home for longer periods, whether that home is a private residence or a senior community.
Devices for I’ve-fallen-and-I-can’t-get-up catastrophes, they say, represent the old business of old age. The new business of old age involves technologies and services that promote wellness, mobility, autonomy and social connectivity. These include wireless pillboxes that transmit information about patients’ medication use, as well as new financial services, like “Second Acts” from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, that help people plan for longer lives and second careers.
Together, those kinds of products and services are already a multibillion-dollar market, industry analysts say. And if such innovations prove to promote health and independence, delaying entry into long-term care, the potential savings to the health care system could be even greater.
Source:
The New Business of Old Age
Longevity-focused researchers…are betting that baby boomers, unlike generations past, will not go gentle into the good night of long-term care. In fact, a few research groups at institutions like Oregon Health & Science University, M.I.T. and Stanford, along with foundations and the private sector, are devising policies and systems for an alternate scenario: older adults living independently at home for longer periods, whether that home is a private residence or a senior community.
Devices for I’ve-fallen-and-I-can’t-get-up catastrophes, they say, represent the old business of old age. The new business of old age involves technologies and services that promote wellness, mobility, autonomy and social connectivity. These include wireless pillboxes that transmit information about patients’ medication use, as well as new financial services, like “Second Acts” from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, that help people plan for longer lives and second careers.
Together, those kinds of products and services are already a multibillion-dollar market, industry analysts say. And if such innovations prove to promote health and independence, delaying entry into long-term care, the potential savings to the health care system could be even greater.
Source:
The New Business of Old Age
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Shattered Sun Valley Group Blames Hype
Two weeks after one of Arizona's largest fiduciary firms abruptly announced it was closing, its owner told a Superior Court judge that media-fueled hype about its practices was to blame.Death threats, costly legal bills and untenable insurance hikes forced the company to cease operations, according to a motion Friday by lawyers for the owner of the Sun Valley Group.
Sun Valley has for 15 years been among the private fiduciaries appointed by the Maricopa County Probate Court.
On Friday, his [Owner Peter Frenette's] attorneys told the court that the company originally planned on shutting down over the next eight months as a result of "significant business strain" from defending itself from frivolous lawsuits, "inaccurate and abusive media reports" and death threats to employees that resulted in an inability to staff cases.Lawyers wrote that long-term plan was disrupted Jan. 28 when Sun Valley learned that its insurance would be canceled and that premiums were to increase nearly seven times their historical rates.
"An immediate shutdown became inevitable," Sun Valley lawyers wrote. "The insurance issue was the straw that broke (Sun Valley's) business back."
Full Article and Source:
Shattered Sun Valley Fiduciary Blames Hype
See Also:
CBS: Guardian Firm Closes Business in Arizona
Gambling Habit Led Probate Tustee to Steal from Clients
An out-of-control gambling habit spurred a San Diego probate court trustee and licensed private fiduciary to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from clients, many of them aged or disabled, according to the U.S. attorney.
In pleading guilty Friday to wire fraud and money-laundering, Teresa Laggner admitting spending 165 days in 2010 at the Barona Casino in Lakeside, outside San Diego.
"Unfortunately for herself and her clients, Laggner admitted sustaining gambling losses in excess of $1 million," according to U.S. Atty. Laura Duffy.
Laggner, 56, will be sentenced May 16 in San Diego federal court. Mail fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, money laundering carries a maximum of 10 years. Laggner has also been ordered to pay restitution.
Laggner worked for private trusts and the probate court from 2006 to 2010. She transferred money from her clients' accounts to her own and then withdrew money by cashing checks and using the automated teller machines at the Barona Casino and casinos in Nevada, according to court documents.
Article and Source:
Gambling Habit Led San Diego Probate Trustee to Steal from Clients
In pleading guilty Friday to wire fraud and money-laundering, Teresa Laggner admitting spending 165 days in 2010 at the Barona Casino in Lakeside, outside San Diego.
"Unfortunately for herself and her clients, Laggner admitted sustaining gambling losses in excess of $1 million," according to U.S. Atty. Laura Duffy.
Laggner, 56, will be sentenced May 16 in San Diego federal court. Mail fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, money laundering carries a maximum of 10 years. Laggner has also been ordered to pay restitution.
Laggner worked for private trusts and the probate court from 2006 to 2010. She transferred money from her clients' accounts to her own and then withdrew money by cashing checks and using the automated teller machines at the Barona Casino and casinos in Nevada, according to court documents.
Article and Source:
Gambling Habit Led San Diego Probate Trustee to Steal from Clients
A Different Kind of Story
From the judge’s bench of any family court, the view of the world is rarely a pretty one. It is of splintered dreams and tarnished vows and the frustration and fury that inevitably follows.
One day in 1999, Judge Robert Scandurra had a view of something else as well. A divorced couple had been squabbling over child support and time with their 11-year-old son, but what Scandurra saw more clearly was that their lawyers couldn’t stand the sight of each other.
So Scandurra did something he had never done before and has rarely done since. He asked if he could meet with the mother and father alone in chambers, and their lawyers, to his surprise, agreed.
Over the next two hours, the judge and parents hashed through support payments, a parenting schedule, and a whole lot else. Toward the end of the session, the relieved parents, Jeff and Caroline, said they were trying to encourage their son, Vincent, to pick up a sport. Scandurra urged them to think of wrestling, elaborating on his days on the mat in high school and college. Both parents seemed to grab the idea and Scandurra, to his relief, never saw them in his court again.
When a judge makes a mistake, it’s often front-page news, film at 11, here we go again with an activist judiciary overstepping its bounds. It’s easy to forget, or to never realize, that every day, in quiet ways, judges can make a difference in people’s lives.
Full Article and Source:
A Good Match
One day in 1999, Judge Robert Scandurra had a view of something else as well. A divorced couple had been squabbling over child support and time with their 11-year-old son, but what Scandurra saw more clearly was that their lawyers couldn’t stand the sight of each other.
So Scandurra did something he had never done before and has rarely done since. He asked if he could meet with the mother and father alone in chambers, and their lawyers, to his surprise, agreed.
Over the next two hours, the judge and parents hashed through support payments, a parenting schedule, and a whole lot else. Toward the end of the session, the relieved parents, Jeff and Caroline, said they were trying to encourage their son, Vincent, to pick up a sport. Scandurra urged them to think of wrestling, elaborating on his days on the mat in high school and college. Both parents seemed to grab the idea and Scandurra, to his relief, never saw them in his court again.
When a judge makes a mistake, it’s often front-page news, film at 11, here we go again with an activist judiciary overstepping its bounds. It’s easy to forget, or to never realize, that every day, in quiet ways, judges can make a difference in people’s lives.
Full Article and Source:
A Good Match
Monday, February 21, 2011
NASGA Press Release
NASGA
National Association to STOP Guardian Abuse
www.StopGuardianAbuse.org
www.AnOpenLetterToCongress.info
http://NASGA-StopGuardianAbuse.blogspot.com
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
February 21, 2011
For more information contact:
Annie McKenna
NASGA Media Liaison
info@StopGuardianAbuse.org
_____________________________________________
NASGA Announces Appointment of Illinois Legislative Liaison
_____________________________________________
NASGA is pleased to announce the appointment of Janet Bedin to the position of Illinois Legislative Liaison.
Ms. Bedin is a resident of Rockford and a family member of a potential victim. In her case, Northwestern Memorial Hospital threatened to have her terminally ill mother guardianized if Ms. Bedin did not comply with their demands to remove her mother from their hospital. The guardianship was averted, but the experience and the near miss so appalled Ms. Bedin that she has taken up this important cause with determination and resolve to ensure that other innocent families are not likewise threatened unlawfully.
In her capacity, Ms. Bedin will represent NASGA’s legislative interests and ultimate goal of returning guardianship to its intended purpose: GUARD alleged incompetent persons and wards to keep them from harming themselves or anyone else; CONSERVE their assets through prudent investment; and PROTECT the taxpayers against guardianship wards becoming a public charge.
NASGA is a civil and human rights organization formed by victims of unlawful and abusive guardianships and conservatorships.
Our purpose is to protect Wards and their families - both physically and financially – through education, outreach, and advocacy. Our goal is to assure that the law is not being misused to advantage special interests.
###
National Association to STOP Guardian Abuse
www.StopGuardianAbuse.org
www.AnOpenLetterToCongress.info
http://NASGA-StopGuardianAbuse.blogspot.com
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
February 21, 2011
For more information contact:
Annie McKenna
NASGA Media Liaison
info@StopGuardianAbuse.org
_____________________________________________
NASGA Announces Appointment of Illinois Legislative Liaison
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NASGA is pleased to announce the appointment of Janet Bedin to the position of Illinois Legislative Liaison.
Ms. Bedin is a resident of Rockford and a family member of a potential victim. In her case, Northwestern Memorial Hospital threatened to have her terminally ill mother guardianized if Ms. Bedin did not comply with their demands to remove her mother from their hospital. The guardianship was averted, but the experience and the near miss so appalled Ms. Bedin that she has taken up this important cause with determination and resolve to ensure that other innocent families are not likewise threatened unlawfully.
In her capacity, Ms. Bedin will represent NASGA’s legislative interests and ultimate goal of returning guardianship to its intended purpose: GUARD alleged incompetent persons and wards to keep them from harming themselves or anyone else; CONSERVE their assets through prudent investment; and PROTECT the taxpayers against guardianship wards becoming a public charge.
NASGA is a civil and human rights organization formed by victims of unlawful and abusive guardianships and conservatorships.
Our purpose is to protect Wards and their families - both physically and financially – through education, outreach, and advocacy. Our goal is to assure that the law is not being misused to advantage special interests.
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Concerns Raised About Cost of Calling Coroners for Nursing Home Deaths
Kentucky prosecutors, law enforcement officers, coroners and officials have said they think it would be helpful if coroners were called whenever someone dies in a nursing home. Evidence could be gathered and, if abuse or neglect had occurred, cases could be prosecuted.But a bill that would require Kentucky nursing homes to report all deaths to the local coroner is in trouble in the General Assembly.
Tracey Corey, the state's chief medical examiner, estimates that if even 10 percent of the additional cases generated by the proposed law are turned over to her office for further evaluation, she would need three more doctors, more support staff and additional equipment for the required investigations, said Jennifer Brislin, a spokeswoman for the Justice Cabinet.
Despite concerns about costs, Corey supports the intent of House Bill 69, Brislin said. The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Tom Burch, D-Louisville, would require a specific staff member at a long-term care facility and hospice to report all deaths to the county coroner within 24 hours.
Source:
Concerns Raised About Cost of Calling Coroners for Nursing Home Deaths
See Also:
Coroners Help Facility Death Investigations
Wife of Ex-Fire Chief Convicting of Bilking Elderly Woman Released From Prison
Cheri Drick, who went from being the wife of Joliet’s fire chief to being Inmate R82388 at the Lincoln Correctional Center in Lincoln, was scheduled to be released [2/11] after serving three years of her eight-year sentence for methodically draining — with her husband, Joe, — the bank accounts of an elderly Joliet woman.
Disgraced ex-Fire Chief Joe Drick, currently in a work-release program out of the Jacksonville Correctional Center in Peoria, is due for parole in July on his eight-year sentence for his role in the theft of $210,000 from Gladys Farrington’s estate, estimated at more than $1.5 million.
Will County Circuit Court Judge Robert Livas sentenced the couple to eight years in prison for financial exploitation of an elderly person, crediting them for the 73 days spent in the Will County Adult Detention Facility.
The Dricks reportedly spotted Farrington, an 82-year-old daily communicant at St. Raymond’s Cathedral, on her way to Mass one bitterly cold morning in November 2003 and gave her a ride.
It took jurors On Oct. 1, only three-and-a-half hours to find the Dricks guilty of financial exploitation of an elderly person, and guilty of theft by deception.
Full Article and Source:
Wife of Ex-Fire Chief Who Bilked Elderly Woman of $210K Set to be Released From Prison Today
Disgraced ex-Fire Chief Joe Drick, currently in a work-release program out of the Jacksonville Correctional Center in Peoria, is due for parole in July on his eight-year sentence for his role in the theft of $210,000 from Gladys Farrington’s estate, estimated at more than $1.5 million.
Will County Circuit Court Judge Robert Livas sentenced the couple to eight years in prison for financial exploitation of an elderly person, crediting them for the 73 days spent in the Will County Adult Detention Facility.
The Dricks reportedly spotted Farrington, an 82-year-old daily communicant at St. Raymond’s Cathedral, on her way to Mass one bitterly cold morning in November 2003 and gave her a ride.
It took jurors On Oct. 1, only three-and-a-half hours to find the Dricks guilty of financial exploitation of an elderly person, and guilty of theft by deception.
Full Article and Source:
Wife of Ex-Fire Chief Who Bilked Elderly Woman of $210K Set to be Released From Prison Today
Sunday, February 20, 2011
CT Probate Case About Far More Than Money
Mary Gennotti, age 82, remarried her estranged husband in February 2009. At the time she was suffering from a brain tumor and advanced dementia. She signed her marriage license with an X. She would be dead within a month.
The odd ceremony was just part of a sequence of events involving his sister that didn’t make sense to New London retiree Robert Jetmore. Now he and Gennotti’s younger son, Robert, are trying to figure out what exactly happened to Mary.
They are hardly the only ones who are interested. A Connecticut author, Ron Winter, who has published a book called “Granny Snatching,” has blogged about the case. Articles critical of the probate system’s handling of it have appeared on several well-read Connecticut web sites. Additionally, the Office of the Attorney General is looking into the matter.
And it’s become something of a crusade for New Britain attorney Sally Roberts, who is representing Jetmore and Robert Genotti pro bono. “With greed in the family, when people die, the worst comes out,” Roberts said.
“There is an obvious stench about the whole matter,” Roberts said. “It does not pass the smell test.”
Full Article and Source:
Probate Case is About Far More Than Money
The odd ceremony was just part of a sequence of events involving his sister that didn’t make sense to New London retiree Robert Jetmore. Now he and Gennotti’s younger son, Robert, are trying to figure out what exactly happened to Mary.
They are hardly the only ones who are interested. A Connecticut author, Ron Winter, who has published a book called “Granny Snatching,” has blogged about the case. Articles critical of the probate system’s handling of it have appeared on several well-read Connecticut web sites. Additionally, the Office of the Attorney General is looking into the matter.
And it’s become something of a crusade for New Britain attorney Sally Roberts, who is representing Jetmore and Robert Genotti pro bono. “With greed in the family, when people die, the worst comes out,” Roberts said.
“There is an obvious stench about the whole matter,” Roberts said. “It does not pass the smell test.”
Full Article and Source:
Probate Case is About Far More Than Money
No Charges in SeniorCare Case
Gloucester police say they have found "insufficient evidence" to pursue criminal charges against SeniorCare case manager Marsha Collard or anyone else regarding the treatment of 83-year-old Joseph Judd at McPherson Park housing.In a 20-page report, police said they explored possible criminal action by financial exploitation or illegal dispensing of a controlled substance, such as Collard's handling of Judd's medication.
"The bottom line is that Joe Judd isn't fit to testify in court, and we found no one who could say they directly saw any criminal activity," said Detective Ken Ryan, who conducted the investigation, adding "you can only rely on what you're told."
Launched in November, the police probe was prompted by complaints first brought in June by Judd's grandson, Vito Loiacono, 35, alleging that, during 31/2 years under Collard's supervision in the state-subsidized housing program, Judd's prescription medication was withheld, and nearly $17,000 was withdrawn from his checking account for unspecified purposes and with no receipts.
Collard, who did not return a request for comment, was cleared of any wrongdoing through an in-house review by her employer in July, and has since been out on workers' comp. SeniorCare has repeatedly refused to discuss the matter, citing privacy concerns.
Full Article and Source:
Police See No Charges in SeniorCare Case
Couple Indicted for Bilking Grandmother Out of Over 200K
A grand jury has indicted a couple for bilking a relative out of more than $203,000.
34-year-old Benjamin Rush and 36-year-old Anne Rush were each indicted on one count of exploitation of an adult.
Investigators say the couple moved into Anne Rush's grandmother's home to take care of her, and during that time used her money for their personal use. They say the couple continued spending the money after the grandmother was placed in a nursing home.
"We are starting to see quite a bit more of these cases, unfortunately as the economy continue to suffer. I think people are doing this kind of thing and it is a shame that these elderly individuals are often victims," says Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Lynn Coleman.
Benjamin Rush was arrested Tuesday. He was released on bond from the Boyle County Detention Center on Thursday. Investigators say they're still looking for Anne Rush.
Full Article, Video, and Source:
Couple Accused of Bilking More Than $200,000 From Grandmother
34-year-old Benjamin Rush and 36-year-old Anne Rush were each indicted on one count of exploitation of an adult.
Investigators say the couple moved into Anne Rush's grandmother's home to take care of her, and during that time used her money for their personal use. They say the couple continued spending the money after the grandmother was placed in a nursing home.
"We are starting to see quite a bit more of these cases, unfortunately as the economy continue to suffer. I think people are doing this kind of thing and it is a shame that these elderly individuals are often victims," says Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Lynn Coleman.
Benjamin Rush was arrested Tuesday. He was released on bond from the Boyle County Detention Center on Thursday. Investigators say they're still looking for Anne Rush.
Full Article, Video, and Source:
Couple Accused of Bilking More Than $200,000 From Grandmother
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Ciavarella Found GUILTY!
Former Luzerne County Common Pleas Court Judge Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. has been found guilty of 12 of 39 counts of corruption filed against him, a federal jury in Scranton announced today.The 12 men and women, who deliberated for an estimated 12.5 hours, returned to U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania Edwin M. Kosik’s courtroom to announce their findings, which included decisions that Ciavarella was guilty of racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, honest services mail fraud, money laundering conspiracy and a host of tax fraud charges. Ciavarella was cleared of extortion, bribery and honest services wire fraud charges, however.
In the indictment, Ciavarella was charged with racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, four counts of honest services wire fraud, four counts of honest services mail fraud, 10 counts of corrupt receipt of bribe/reward for official action concerning programs receiving federal funds, money laundering conspiracy, five counts of money laundering, eight counts of extortion under color of official right, conspiracy to defraud the United States and four counts of subscribing and filing a materially false tax return.
Ciavarella admitted during testimony on Tuesday that he was, in fact, guilty of filing false tax returns for tax years 2003, 2005 and 2006 as alleged by prosecutors. Prosecutors also argued during trial that Ciavarella filed a false return for tax year 2004, but Ciavarella is disputing that charge.
He fought the majority of the charges by arguing that the kickback alleged by prosecutors was no more than a finder’s fee paid by Mericle as a thank you for putting him in touch with Powell. He fought the extortion claims by attempting to insulate himself from the actions of fellow former Luzerne County Common Pleas Court Judge Michael T. Conahan and claiming that any money paid by Powell was for the use of a condominium owned by a company controlled by the former judges’ wives.
Conahan, who faced an equally damning indictment and opted to plead guilty to one racketeering charge in relation to the alleged crimes, was a name that arose often during the trial. He was, however, conspicuously absent in person.
Neither side called him as a witness.
Full Article and Source:
Ciavarella Guilty of Racketeering
Priest Scrutinized in Property Transaction
Rev. Thaddeus Dzieszko took ownership of an elderly parishioner's home, with help from a law firm that is being probed for similar transactions.By her bedside, Waleria Krzemien kept a photograph of her trusted pastor, the Rev. Thaddeus Dzieszko of St. Constance Roman Catholic Church on Chicago's Northwest Side.
Now authorities are examining the circumstances under which "Father Ted" became trustee of the 93-year-old parishioner's home after delivering Communion to her there.
Dzieszko told the Tribune the property transaction was completely innocent, and he has not been accused of wrongdoing in any public court proceeding.
But Sunday, Dzieszko agreed to step aside from his parish responsibilities, pending the outcome of the investigation. Dzieszko's decision came after the Tribune interviewed him several times recently about the disputed trust.
Full Article and Source:
Priest Scrutinized in Property Transaction
Illinois Law Firm Probed Over Estate Dealings
The law firm of Przybylo and Kubiatowski faces two additional cases where the Cook County public guardian alleged that the firm drew up legal documents putting the assets of disabled elderly women in the hands of caretakers who may have exploited them financially. The firm vigorously defends its professional conduct.
Case 1: Anna Polachanin
A wheelchair-bound 94-year-old widow with no children or living relatives, former railroad company clerk Anna Polachanin in 2008 hired an in-house caretaker: Iryna "Irene" Bochko, a Ukrainian-born 25-year-old who had worked as a dental assistant and bartender.
Bochko took Polachanin to firm partner Stephen Kubiatowski, who prepared legal documents giving Bochko power of attorney for Polachanin, according to the public guardian. Bochko and a second Ukrainian woman then drained Polachanin's bank accounts of at least $300,000, according to court records. The women transferred an estimated $265,000 to unknown sources in Ukraine, court records show.
Convicted of financial exploitation of the elderly, Bochko is serving a four-year prison sentence.
On Polachanin's behalf, Cook County Public Guardian Robert Harris filed a claim against Kubiatowski and recovered a confidential settlement, interviews show.
Case 2: Sylvia Maciejewski
Once a Marshall Field's draperies department supervisor, Sylvia Maciejewski turned to the law firm to help her prepare estate documents.
In 2007, the law firm helped Maciejewski make changes to her estate, giving broad powers to manage her finances to two neighbors who are St. Constance Church lay ministers.
By then, Maciejewski was 91 years old and beginning to suffer from dementia, court records and interviews show. According to the public guardian, the neighbors opened at least six separate accounts at three banks starting in 2007 and transferred about $196,000 of Maciejewski's funds through those accounts. By June 2010, Maciejewski's cash assets had dropped to $20,000, the public guardian wrote in court papers.
The neighbors have not been charged with any crime, although the matter is being examined by county prosecutors, according to government officials.
Full Article and Source:
Law Firm Probed Over Estate Dealings
Case 1: Anna Polachanin
A wheelchair-bound 94-year-old widow with no children or living relatives, former railroad company clerk Anna Polachanin in 2008 hired an in-house caretaker: Iryna "Irene" Bochko, a Ukrainian-born 25-year-old who had worked as a dental assistant and bartender.
Bochko took Polachanin to firm partner Stephen Kubiatowski, who prepared legal documents giving Bochko power of attorney for Polachanin, according to the public guardian. Bochko and a second Ukrainian woman then drained Polachanin's bank accounts of at least $300,000, according to court records. The women transferred an estimated $265,000 to unknown sources in Ukraine, court records show.
Convicted of financial exploitation of the elderly, Bochko is serving a four-year prison sentence.
On Polachanin's behalf, Cook County Public Guardian Robert Harris filed a claim against Kubiatowski and recovered a confidential settlement, interviews show.
Case 2: Sylvia Maciejewski
Once a Marshall Field's draperies department supervisor, Sylvia Maciejewski turned to the law firm to help her prepare estate documents.
In 2007, the law firm helped Maciejewski make changes to her estate, giving broad powers to manage her finances to two neighbors who are St. Constance Church lay ministers.
By then, Maciejewski was 91 years old and beginning to suffer from dementia, court records and interviews show. According to the public guardian, the neighbors opened at least six separate accounts at three banks starting in 2007 and transferred about $196,000 of Maciejewski's funds through those accounts. By June 2010, Maciejewski's cash assets had dropped to $20,000, the public guardian wrote in court papers.
The neighbors have not been charged with any crime, although the matter is being examined by county prosecutors, according to government officials.
Full Article and Source:
Law Firm Probed Over Estate Dealings
Friday, February 18, 2011
Press Release: Disney Grandson Speaks Out for Reform
KNAPEREK CONSULTING, LLC
Phone (602) 531-8938
Fax (623) 505-1383
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
Grandson of Walt Disney seeks probate relief from Arizona State Legislature
February 17, 2011-Phoenix, ARIZONA – Speaking in support of an effort to reform the Arizona Probate Courts, Bradford Disney Lund testified today before the House Judiciary Committee of the Arizona State Legislature in favor of HB2424. Lund, 40, the grandson of Walt Disney has been embroiled in an Arizona probate court action that he has fought for over a year. Saying that “the last 16 months have been like Never-Never Land in a nightmare that never ends,” he was among several who spoke in support of the bill. When asked by committee chair Rep. Eddie Farnsworth-R-22, what the cost of his legal defense has been, Mr. Lund testified he has spent in excess of $1 million.
Mr. Lund related the awareness of a need for reform was made very real when he found himself required to defend his rights after an estranged aunt, the sister of Lund’s deceased mother, filed an order with the court to appoint a guardian to oversee Lund’s affairs and has attempted to have him declared incapacitated. He explained, “I hadn’t seen my aunt in over 7 years when she filed this action. Such a malicious use of the courts is just one of the reasons why I feel it is so important for this bill to pass.”
The bill passed the committee with 8 members voting for it and only Rep. Tom Chabin, D-Flagstaff, voting present. Opposition to the bill by the Arizona Supreme Court was voiced by their lobbyist citing an objection to the legislature involving itself in the courts. In conclusion, Farnsworth spoke to the courts objections saying, “We do not make laws for the people who do the right thing but for those that don’t. There are bad actors in this process and we need to protect the people from the abuses we have heard today.”
# # #
Knaperek Consulting, LLC is a government affairs firm specializing in issue advocacy and campaign services.
Phone (602) 531-8938
Fax (623) 505-1383
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
Grandson of Walt Disney seeks probate relief from Arizona State Legislature
February 17, 2011-Phoenix, ARIZONA – Speaking in support of an effort to reform the Arizona Probate Courts, Bradford Disney Lund testified today before the House Judiciary Committee of the Arizona State Legislature in favor of HB2424. Lund, 40, the grandson of Walt Disney has been embroiled in an Arizona probate court action that he has fought for over a year. Saying that “the last 16 months have been like Never-Never Land in a nightmare that never ends,” he was among several who spoke in support of the bill. When asked by committee chair Rep. Eddie Farnsworth-R-22, what the cost of his legal defense has been, Mr. Lund testified he has spent in excess of $1 million.
Mr. Lund related the awareness of a need for reform was made very real when he found himself required to defend his rights after an estranged aunt, the sister of Lund’s deceased mother, filed an order with the court to appoint a guardian to oversee Lund’s affairs and has attempted to have him declared incapacitated. He explained, “I hadn’t seen my aunt in over 7 years when she filed this action. Such a malicious use of the courts is just one of the reasons why I feel it is so important for this bill to pass.”
The bill passed the committee with 8 members voting for it and only Rep. Tom Chabin, D-Flagstaff, voting present. Opposition to the bill by the Arizona Supreme Court was voiced by their lobbyist citing an objection to the legislature involving itself in the courts. In conclusion, Farnsworth spoke to the courts objections saying, “We do not make laws for the people who do the right thing but for those that don’t. There are bad actors in this process and we need to protect the people from the abuses we have heard today.”
# # #
Knaperek Consulting, LLC is a government affairs firm specializing in issue advocacy and campaign services.
Press Release: Competing Reform Bills Face Off in Legislature This Week
KNAPEREK CONSULTING, LLC
Phone (602) 531-8938
Fax (623) 505-1383
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 15, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
COMPETING REFORM BILLS FACE OFF IN LEGISLATURE THIS WEEK
The courts versus the people in Probate Reform
February 15, 2011-Phoenix, ARIZONA – In another round of highly charged legislative hearings, this week the Arizona Senate and House will face off to determine which chamber will prevail in the effort to reform the probate system that has been the subject of such controversy for over a year. The Senate bill is supported by the courts, fiduciaries, and attorneys. The House bill was developed after private citizens banded together and demanded reform.
Wednesday morning, Feb. 16, the Senate will hear SB1499; it aims to provide disclosures to the process and adds guidelines. Opponents of the bill speak to the lack of accountability or recourse for wrongdoing, the removal of the family in the process and care of their loved ones, and increased layers of bureaucracy and confusion. Sponsored by Sen. Adam Driggs,R - LD-11, the bill is expected to draw criticism from those who have experienced the current probate system. A provision in the bill to exclude the family from notice of changes to the ward’s care is especially disturbing.
“The current probate laws not only have stripped wards of their Constitutional Rights but the courts are now filled with activist judges and lawyers bullying people out of their Constitutional Rights, this bill does nothing to remedy that injustice,” said an angry Denis Ball whose mother died while in the care of a court ordered fiduciary. After caring for his elderly mother for years, a family dispute placed her in probate court where he was prevented from visiting his mother for months prior to her death.
The House version of probate reform, HB2424, sponsored by Rep. David Smith, R-LD7, will be heard in House Judiciary on Thursday morning starting at 8 AM. It would make changes not provided for in the Senate bill. Establishing a Probate Advisory Committee made up of citizens, it would offer recourse for those who feel unfairly affected by the actions of the court and issues direct regulatory provisions. Authorizing wards to request a change of guardian, custodian, or trustee annually would prevent the majority of complaints currently in the forefront of the probate debate and insures the rights of families to visit. Civil liabilities and training for judges are among other primary points in the House bill.
Jayme Mason, who became active in the effort toward probate reform after her grandfather’s estate was placed under the jurisdiction of the courts had this to say about the bill, “We cannot leave so much up to the discretion of the Probate Judges and Commissioners. As it is, they are making decisions based on their own personal opinion and agenda rather than according to the procedures, guidelines, rules, and laws already implemented by the state of AZ, not to mention the Oath they supposedly stand for.”’
# # #
Knaperek Consulting, LLC is a government affairs firm specializing in issue advocacy and campaign services.
Phone (602) 531-8938
Fax (623) 505-1383
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 15, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
COMPETING REFORM BILLS FACE OFF IN LEGISLATURE THIS WEEK
The courts versus the people in Probate Reform
February 15, 2011-Phoenix, ARIZONA – In another round of highly charged legislative hearings, this week the Arizona Senate and House will face off to determine which chamber will prevail in the effort to reform the probate system that has been the subject of such controversy for over a year. The Senate bill is supported by the courts, fiduciaries, and attorneys. The House bill was developed after private citizens banded together and demanded reform.
Wednesday morning, Feb. 16, the Senate will hear SB1499; it aims to provide disclosures to the process and adds guidelines. Opponents of the bill speak to the lack of accountability or recourse for wrongdoing, the removal of the family in the process and care of their loved ones, and increased layers of bureaucracy and confusion. Sponsored by Sen. Adam Driggs,R - LD-11, the bill is expected to draw criticism from those who have experienced the current probate system. A provision in the bill to exclude the family from notice of changes to the ward’s care is especially disturbing.
“The current probate laws not only have stripped wards of their Constitutional Rights but the courts are now filled with activist judges and lawyers bullying people out of their Constitutional Rights, this bill does nothing to remedy that injustice,” said an angry Denis Ball whose mother died while in the care of a court ordered fiduciary. After caring for his elderly mother for years, a family dispute placed her in probate court where he was prevented from visiting his mother for months prior to her death.
The House version of probate reform, HB2424, sponsored by Rep. David Smith, R-LD7, will be heard in House Judiciary on Thursday morning starting at 8 AM. It would make changes not provided for in the Senate bill. Establishing a Probate Advisory Committee made up of citizens, it would offer recourse for those who feel unfairly affected by the actions of the court and issues direct regulatory provisions. Authorizing wards to request a change of guardian, custodian, or trustee annually would prevent the majority of complaints currently in the forefront of the probate debate and insures the rights of families to visit. Civil liabilities and training for judges are among other primary points in the House bill.
Jayme Mason, who became active in the effort toward probate reform after her grandfather’s estate was placed under the jurisdiction of the courts had this to say about the bill, “We cannot leave so much up to the discretion of the Probate Judges and Commissioners. As it is, they are making decisions based on their own personal opinion and agenda rather than according to the procedures, guidelines, rules, and laws already implemented by the state of AZ, not to mention the Oath they supposedly stand for.”’
# # #
Knaperek Consulting, LLC is a government affairs firm specializing in issue advocacy and campaign services.
Bill to Increase Oversight of Guardians and Conservators Passes in Nebraska
Oversight of guardians and conservators of adults would increase with a bill passed Wednesday on a 49-0 vote of the Legislature.
If signed by Gov. Dave Heineman, it would go into effect Jan. 1.
The bill (LB157), introduced by Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash, came from a task force of senators, judges, attorneys and law enforcement created by Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Heavican last year after a case in Omaha highlighted what can happen when a guardian does not act in good faith.
The measure would put more information in the hands of judges so they can make more informed decisions about who's going to serve, and how a guardian or conservator will serve a vulnerable person.
It lays out conditions for information at the time of appointment of a guardian and then ongoing reporting requirements, including these.
* A requirement for criminal history checks.
* A bond, which can be waived by the court or handled in other ways, on the ward's assets if they exceed $10,000.
* Letters of guardianship filed with the register of deeds in every county in which the ward owns property or interest in property.
* An inventory of the ward's assets filed within 30 days of appointment of a guardian to the court, interested persons and bonding companies, if required, and then annual inventories after that.
* Permission of the court to move the ward's place of residence outside the state.
* Authorization of the court to refer guardianship and conservatorship cases to mediation or other alternative dispute resolution.
* A procedure for an interested person to submit an affidavit to the court about concerns regarding a guardian, at the time of appointment or after.
Article Source:
Nebraska Lawmakers Pass Guardianship Bill
If signed by Gov. Dave Heineman, it would go into effect Jan. 1.
The bill (LB157), introduced by Lincoln Sen. Colby Coash, came from a task force of senators, judges, attorneys and law enforcement created by Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Heavican last year after a case in Omaha highlighted what can happen when a guardian does not act in good faith. The measure would put more information in the hands of judges so they can make more informed decisions about who's going to serve, and how a guardian or conservator will serve a vulnerable person.
It lays out conditions for information at the time of appointment of a guardian and then ongoing reporting requirements, including these.
* A requirement for criminal history checks.
* A bond, which can be waived by the court or handled in other ways, on the ward's assets if they exceed $10,000.
* Letters of guardianship filed with the register of deeds in every county in which the ward owns property or interest in property.
* An inventory of the ward's assets filed within 30 days of appointment of a guardian to the court, interested persons and bonding companies, if required, and then annual inventories after that.
* Permission of the court to move the ward's place of residence outside the state.
* Authorization of the court to refer guardianship and conservatorship cases to mediation or other alternative dispute resolution.
* A procedure for an interested person to submit an affidavit to the court about concerns regarding a guardian, at the time of appointment or after.
Article Source:
Nebraska Lawmakers Pass Guardianship Bill
Mickey Rooney Conservatorship
Actor Mickey Rooney has been granted court protection from his stepson and his stepson's wife after alleged abuse.According to court documents filed Monday, the couple is accused of draining Mr. Rooney financially, verbally abusing him, and denying him basic necessities, including food.
At an emergency hearing Monday morning, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Reva Goetz appointed a temporary conservator for Mr. Rooney and his estate. Judge Goetz also signed a temporary restraining order against Mr. Rooney's stepson, Chris Aber and his wife Christina ordering them to stay away from Mr. Rooney.
Full Article and Source:
Mickey Rooney Accuses Stepson of Abuse
Thursday, February 17, 2011
New York: Judicial Bad Behavior
One judge who was driving drunk led the police on a half-mile chase, and when he was pulled over, asked for “professional courtesy.”
Another said “good boy” when a man who wanted to file a lawsuit made an insulting comment about Jews.
A third repeatedly jailed people without any trial and talked at length from the bench about how the decoration on a woman’s T-shirt made him think of a male sex organ. “I’m bringing down the house,” said the judge, Gilbert L. Abramson of Family Court in Saratoga County, evidently delighted with his own humor.
Those are a few of the cases that were handled over the last year by a secretive state agency, the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, that is at the center of a new dispute about the state’s judicial-discipline system. Last week, the 77,000-member New York State Bar Association called for major changes in the commission’s structure and operations after a Manhattan lawyers’ group criticized the panel as unfair to judges.
The state bar association’s position is expected to set off a campaign in Albany to change the system in ways that could make it more difficult to remove judges, for example by allowing them to question investigators’ witnesses before a hearing. The proposal would also break the commission into two separate agencies, one to prosecute judges and another to rule on the charges. It is also likely to prompt the first detailed review in decades of the way the state handles the roughly 1,800 complaints made against judges every year.
The complaints filed with the 11-member commission vary from nuisance accusations by people who lost cases to sobering claims about judges’ fixing cases and ignoring constitutional rights, the agency’s reports show. Because of the power wielded by the state’s 3,500 full- and part-time judges, any system of policing them would be delicate.
In an interview this week, the chairman of the commission, Thomas A. Klonick, criticized as “unfortunate and kind of distressing” the way the Manhattan lawyers’ group, the New York County Lawyers’ Association, had reached its conclusions that the system was unfair to judges. “I believe they don’t understand the process of how the commission works,” said Mr. Klonick, a lawyer and part-time town judge in Perinton, N.Y., near Rochester.
The president of the Manhattan lawyers’ association, James B. Kobak Jr., said his group had consulted people widely, but “beyond that I really don’t care to respond.”
But the comments of Mr. Klonick, a Republican appointed to the commission by the state’s chief judge, showed that the effort to change the state’s judicial-discipline system is likely to meet resistance as the debate begins in Albany.
Full Article and Source:
Sex Joke and Other Judicial Bad Behavior
Another said “good boy” when a man who wanted to file a lawsuit made an insulting comment about Jews.
A third repeatedly jailed people without any trial and talked at length from the bench about how the decoration on a woman’s T-shirt made him think of a male sex organ. “I’m bringing down the house,” said the judge, Gilbert L. Abramson of Family Court in Saratoga County, evidently delighted with his own humor.
Those are a few of the cases that were handled over the last year by a secretive state agency, the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct, that is at the center of a new dispute about the state’s judicial-discipline system. Last week, the 77,000-member New York State Bar Association called for major changes in the commission’s structure and operations after a Manhattan lawyers’ group criticized the panel as unfair to judges.
The state bar association’s position is expected to set off a campaign in Albany to change the system in ways that could make it more difficult to remove judges, for example by allowing them to question investigators’ witnesses before a hearing. The proposal would also break the commission into two separate agencies, one to prosecute judges and another to rule on the charges. It is also likely to prompt the first detailed review in decades of the way the state handles the roughly 1,800 complaints made against judges every year.
The complaints filed with the 11-member commission vary from nuisance accusations by people who lost cases to sobering claims about judges’ fixing cases and ignoring constitutional rights, the agency’s reports show. Because of the power wielded by the state’s 3,500 full- and part-time judges, any system of policing them would be delicate.
In an interview this week, the chairman of the commission, Thomas A. Klonick, criticized as “unfortunate and kind of distressing” the way the Manhattan lawyers’ group, the New York County Lawyers’ Association, had reached its conclusions that the system was unfair to judges. “I believe they don’t understand the process of how the commission works,” said Mr. Klonick, a lawyer and part-time town judge in Perinton, N.Y., near Rochester. The president of the Manhattan lawyers’ association, James B. Kobak Jr., said his group had consulted people widely, but “beyond that I really don’t care to respond.”
But the comments of Mr. Klonick, a Republican appointed to the commission by the state’s chief judge, showed that the effort to change the state’s judicial-discipline system is likely to meet resistance as the debate begins in Albany.
Full Article and Source:
Sex Joke and Other Judicial Bad Behavior
Judge Them in Open Court
Some New York judges seem to believe they don't get a fair shake from the agency that polices their actions on the bench. There is one way to find out for sure:The Legislature should open Commission on Judicial Conduct proceedings to view. All its hearings should be public once the panel has found grounds to vote charges against a judge.
The commission supports openness, as does every court-watching organization in the state. Only the judges balk at lifting the secrecy that bars the panel from releasing any information except a final order of discipline.
Despite this protection, judges complained that the commission has too much power to act against them. They got the ear of the New York County Lawyers Association, which in turn got the attention of the state bar association.
Ever friendly to its judicial brethren, the association is asking Albany to give judges consideration beyond the wildest dreams of due process.
Its proposals include requiring the commission to give judges early notice of probes, as well as almost full access to the work of investigators. The group also calls for limits on the panel's power to expand probes and for taxpayers to bankroll expenses judges incur in defending themselves.
These are not worth a moment's thought. But opening the process to sunlight after the commission has filed charges - a step ignored by the association - would enhance confidence that judges and the public alike are being treated justly.
Source:
Judge Them in Open Court: Legislature Should Open Commission on Judicial Conduct Proceedings to View
Nevada Judges the Judges
2010 Report: A biennial survey of local attorneys rating judges; Supreme Court justices
A total of 796 respondents completed online evaluation ballots and were qualified to be included in the statistical calculations and results in this biennial survey conducted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The survey has been published every other year since 1992 as a public service.
Source:Facebook: HALT
Read the Supreme Court Report
Clark County District Court Criminal/Cival Division
Clark County District Court Family Division
Clark County Justice Courts
Municipal Courts
Survey Questionnaire
2008 Report
A total of 796 respondents completed online evaluation ballots and were qualified to be included in the statistical calculations and results in this biennial survey conducted by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The survey has been published every other year since 1992 as a public service.
Source:Facebook: HALT
Read the Supreme Court Report
Clark County District Court Criminal/Cival Division
Clark County District Court Family Division
Clark County Justice Courts
Municipal Courts
Survey Questionnaire
2008 Report
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Clearing the Fog in Nursing Homes
The woman, who was in her 90s, had lived for several years at the Ecumen Sunrise nursing home in Two Harbors, Minn., where the staff had grown accustomed to her grimaces and wordless cries. She took a potent cocktail of three psychotropic drugs: Ativan for anxiety and the antipsychotic Risperdal to calm her, plus an antidepressant. In all the time she’d lived at Sunrise, she hadn’t spoken. It wasn’t clear whether she could recognize her children when they came to visit.The Two Harbors home happened to be where Ecumen, which operates 16 nonprofit Minnesota nursing homes, was preparing an experiment to see if behavioral rather than pharmacological approaches could help wean residents off antipsychotic medications. They called it the Awakenings program.
Full Article and Source:
Clearing the Fog in Nursing Homes
Al Barnes Passes Before Verdict
The bitter court case over the medical care of Al Barnes ended Monday morning when the 85-year-old Scandia man died in his bed at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park.His wife, Lana Barnes, awoke to a ringing phone at her farmhouse and just knew. She waited a ring, then picked up and heard the voice of Dr. Abel Tello: "I want to offer my condolences. ... "
He is the same physician who a month earlier filed a court petition to take away her authority over her husband's care.
"I lost a great companion," Lana Barnes said through tears Monday afternoon. "I can tell you that much."
Barnes died while still receiving mechanical help to breathe and eat. Officials at Methodist and Barnes' court-appointed emergency guardian had anticipated a court order Monday that would have allowed them to remove life support, but Barnes died before any such order was issued.
Full Article and Source:
For Al Barnes, Death Arrives Before Long-Fought Verdict
Investigations Uncovers Tasings at MN State Hospitals
A two-month investigation has prompted swift action by the Department of Human Services.5 EYEWITNESS NEWS uncovered 38 reported tasings in more than a dozen state hospitals between 2006 and 2010.
The investigation found the state has violated federal guidelines when police are called in to handle unruly patients at Community Behavioral Health Hospitals. Federal guidelines call for potential severe injuries to patient or hospital staff or the commission of a crime before police are called into the hospital.
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS found that only eight of the 38 tasing incidents resulted in a criminal charge or citation. The Minnesota Department of Human Services told us it is reviewing our information and will conduct its own investigation to make sure proper procedures were followed. And, DHS also told us it will start to form an expert panel to review when police force is needed in a hospital setting.
The federal government also told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS it is reviewing what we found in our investigation and will determine whether it also should conduct its own inquiry.
Source and Video:
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS Investigation Uncovers Tasings in State Hospitals
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Jerry Eckwood, Another Contested Guardianship
Growing up in Arkansas I was well aware of the legend of Jerry Eckwood. We were in the same graduating class (though two different towns), both on the Arkansas All-State Football team, but Jerry Eckwood was the most sought after player in the country and rightfully so. He went on to play in the NFL. So, it was sad to read the front page story in the Tennessean in regards to a conservatorship he has been placed under by Judge Randy Kennedy. Mr. Eckwood contests the conservatorship, but we’ve learned contesting is a costly and futile effort in Davidson County’s 7th Circuit Court. And, unfortunately, any conservatorship in this court is questionable based on Judge Kennedy’s involvement. When a judge’s reputation for taking care of lawyer’s first, ward’s last, the red flag to look closely at the record immediately rises.Source:
ImpeachRandyKennedy
NFL's Hard Knocks Haunt Former Player Via Conservatorship
A thick neck and broad shoulders support his barrel of a chest.His voice is guttural, commanding.
If it wasn't for a limp from a bad back, Jerry Eckwood almost looks like he could suit up and again step onto an NFL football field. Even at 56.
In Judge Randy Kennedy's Davidson County courtroom Thursday, there were questions about whether Eckwood could handle the simple stuff: a debit card, grocery shopping, living alone. Or, does the judge need to appoint someone to help him care for himself.
Worries about Eckwood's mind surfaced after a representative from the NFL Player Care Foundation came to Tennessee in 2010 to see Eckwood. The foundation helps former players get benefits due them. After the visits, the foundation asked the court to appoint a conservator to manage Eckwood's finances, medical affairs and living arrangements.
Eckwood was kicked out of a Green Hills assisted living center in November, after he struck a staff member, court records state. A similar facility in Antioch also didn't work out.
He's been living at a similar-type center in Franklin, but longs for more independence and is contesting the conservatorship.
Full Article and Source:
NFL's Hard Knocks Haunt Franklin Man
Red Flags in the Jerry Eckwood Guardianship
Red flags shot up all over the Jerry Eckwood case file.First, Christina Norris is attorney for the Petitioner. Ms. Norris is a campaign contributor to Judge Kennedy’s unopposed “re-election”. In a study of Judge Kennedy’s rulings, no campaign contributor has EVER been ruled against.
Second, Paul Gonterak, appointed Guardian Ad Litem, is a campaign contributor to Judge Kennedy’s unopposed “re-election”. It’s obvious from his report that he is cooperating with Ms. Norris and the Probate racket.
We spoke with Jerry Eckwood on the telephone several times. He’s got a great memory for someone diagnosed with dementia. He is contesting the conservatorship. Contesting a conservatorship is another great way for Kennedy to clean out your account.
Judge Kennedy often announces from the bench in open court that “there are more conservatorships in this court than any other court in the state”. I’m not sure he should be bragging about this, but seems to constantly be ruling as if he’s protected. And maybe he is, but not from public scrutiny.
Source:
ImpeachRandyKennedy
Monday, February 14, 2011
Senator Mark Kirk Named to Senate Special Committee on Aging
U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) announced he has been appointed to four U.S. Senate committees that deal with issues ranging from federal expenditures to the elderly.Special Committee on Aging: With the Baby Boom population now hitting retirement age, the Special Committee on Aging studies issues, conducts oversight and investigates reports of fraud and abuse. The Committee also reviews Medicare’s performance, pension coverage and employment opportunities for older Americans. It also has conducted oversight of major programs such as Social Security. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates more than 1.5 million Illinois residents—or 12 percent of the state’s population—are over the age of 65. By 2020, the agency estimates the over-65 population will grow to 31 percent of the state’s population.
Source:
Press Release of Senator Kirk: Kirk Named ot Committees on Appropriations, Banking, Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (Help), and Aging
Sen. Al Franken's Staff Meets With Elders on Issues Facing Seniors
In January the staff from Senator Al Franken's (D-MN) office came to the Minneapolis American Indian Center (MAIC) to ask Native American elders about the problems they face in their senior years and gather information that will be used in the Senate this upcoming year to reauthorize the Older Americans Act, an act passed in 1965 in response to a lack of community-based social services for older Americans.Senator Franken serves on the Senate Special Committee on Aging as well as the Subcommittee on Retirement and Aging in Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Full Areticle and Source:
Franken's Staff Meets with Elders on Issues Facing Seniors
Hawaii: Assisted Suicide Bill Fails
After citing numerous examples of loved ones who outlived a doctor's terminal diagnosis or of their own victory over suicidal depression, opponents of a proposal to legalize physician-assisted suicide in Hawaii applauded as a Senate committee defeated the measure last night.The Senate Health Committee heard more than 4 1/2 hours of often-emotional public testimony before voting 4-0 to hold the bill in committee.
"After considering the large body of testimony presented to us, I have determined that community sentiment here today has been overwhelmingly opposed to moving this measure forward in its present form," said Sen. Josh Green, committee chairman. "There is truly compelling testimony on both sides of this matter — for and against — but from my perspective, for an issue of this magnitude, I believe we need to have more agreement as a community.
"So for now we need to find other ways to support those dealing with end-of-life decisions, with the greatest possible compassion and respect."
Senate Bill 803 would have allowed a terminally ill, competent adult to receive medication to end life. The bill specifically prohibits mercy killings, lethal injections and active euthanasia, and requires patients to receive informed consent.
Full Article and Source:
Assisted Suicide Bill Stalls
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Al Katz, Part Five: The State of State Elder Abuse
This is the fifth chapter in the epic saga of an elderly man whose property was taken, he was legally confined (imprisoned), and abused by the state of Florida's public guardianship and court systems. It is a story that is not unusual.Many of you do not think about any state, let alone Florida, abusing our elders. Some look to government as the be all and end all to care for us when we grow old and to protect us in our waning years. That is a dangerous and in some cases deadly belief.
Government in the case of Al Katz was the abuser.
I believe that the role of government in a person’s life must be limited. Personal freedoms and property rights are to be protected at all cost. In the case of Al both of these sacred duties of government were violated to perhaps the point of criminality on the part of some individuals. Al’s freedom and property were taken by the State of Florida, in some cases questionably, for the aggrandizement of the state, not the individual or family. What is shocking is officers of the court and judges had full knowledge of this “taking” and either did nothing about it or by their actions facilitated it.
How did this happen, you may ask?
It is quite simple – Florida had an opportunity to gain control over Al, the man, and his property. Florida refused to relinquish control of either back to the family, even though there was a daughter willing to care for her father and manage his estate for the betterment of his heirs. Rather than giving Al back to his family at the earliest opportunity, as required by Florida statutes, government did everything in its power to keep him and his property. Only after a prolonged legal fight was Al, the man, finally released to his daughter. The guardianship is still in the state’s hands, seven months after Al passed away.
Full Article and Source:
Al Katz: The Story of a Holocaust Survivor,Part 5
See Also:
Beverly Newman's Baker Act Presentation to the Florida Delegation, January 2011
Concurrent House Resolution 323 (2010) Recognizing Need for Holocaust Survivors to Avoid Institution
Al Katz,Part Four: Final Legal Solution
First Week of 'Kids-for-Cash" Trial Concluded
With former Judge Michael T. Conahan's personal tax preparer about to answer questions about returns in 2006, U.S. District Judge Edwin M. Kosik told prosecutors they would stop at 2005 for the day. After about two hours of financial testimony, Kosik said he understands the attorney's jobs, but "I don't hesitate in commenting that you have been punishing us all day."
He adjourned court for the weekend at 4 p.m., cautioning jurors to avoid any media reports or other conversations about the trial.
Testimony is expected to resume at 8:45 a.m. in the federal courthouse in Scranton [tomorrow]. It is unclear who the prosecution intends to call next. Potential witnesses who have not appeared during the first four days of the trial include former probation officer Sandra M. Brulo, former court administrator William T. Sharkey and people familiar with the juvenile court practices.
Conahan is not expected to to testify, as a source says prosecutors decided they see him as "too big a liability."
Full Article and Source:
Trial Update: First Week of Testimony Concluded
KY: HB 52 Introduced to Bar Financial Gain from Elder Abuse
A bill to prevent someone who abuses an elderly person from inheriting his or her assets passed a House committee unanimously Thursday and appears headed for easy approval by the full House.The quick committee action drew praise from advocates for the elderly, including those with Alzheimer’s disease.
“It gives people some dignity, even in death,” said Ellen Kershaw, a spokeswoman for the Alzheimer’s Association in Kentucky and Southern Indiana. “People with Alzheimer’s are especially vulnerable.”
The bill’s goal is to close a loophole in current law, Rep. Joni Jenkins, the Shively Democrat who is sponsoring House Bill 52, told the House Health and Welfare Committee.
A law known as the “slayer statute” already bars a person convicted of killing someone from inheriting from the victim. But as things stand now, people convicted of abusing, neglecting or financially exploiting an elderly person still can benefit financially after the victim’s death.
“There have been some really tragic cases,” Jenkins said. “This bill would remedy that.”
Under HB 52, if no other heirs can be located, the estate would go into a trust fund for elder protection.
Full Article and Source:
Panel Backs Bill to Bar Financial Gain from Elder Abuse
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Judge's Proposed Probate Reforms a Good Starting Point
Maricopa County Superior Court's top judge has proposed a series of probate reforms aimed at ensuring that old ladies worth a million bucks or more don't wind up on the taxpayer dole while attorneys and fiduciaries walk away with most of their money.OK, that last part about the old ladies comes from me, but I'm quite sure it's what he means when he talks about getting costs under control and assigning actual judges to take over contested cases before they "blow up."
"Could the court do a better job of oversight? Yes, in a word," Superior Court Presiding Judge Norman Davis told me. "Are we proposing better oversight? Yes."
Do Davis' proposals go far enough? No.
But he seems to be warming to a pair of ideas that would give vulnerable people a greater voice and go a long way toward fixing what ails probate - assuming the Legislature buys in.
Meanwhile, an early test of the court's resolve to reassert judicial control over probate comes now. Sun Valley Group, the fiduciary that helped protect Marie Long right into the poorhouse, announced last week that it's going out of business on Feb. 28. Sun Valley is asking the court to turn over its cases to Entrust Fiduciary Services, a Yuma fiduciary that is moving to Phoenix.
The question is: Will the probate court hand over 80 cases to Sun Valley's handpicked successor? Or will Judge Rosa Mroz do what her boss, Davis, suggests in his proposal for reform and, in essence, allow fiduciaries to bid for the chance to serve the wards?
Davis won't discuss Marie's case or that of R.B. Sleeth, who was ordered to pay $265,000 to an attorney who helped put him in an Alzheimer's lockdown ward despite the fact that he didn't have Alzheimer's.
Full Article and Source:
Judge's Proposed Probate Reforms a Good Starting Point
Indiana SB 312: Judges Should Have Law Degree
The Indiana trial court system has several types of courts: circuit, superior, small claims and one probate court. In 2009, 1.5 million cases were filed in those courts, and all of the cases were heard by judges who are lawyers. Those judges are in good standing with disciplinary authorities and licensed to practice law in Indiana.
Indiana also has about 75 city and town courts. In 2009, 375,000 cases, including criminal misdemeanors and speeding tickets, were heard in these courts. Not all of the judges in those courts are lawyers. Some cities and towns do not require it.
SB 312 would require all judges in the state to be lawyers. Judges who are not lawyers would be allowed to complete their current term. Their replacements would have to be lawyers in good standing, admitted to practice law in Indiana.
The Indiana Judicial Conference (judges from across the state) and the Strategic Planning Committee of the Conference, strongly support SB 312. Indiana judges believe that non-lawyers serving as city and town court judges attempt to perform their duties to the best of their abilities.
Full Article and Source:
Judges Should Have Law Degree
Indiana also has about 75 city and town courts. In 2009, 375,000 cases, including criminal misdemeanors and speeding tickets, were heard in these courts. Not all of the judges in those courts are lawyers. Some cities and towns do not require it.
SB 312 would require all judges in the state to be lawyers. Judges who are not lawyers would be allowed to complete their current term. Their replacements would have to be lawyers in good standing, admitted to practice law in Indiana.
The Indiana Judicial Conference (judges from across the state) and the Strategic Planning Committee of the Conference, strongly support SB 312. Indiana judges believe that non-lawyers serving as city and town court judges attempt to perform their duties to the best of their abilities.
Full Article and Source:
Judges Should Have Law Degree
Friday, February 11, 2011
Press Release: Sun Valley Group Closes One Door, Opens Another
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 7, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
Sun Valley Group Closes One Door, Opens Another
New name, same address, and ownership
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 7, 2011
Contact: Kim Owens
(602) 689-9449
Sun Valley Group Closes One Door, Opens Another
New name, same address, and ownership
February 7, 2011-Phoenix, ARIZONA – After multiple news accounts detailing the alleged abuse and financial exploitation by Sun Valley Group (SVG), the owner’s Heather and Peter Frenette filed an emergency action with Judge Rosa Mroz requesting the company’s cases be turned over to Entrust Fiduciary Services of Yuma. The request was submitted late last week to Judge Mroz and the last attorney of record on each case. SVG will cease to operate at the end of this month. Sources disclosed the embattled company had lost its insurance coverage and was unable to secure a replacement. SVG is requesting all cases in their care be assigned to Entrust Fiduciary Services of Yuma.
The courtroom of Judge Mroz was filled with an overflow crowd of families and attorneys as case by case was brought forward. Each case was asked if they would be filing an opposition to the request of reassignment. Many attorneys related they were noticed of the hearing late Friday and were unable to make contact with family members to determine their desire. A majority of cases voiced opposition to the reassignment suggestion of SVG with objections raised to the number of new cases given to a single provider in such a short timeline, the concern of families to the media reports on SVG, and desire for family members to replace the paid, private fiduciary.
As SVG makes plans to close in the shadow of abuse allegations, Heather Frenette has already started a new business. Despite informing Judge Mroz the Frenette’s would be relinquishing their fiduciary license, the new business Desert Care Management, advertises services on the company’s website that “provides a superior level of Care Management services in Arizona to persons with cognitive impairments, physical disabilities, developmental disabilities and mental illness.”
# # #
Knaperek Consulting, LLC is a government affairs firm specializing in issue advocacy and campaign services.
KNAPEREK CONSULTING, LLC
Phone (602) 531-8938
Fax (623) 505-1383
Former Missouri Public Administrator Sentenced for Theft
A former southeast Missouri public administrator has been placed on probation for five years for stealing more than $35,000 from those under her care.
The Sikeston Standard Democrat reports that Nancy Pardon was also ordered to pay restitution at a hearing on Friday. She had earlier pleaded guilty to three theft-related charges.
Pardon was public administrator for New Madrid County before resigning in 2008. She was appointed guardian of the estate of Evelyn Barnes. The Missouri State Highway patrol says Pardon spent nearly all of Barnes' money — more than $35,000 — on herself.
Source:
Former Southeast Missouri Public Administrator Sentenced for Theft
See Also:
Former Public Administrator Charged With Felony Theft
The Sikeston Standard Democrat reports that Nancy Pardon was also ordered to pay restitution at a hearing on Friday. She had earlier pleaded guilty to three theft-related charges.
Pardon was public administrator for New Madrid County before resigning in 2008. She was appointed guardian of the estate of Evelyn Barnes. The Missouri State Highway patrol says Pardon spent nearly all of Barnes' money — more than $35,000 — on herself.
Source:
Former Southeast Missouri Public Administrator Sentenced for Theft
See Also:
Former Public Administrator Charged With Felony Theft
Thursday, February 10, 2011
CBS: Guardian Firm Closes Business in Arizona
When Marie Long's sisters sat down for an exclusive interview with Sharyl Attkisson for our investigation on guardianship abuse in December, they were clearly frustrated. They told Attkisson that a court-appointed guardian known as Sun Valley Group had presided over Marie's affairs for four years. In those four years, Marie's life-savings had been wiped out. A lot oher money went to lawyers. At least $400,000 went to Sun Valley Group - which was supposed to protect her money, not spend it away.
Now, following our story and a wave of controversy surrounding Marie Long's story and others like it, Sun Valley has announced in court that it will cease doing business as a fiduciary in Arizona at the end of this month.
Peter Frenette, the owner of Sun Valley declined to speak with us on camera last December.
The company has been embroiled in a spate of lawsuits involving other clients, and it has been waiting for its license as a fiduciary to be renewed for nearly a year.
The company's decision to close up its operations comes too late for Marie Long, however. Her money is gone and she is now penniless, a ward of the state. Taxpayers pay for her ongoing care in a nursing home.
Source and Video:
Guardian Firm Closes Business in Arizona
See Also:
Guardianship Agency Costs Elderly Woman Dearly
Broker Sentenced to 30 Years and Nearly $1 mil Resitution
Lewis and Clark County District Court Judge Kathy Seeley sentenced Helena resident and former securities broker Arthur Leroy Heffelfinger to 30 years with 10 years suspended and ordered him to pay nearly a million dollars in restitution.
Heffelfinger was sentenced 10 years for each of three counts, which included operating a ponzi scheme, exploitation of an older person, and theft.
"I am relieved we were able to bring justice to the victims involved in this case," said Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance Monica Lindeen, "Judge Seely's sentence sends a strong message to others that financial exploitation will not be tolerated. My number one goal is to protect consumers while maintaining trust with the businesses operating legitimately in Montana."
After an extensive investigation last year by the Commissioner's Office, Heffelfinger was charged with operating a Ponzi scheme for a period of at least 8 years, for Theft, and for Exploiting an Older Person. Heffelfinger, a former stockbroker for KMS Financial Services, diverted funds from at least twenty KMS clients from February 2001 through September 2009. He used approximately $739,724 for personal use, approximately $917,777 for the purpose of conducting the Ponzi scheme, and approximately $364,044 when exploiting the older person, for a collective total of $2,021,546.
Full Article and Source:
Helena Resident Sentenced for Financial Exploitation of an Older Person
Heffelfinger was sentenced 10 years for each of three counts, which included operating a ponzi scheme, exploitation of an older person, and theft.
"I am relieved we were able to bring justice to the victims involved in this case," said Montana Commissioner of Securities and Insurance Monica Lindeen, "Judge Seely's sentence sends a strong message to others that financial exploitation will not be tolerated. My number one goal is to protect consumers while maintaining trust with the businesses operating legitimately in Montana."
After an extensive investigation last year by the Commissioner's Office, Heffelfinger was charged with operating a Ponzi scheme for a period of at least 8 years, for Theft, and for Exploiting an Older Person. Heffelfinger, a former stockbroker for KMS Financial Services, diverted funds from at least twenty KMS clients from February 2001 through September 2009. He used approximately $739,724 for personal use, approximately $917,777 for the purpose of conducting the Ponzi scheme, and approximately $364,044 when exploiting the older person, for a collective total of $2,021,546.
Full Article and Source:
Helena Resident Sentenced for Financial Exploitation of an Older Person
Caregiver Charged with Stealing $610K From Elderly Woman
An in-home caregiver has been charged with stealing $610,000 from an 85-year-old woman and using the stolen money for such things as dog care, laser eye treatment, travel and concerts.Norma Ruth Casini, 51, of Laguna Niguel, was hired through LivHome caregivers to provide 24-hour in-home care to the 85-year-old woman in her Laguna Woods home beginning in November 2006, according to a news release from the Orange County District Attorney's Office.
The woman she cared for has no family support and went to LivHOME to provide someone for her needs and basic care, prosecutors said. LivHOME caregivers are paid by the company and are not allowed to accept money directly from a client.
Deputy District Attorney Marc Labreche contends that over the span of 28 months, Casini stole more than $600,000 from the woman's bank account and used her credit cards for personal use. She allegedly also used the money to pay her rent, for orthodontic work, and for a "dog whisperer," according to prosecutors.
Full Article and Source:
Caregiver Charged With Stealing $610,000 From Woman, 85
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Peter Frenette: Closing is 'Not Something I Wanted to Do'
Sun Valley Group, which has been waiting nearly a year for the state to renew its license, petitioned the court Monday to transfer more than 80 cases to a new firm before it ceases operation on Feb. 28.Owner Peter Frenette would not say why he made the decision to close after 15 years in business or speculate on whether the state's license delay was a factor.
"It's not something that I wanted to do," Frenette told The Arizona Republic. "The reasons for it are numerous."
Frenette said Sun Valley Group has improved the quality of life for more than 620 adults since opening in 1995.
The company has been a focus of an ongoing Republic investigation of Maricopa County Probate Court that found some fiduciaries and their lawyers charged fees that drained the life savings of clients. Judges charged with overseeing these cases rarely stepped in to limit or reduce fees, even when vulnerable adults ended up on state assistance programs.
Full Article and Source:
Major Fiduciary Firm is Going Out of Business
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