Aunt Helen, Gone Too Soon, 10 Years Today

Helen T. Fabis
March 1, 1914 - April 30, 2001

April 30, 2011

Dear Aunt Helen,
You inspire me! You always did, even when I was quite young. I looked at you as someone “professional” and so different than my mother and other Aunts. I didn’t quite know exactly what it was back then, but I think I do now.

I remember when you took me downtown to shop and have lunch. Oh my, you cannot imagine how important that made me feel! I remember my mother saying something like “big deal”…..well it was! Thank you for showing me a slice of life I didn’t know about. As it turned out, I advocated to that life. Working downtown was so glamorous.

Then you bought the farm in Sobieski, WI !!! How much fun is that! How lucky we were to experience yet another slice of life that most city kids would never know. How I loved collecting eggs, and feeding the chickens even though it smelled! Pumping our own water at the well, bathing in a jumbo wash tub, in the kitchen no less, was such an experience! Thank you for making all this possible for us.

Your interest in my early sewing adventures, especially all the wonderful fabrics you gave me, kept me wanting to learn more. And so I did, and you were right there to answer any questions and keep me supplied with much appreciated wonderful fabrics.

Remember when Kim and Shawn were two and three years old? You were involved in the pattern making of little girls Spring coats. You gave me the most beautiful off white wool coats and fabrics with deep pink rosebuds appliquéd on the yoke/collar and hat. They were so beautiful! Something I could never afford. I miss our sewing “talk” and your quiet way of giving advice.

You and Uncle Wally were a loved fixture at Mom’s kitchen table. I took all those visits for granted. What I wouldn’t give to have you sit at my kitchen table and set your hair with beer! What a delight that would be.

When Mom and Dad moved to Wisconsin, and you stayed behind in Chicago, I was honored to drive you up to see them. What great talks we had.

I am grateful all four of my children were able to know you, and even my grandchildren were lucky enough to have a bit of time with you. I remember how terrified you would get if they were climbing or hanging upside down from a tree or something, I would laugh, because I was so conditioned to their antics, but you were not and worried so! I loved that.

I love that Dean used to come up and play Scrabble with you and Mom, those were very precious moments for him. Thank you for all the wonderful memories that my entire family has, especially me. You were a lady far ahead of her time, I see that now.

Thank you for being my mother’s devoted friend and sister through all those years of widowhood. Without you, I cannot imagine how she would have survived. You kept her alive, even if it was to argue a Scrabble rule or what TV show to watch! You were the “spark” that she needed, and helped her to become more sociable with the few neighbors you had. It could have been very isolated for her, but not with you there!

You are a great lady, and we have all been blessed to have some time with you starting at birth in my case. We miss you and love you.

You are loved and missed so much.

Love and admiration,
Bubbles

Arizona Governor Signs HB2424!

Yesterday, Governor Brewer used her mighty pen to sign HB 2424, a key probate reform bill. The Bill, which will become law 90 days from April 20, passed unanimously just nine days ago.

HB 2424 establishes a landmark “Probate Advisory Panel.” To read the engrossed version of the bill, click here.

No word yet on the companion reform bill, SB 1499.

Source:
Governor Brewer Signs HB2424 - Probate Advisory Panel Becomes Law

Marie Long One Step Away From Getting Her Wish

At long last, Marie Long is one simple signature away from getting her wish. Well, one of her wishes anyway.

Undoubtedly, she would wish to have some of her money back, the $821,000 sucked up by guardians and lawyers appointed to protect her from unscrupulous types who might come after an old lady's life savings.

Marie's attorneys, who for years have worked for free, are appealing her case. They hope to force Maricopa County's probate court to reconsider Commissioner Lindsay Ellis' decision that it was “reasonable” for Marie's so-called protectors to basically drain an estate once worth $1.3 million, leaving her penniless and dependent on taxpayers for support.

But Marie is 89. She can't wait forever to see justice. She knows that, which brings me to wish No. 2.

“I would like,” she told me last fall, “that this doesn't happen to anybody else.”

This week or next, Marie's wish could be granted, assuming Gov. Jan Brewer signs Senate Bill 1499 – and assuming the county's probate judges burn their well-worn rubber stamps and remember who it is that they are there to protect.

Credit the Arizona Legislature. In between birther bills and tea party license plates, when they weren't belatedly disclosing Fiesta Bowl junkets or lopping poor people off the state's health care rolls, our leaders did a really good thing last week.

They passed a probate bill aimed at better protecting vulnerable people and giving them a voice in what happens to them and their money. The vote was unanimous.

Full Article and Source:
Marie Long One Step Away From Getting Her Wish

Aide Accused of Preying on Elderly Widow

A heartless home aide is accused of preying on an elderly widow - turning her Queens apartment into a flophouse and plundering $800,000 to bankroll shopping sprees.

The 85-year-old victim, who is practically bedridden, said her savings were stolen right under her nose by a woman she trusted for seven years.

"She robbed me," Renee Fuld told the Daily News yesterday. "The only thing I could figure out is I gave her money to buy things and she kept it. I'm just sorry I didn't see her taking money. She would lie to me with a straight face."

Fuld said the aide, Jackie Pokuwaah, turned the Forest Hills apartment into a virtual boarding house, moving in at least seven friends and relatives - rent-free.

Pokuwaah, 52, is now locked up on charges of grand larceny and stolen property for the check-writing scheme, which went on for almost three years.

The fleecing ended when Pokuwaah's twice-weekly visits to a TD Bank - often carrying $800 checks with "laundry" written on the memo line - raised red flags with employees, officials said.

"Thank God for the bank," said Fuld, who is in the care of a new aide. "If they hadn't noticed the activity, she would still be roaming around here."

Full Article and Source:
Heartless Home Aide Accused of Swiping $800G From Elderly Queens Widow

Nebraska LB157: Debate Over Background Checks for Guardians

Legislative debate has begun on a measure that would requiring background checks for guardians and conservators and creating a central database of those guardians and conservators, among other things.

The bill (LB157) by state Sen. Colby Coash of Lincoln was borne of his work last year on a joint review committee to study the status of adult guardianships and conservatorships in the Nebraska court system.

His bill would require background checks for guardians and conservators and creating a central database that would include the status of guardian and conservatorships.

It would also require bonds for conservators when wards' assets are greater than $10,000. Much of Wednesday's debate centered on the bill's call to allow interested third parties to request more oversight when physical or mental health is in jeopardy.

Source:
Debate Over Background Checks for Guardians

VT Nursing Home Worker Charged With Exploitation

Vermont authorities say a nursing home worker who allegedly exploited a resident has been arrested in New Hampshire.

Thirty-six-year-old Jodi LaClaire is charged with 16 counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult and attempted financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult.

Assistant Attorney General Linda Purdy says LaClaire made cash withdrawals and attempted other withdrawals using the credit card of a resident at the Thompson House Nursing Facility in Brattleboro, where she worked as a licensed nursing assistant.

If convicted, she could face up to 10 years in prison.

Full Article and Source:
VT Nursing Home Worker Charged With Exploitation

F. Robert LaSaracina's Atty Seeks Withdrawal

Mark Block, the Norwich attorney representing accountant F. Robert LaSaracina in several civil cases alleging fraud and default on LaSaracina's part, is asking the Superior Court for permission to withdraw as counsel, citing a potential claim that he has a conflict of interest.

In motions filed Thursday, Block seeks to withdraw from nearly a half-dozen cases in which he is representing LaSaracina and LaSaracina's business, F. Robert LaSaracina, CPA, LLC. The cases include two that stem from LaSaracina's alleged mishandling of a Norwich estate while serving as its trustee. In one, a conservator for one of the estate's beneficiaries accuses LaSaracina of malpractice and in the other LaSaracina is appealing a probate court judge's ruling that LaSaracina owes the estate $4.2 million.

Contacted Friday, Block indicated he had no comment on his request to withdraw.

Full Article and Source;
LaSaracina Attorney Seeks to Withdraw

Judge Backs Grandson's Healthcare Proxy

An Essex County judge has upheld the validity of a health-care proxy for the grandson of an 83-year-old Gloucester man who became gravely ill while under the supervision of SeniorCare, Inc. at the McPherson Park housing complex.

The court action was rooted in SeniorCare's challenge to the right of Vito Loiacono, 38, grandson of Joseph Judd, to obtain Judd's medical records from SeniorCare, a Gloucester-based health services.

While SeniorCare has no role in Judd's care at present, it challenged the validity of Loicono's durable power of attorney (DPOA) and healthcare proxy (HCP).

Echoing the finding of a court-appointed "guardian ad litem" requested by SeniorCare in January, Judge Mary Ann Sahagian indicated Loiacono's DPOA was invalid because it had been executed after - although almost simultaneously to — the healthcare proxy, which proffered that Judd, who is illiterate, had dementia, according to court observers.

Technically, that made Judd unable to authorize subsequent legal documents.

But the judge concurred with the appointed guardian that the proxy was valid, and legal experts say should enable Loiacono to obtain the records he has sought from SeniorCare since June.

The guardian, Michelle Azzari, a family law specialist from Saugus, investigated Judd, Loiacono and the case during the past two months.

Announcing her rejection of the SeniorCare argument, Judge Sahagian told the company's attorney, Lawrence Varn, "you have no horse in this race," according to court observers.

Loiacono said he will pursue obtaining the medical records, and will formally seek guardianship of his grandfather.

"It's just one step at a time," he said.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Backs Grandson's Proxy of SeniorCare Challenge

Report Contradicts Priest's Claim About Parishioner's Competency

A new medical study challenges the account of a Northwest Side Catholic priest who says a 93-year-old parishioner was mentally competent when she made him trustee of her home last year.

The widow "suffered from dementia from as early as January 2008," according to an examination of her hospital records requested by Cook County Public Guardian Robert Harris.

The Rev. Thaddeus Dzieszko, of St. Constance Roman Catholic Church, has vigorously defended his actions, saying he became trustee of Waleria Krzemien's home to ensure she could continue to live there. But Dzieszko relinquished his interest in the property last fall after the public guardian raised questions about the deed during a probate court case.

The Archdiocese of Chicago and the Cook County state's attorney's office are conducting separate investigations into the land transaction. Dzieszko remains the pastor of St. Constance, but he has stepped aside from parish duties while authorities examine the disputed property transaction.

Full Article and Source:
Report Contradicts Pastor's Claim About Parishioner's Competency

See Also:
Priest Scrutinized in Property Transaction

Editorial: Ageism Contributes to Elder Abuse

One doesn't have to be a relative or friend of an older person who has suffered sexual abuse while in the charge of those hired to provide care, and not abuse and fear ("Putting a stop to elder sex abuse," March 30), to be upset by stories of sexual abuse of older people.

Of course, more thorough and extensive criminal background checks of care facility prospective employees will certainly help to reduce the number of potential offenders; so would overall improved hiring practices that focus on finding staff members who will treat residents and patients with the respect they deserve.

But what really needs to change is our attitude toward older people. Ageism, despite valiant efforts to promote the vitality that many seniors enjoy, remains one of the last vestiges of fairly accepted discrimination in our society. It's acceptable to find ways to not hire older (over 50, or sometimes, even over 45) people for jobs. It's acceptable to make fun of older people who are doing things more commonly ascribed to those who are younger ("Isn't it cute that Grandma met a man at, of all places, canoeing class?"). And worst of all, it is all too acceptable to not believe an older person, who may indeed have some physical and/or mental health issues, when she (or he) says in the strongest voice she can muster that she has been abused in the worst way possible.

Because whether we like it or not, most of us will be older some day. We cannot imagine such horror happening to us, and it should not happen to anyone else now.

Mary Stanik
Minneapolis (formerly of Eugene)

Source:
Ageism Contributes to Elder Abuse

MN: Those Under Guardianship Get Rights

An estimated 22,000 Minnesotans live under the authority of court-appointed guardians and conservators, and about 3,000 new cases are added each year. Now those individuals, many of them suffering from mental illnesses or dementia, have new protections from misconduct on the part of those appointed to make decisions for them.

Motivated by stories about questionable behavior by guardians and conservators, the state Legislature voted overwhelmingly to strengthen oversight of what had been a virtually unregulated profession in Minnesota.

The law, which Gov. Tim Pawlenty signed Friday, creates a "bill of rights" for wards and protected persons, bolsters their ability to challenge decisions made on their behalf and requires guardians and conservators to register with the state courts starting in 2013.

The law stops short of requiring certification of people wanting to be guardians and conservators, a measure required in several other states. The original bill passed by the Senate included that requirement, but Sen. Mee Moua, the St. Paul DFLer who championed the guardianship reforms, said she agreed to take it out in order to reach a compromise.

The guardian bill was a victory for advocates for the mentally ill, disabled and seniors, as well as individuals who came to the Capitol with horror stories about a family member's treatment by a guardian or conservator.

Some of those families brought their stories to Whistleblower, and my report in February about the costly guardianship and conservatorship of Peggy Greer of Excelsior was cited by lawmakers and advocates as the kind of situation they hope greater oversight will prevent.

Under the new law, guardians and conservators will have to make themselves and their decisions more visible to the court and interested persons, while wards have an affirmation of their rights to exercise as much liberty as their situations allow.

"We really think it will create more transparency to actions by guardians and more opportunities for court oversight," said Patricia Siebert, an attorney with the Minnesota Disability Law Center.

"It's not going to solve every problem out there," said Rep. Paul Thissen, the Minneapolis DFLer who drove the bill in the House. "It does start down path of bringing more transparency and more eyes to the process."

Source:
Those Under Guardianship Get Rights

Anthony Marshall Appeals

Brooke Astor's 86-year-old son doesn't want to go to prison for stealing from his mom - and he's using her words to try and reverse his blockbuster conviction.

Anthony Marshall's lawyers filed an 89-page legal brief with a New York appeals court Monday [4/18/11]in an attempt to get his 2009 guilty verdict tossed.

Marshall, who is out on bail, was convicted of looting his famous mother's $185 million fortune so he could leave it to his wife, Charlene, who Astor despised.

He was sentenced to one to three years.

The appeal papers attempt to refute prosecutors' assertions at trial that Astor was so out of it by 2004 that she didn't know what she was doing when she signed money over to her son.

"Brooke told \[a member of her household staff\] that Mrs. Marshall would be a very rich woman one day," the papers state--suggesting that Astor was clear-headed at the time.

The beloved philanthropist was 105 when she died in 2007.

In the legal papers, defense lawyers John Cuti and Kenneth Warner seek to overturn the convictions of Marshall and his co-defendant, disbarred estate lawyer Francis Morrissey - and want the indictment lodged against them tossed out completely. "This trial resulted in a miscarriage of justice," the papers state.

The lawyers claim that sending "an old sick man" to prison is "out of all proportion to the offense, even assuming guilt." They called the crimes "relatively minor."

Full Article and Source:
Convicted Brooke Astor Son Anthony Marshall Fights to Overturn Guilty Verdict

Judge Approves $7M Judgment in Mastro Case

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Marc Barreca has entered a $7.1 million judgment against Seattle real estate developer Michael R. Mastro. Mastro also has agreed to pay the trustee's costs and attorneys’ fees for the proceeding.

The ruling ends the bankruptcy trustee's dispute with Mastro over assets that the trustee claims were shielded from creditors, but does not end the trustee's lawsuits against Mastro's son, wife and business associates that amount to more than $20 million.

The judgment was first proposed by Mastro’s guardian ad litem Faith Ireland last week. Ireland became Mastro’s guardian after the 86-year-old developer was incapacitated by a severe head injury suffered in a fall at his Palm Desert home in February.

Full Article and Source:
Judge Approves $7m Judtment vs Mastro

See Also:
Mastro Bankruptcy Trial Opens With Offer to Settle

Mastro Case: Judge Says Guardian Can't Be Paid With Funds for Creditors

TN Woman's Adult Daughter Taken From Her

Venders of the homeless newspaper The Contributor are on street corners all across Nashville but something seemed to stand out about the woman who's usually on Franklin Road in Brentwood.

That woman is usually seen selling those papers with her daughter who suffers from Downs Syndrome.

In January, a concerned group lead by Belinda Mitchell went to court to take Lisa Arnold away from her mother.

Jad Duncan is representing them.

"She's safe in a house getting 3 meals a day. She's off the streets," said Duncan.

Among the allegations against Renata Arnold, using her daughter to get donations, encouraging her to kiss men and panhandling with her in cold temperatures.

"This is not something that was just a fly by night decision in which one particular individual decided they were gonna up and remove a child from her home. There's lots of circumstances that occurred prior to this," said Duncan.

Duncan says the group wants to return Lisa to her mother but only if her living situation improves.

He believes that's happening and it may be one reason why Judge Randy Kennedy granted Arnold more visitation rights Wednesday.

The fact that she even has to fight for those rights is something Lucas says is wrong.

"I believe that Renaa is a victim in this situation," said Lucas.

The final decision of who get's authority over Lisa Arnold will likely come here at a hearing June 8th.

Full Article, Video and Source:
WZTV Fox 17 Report

NY Nursing Home Faces Punitive Damages for Elder Abuse

The New York Post recently reported that in December 2009, a Brooklyn nursing home was found guilty of negligence in the case of a patient who devel­oped numerous bedsores while under the home’s care. The jury awarded the patient’s family close to $4 million for pain and suffering, plus an additional $15 million as punishment for trying to cover up the poor patient care. This case is the first to charge a nursing home with punitive damages.

Sadly, this example of nursing home neglect is not the only one. Elder abuse is prevalent in nurs­ing homes around the country, and with serious consequences for patients. Older adults who are victims of elder abuse are more than twice as likely to die prematurely as are adults who are treated properly, according to a study published in the August 5, 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The National Center on Elder Abuse defines institutional elder abuse as “any of several forms of maltreatment of an older person by someone who has a special relationship with the elder (a spouse, a sibling, a child, a friend, or a caregiver)” that occur in residential facilities for older persons, including nursing homes.

Looking exclusively at falls, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that an average nursing home with 100 beds reports 100 to 200 falls each year, representing up to 75 percent of residents. Many falls were caused by environmental hazards like wet floors, poor lighting, incorrect bed height and improper wheelchair use.

A November 2009 report from the University of California, San Francisco, stated that 26 percent of the nation’s nursing facilities were cited in 2008 for poor quality of care, 44 percent of nursing homes failed to ensure a safe environment for residents, 36 percent had food sanitation regulations violations and 33 percent of facilities received deficiencies for failure to meet quality standards.

Full Press Release and Source:
New York Nursing Home Faces Punitive Damages for Elder Abuse

New Rehab Center Dedicated to Memory of Terri Schiavo

Beginnings Community Center of Medford, NY, will be dedicating their center to the memory of Terri Schindler Schiavo. New Beginnings is a state of the art outpatient rehabilitative facility for Veteran’s, Traumatic Brain Injury Survivors and other cognitively and physically disabled persons. It is designed to provide rehabilitation, management and recovery services in an exceptional, stimulating and safe environment. “We are dedicating New Beginnings Community Center in Terri Schindler Schiavo’s memory,” said Allyson Scerri, New Beginnings Founder and President. “This is our way of honoring Terri’s memory, her battle for proper treatment as a cognitively disabled person, and all others who did not have the chance for rehabilitation,” she added.

“We are truly blessed by the vision of New Beginnings Community Center. We believe that this grand opening will set an example for health care facilities across the country to begin to fully understand that just because someone experiences a cognitive disability, and their physical appearance may change, their human dignity does not,” stated Bobby Schindler, Executive Director of Terri’s Life & Hope Network and brother of Terri Schiavo. One of the goals at the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network is to partner with care centers that provide assistance for brain injured individuals and support for their families.

Full Article and Source:
New Rehab Center Dedicated to Memory of Terri Schiavo

Adult Children Often Step in to Handle Tasks for Parents

After several years of her aging mother's hardships -- including open-heart surgery, a bad fall down 13 stairs and the death of a close companion -- Mary Margaret Esler knew she needed to step in and help her mom, Irene Esler, manage her life.

Esler, of Lower Burrell, has taken charge of her mother's checkbook and pays the bills. The younger Esler does all of the household chores, like laundry and cleaning, for Irene Esler, 77, who now is staying in a nursing home after falling and breaking her ankle. The older Esler has struggled, at times, as she accepts help from her daughter, with whom she has lived for several years.

"I have to give her a little bit of leeway, but she can't do it" on her own, says Mary Margaret Esler, 48. "She doesn't mind the help, but it's the fact that she can't do it anymore. She says, 'I used to do that; why can't I do it now?'

"I figured, if she kept me for that long, I can keep her," Mary Margaret Esler says, recalling her childhood.

When an elderly parent or other loved one reaches the point where everyday tasks become difficult -- particularly managing finances -- adult children need to intervene and take over some responsibilities, experts say. Yet, the situation is delicate; it's not easy for a parent to deal with what feels like a role reversal. After decades of managing their money and households, when older people can no longer do it without help from their grown kids, it can feel embarrassing and depressing.

One of the most important steps to take when helping ailing relatives, Small says, is giving power of attorney -- the permission for someone to act and make decisions on their behalf, financially and in other ways. This can help to protect seniors from their potentially bad choices.

Full Article and Source;
Adult Children Often Step in to Handle Tasks for Parents

Former Chicago Cop Convicted of Attempting to Bilk 90-Year-Old Man

A former Chicago Police officer was convicted Thursday of attempting to bilk a 90-year-old man out of his $500,000 home — as well as $400,000 in bank accounts and investments.

Donald Owsley, 63, was found guilty of financial exploitation of the elderly and forgery. Cook County Judge Timothy J. Joyce, who presided over the bench trial, found Owsley not guilty of official misconduct. Owsley’s next court hearing is scheduled for May 25.

Owsley’s attorney Jed Stone said he was gratified the judge found Owsley didn’t use his police job to victimize Theodore Hoellen. But he said he was “dumbfounded” by the conviction, saying there was no evidence of deception. Hoellen simply wanted to make sure his estranged brother and other relatives didn’t inherit anything, Stone said. He said Owsley and Hoellen had a “special father-and-son relationship.”

Owsley befriended Hoellen, who was suffering from dementia, and persuaded him to sign over his home in the 5800 block of North Kenton in 2001. Hoellen also gave Owsley control over $400,000 in bank accounts and his Chicago Transit Authority death benefit, prosecutors said.

Full Article and Source:
Former Cop Convicted of Bilking 90-Year-Old Man

Actor Sir Patrick Stewart Supports Assisted Suicide

Star Trek actor says euthanasia should be everyone's human right. Star Trek actor Sir Patrick Stewart reveals support for organisation seeking to legalise assisted death.

Sir Patrick Stewart says a health scare influenced his support for assisted death. The actor Sir Patrick Stewart has spoken out about his decision to join an organisation campaigning for the legalisation of euthanasia, declaring that the choice to have an assisted death should be a right.

"I have a strong feeling that, should the time come for me, having had no role in my birth, I would like there to be a choice I might make about how I die," he said in an interview with the Sunday Times.

Speaking publicly for the first time about his membership of Dignity in Dying, Stewart referred to a recent tragedy involving a friend, as well as his own diagnosis of having coronary heart disease five years ago. "I am reluctant to go into details. Enough to say this person was driven to an extreme situation of ending their own life in the most ghastly way," he said of the friend. "There's got to be an alternative when someone is suffering so badly and is ready to go."

Asked if he believed that the choice of ending one's life should be a human right, he replied: "yes", adding: "Everything that medicine can do to keep somebody alive doesn't automatically follow as the best option."

Full Article and Source:
Star Trek Actor Backs Euthanasia

Denver's Probate Judge Stepping Down After 16 Years

C. Jean Stewart, the judge who presided over Denver's probate court for 16 years, will step down in June to offer private services in probate cases and family estate matters.

"Public service in our courts has been my immense honor and privilege," she wrote in a resignation letter to the Colorado Supreme Court last week.

But she also described herself as eager to return to private endeavors, which include serving as a mediator, offering herself as an appointed judge and working with a task force on national probate court standards.

"I'm excited," she said in an interview. "I'm going to just offer neutral services (in probate cases)," rather than serve as an advocate or expert.

Probate courts appoint guardians and conservators for incapacitated people who need help making personal and financial decisions. They also handle mental health and family estate cases. In Colorado, Denver has the only court established solely to administer probate cases.

In a series of stories last year, The Denver Post highlighted problems at the court. The Post reported that many guardians failed to report anything about their wards for as long as five years, including one ward who was HIV-positive and sexually active. The Post also reported that a court-appointed public administrator had sold 25 estate homes to the same investor and that former employees complained that Stewart was not requiring key staffers to work a full week.

But a judicial retention commission unanimously recommended Stewart, commending her professionalism and commitment. The commission also cited a survey that showed overwhelming support from lawyers and nonlawyers who had appeared before Stewart. In November, Denver voters gave her another six-year term on the bench.

Stewart's resignation creates a vacancy in a court with one full-time judge and about 2,500 yearly cases. A seven-member committee will meet next month to interview and select nominees to succeed her. That committee will recommend two or three applicants to Gov. John Hickenlooper, who will appoint the next judge.

Source:
Denver's Probate Judge Stepping Down After 16 Years

Ethics Hearing Spurs Motions

It was supposed to be an initial case-management conference to set a trial date and other deadlines for the ethics case against former Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas and two of his former deputies.

But the only thing that was established during Thursday's hearing was that this will be a long and contentious process.

Attorneys for Thomas and the deputies, Lisa Aubuchon and Rachel Alexander, asked that the judge step down, that the special prosecutor be disqualified and that the entire method of trying the case be returned to the state Supreme Court's old rules for lawyer discipline.

Attorneys for the three former prosecutors also asked that TV and still cameras be banned from the courtroom and requested the proceedings be closed to the public altogether.

Presiding Disciplinary Judge William O'Neil denied all of their motions except the question about cameras, which he took under advisement, meaning he will issue a ruling at a later date.

Wilson and Moriarty also complained because the method of trying attorney-discipline cases changed on Jan. 1. The three attorneys, therefore, were charged under one system and are being tried under another.

Among the differences is that the number of "probable-cause panelists," who determine whether there's sufficient evidence to continue, increased to three from one.

The initial findings by Sudler and his boss, John Gleason, were filed in November and approved by a probable-cause panelist in December, under the old system.

The three were formally charged Feb. 3 with ethics violations that include conflicts of interest and filing criminal and civil cases without probable cause or sufficient evidence.

Full Article and Source:
Ethics Hearing Spurs Motions

'She is not in any pain. I am.'

Noni was having difficulty breathing earlier but is better now. She is sleeping. They are giving her morphine every two to three hours. She is not in any pain. I am.

Many of my personal belongings are still at my Grandmother's house. Clothes, furniture, personal items, home decor, linens, paperwork, dishes, china, glasses, STUFF! These are all items that I brought with me when I moved to San Francisco to care for my Grandmother at the request of my brother and uncle.

I can EVEN prove that these are my property. I have receipts and other documentation proving that the items were purchased by me with my money before I moved to my Grandmother's house.

YOU WILL NEVER guess what is happening. Lawrence "Larry" Siracusa, the one that just flat out lies to the Judge, will not allow me to pick-up my property!!

I don't know why I am surprised!

He is responsible for over $600,000 in expenses over a 12 month period that are being charged to my Grandmother's Trust!

He is responsible for the fact that my Grandmother is being forced to die in a nursing home. Years ago she made me promise I would never let this happen. I dispise him for what he has done to my Grandmother.

He is responsible for filing dozens of documents with the court that are full of lies and exaggerations...pure fiction. He then has his client sign the pack of lies and perjure herself.

He is the reason that my Uncle Paul and I have been excluded from my Grandmother's life for the past 18 months.

He is the reason my children have had only limited access to their Great Grandmother.

Source:
NoniKatiesHouse

Former Probate Judge Denied Early Release From Prison

Former Covington County Probate Judge Sherrie Phillips has been denied an early release from prison.

Circuit Judge Charles Price turned down her request in a one-paragraph order.

Price sentenced her to three years in prison after she was convicted of the theft of $1.8 million from an estate and using her position for unlawful personal gain. She's due to get out in October 2012.

Her attorney, David Harrison, sought an early release on grounds she had reformed and her release would save money.

The Department of Corrections says she's serving her sentence at a community-based work facility in Montgomery.

Source:
Former Covington County Probate Judge Denied Early Release From Prison

See Also:
Former Probate Judge Going to Prison

Ex-Lawyer Admits Bilking Clients

A former lawyer pleaded guilty in Allen County Superior Court to charges of corrupt business influence and theft, admitting to stealing money from his clients.

Daniel E. Serban, 53, will be sentenced in mid-May. He pleaded guilty to two of the four charges against him – Class C felony corrupt business influence and Class D felony theft.

Arrested and charged last September, Serban admitted Monday to failing to distribute money paid into Serban Law Office’s Trust Account to the appropriate clients or to those entitled by court order to receive it.

During the course of the investigation, Serban told officers 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.

Full Article and Source:
Ex-Lawyer Admits Bilking Clients

Arizona Probate Reforms Pass!

Arizona lawmakers passed bills Tuesday to overhaul state Probate Court and better protect people whose life savings can be drained paying the fees of lawyers and for-profit fiduciaries.

But the bills are minus a key budget provision that reformers say was necessary to ensure fees won't overwhelm incapacitated adults placed under the court's supervision.

"The way the process is set up now, the first time a judge ever sees the fees is 12 months out . . . after the money is spent," said Arizona Court of Appeals Judge Ann Timmer, who chairs a committee of judges, lawyers and fiduciaries appointed by the Arizona Supreme Court last year to recommend Probate Court reforms.

"We went forward with the idea of a budget . . . asking: How do we get a handle on fees that can quickly spiral up?" she said.

The budget provision, which was opposed by some professional fiduciaries and lawyers, likely will be adopted as a future state Supreme Court rule, Timmer said. That means the court would require it in cases even though it was not written into state law. Timmer said introducing budgets was a key focal point of the probate committee and is supported by judges.

Despite the loss of a budget requirement, reformers call the passage of the bills a victory for individuals and their families whose cases are decided in Probate Court.

The legislation follows an ongoing investigation by The Arizona Republic that found Maricopa County Probate Court for years allowed the assets of some vulnerable adults to become cash machines for attorneys and fiduciaries. Judges charged with overseeing these cases rarely stepped in to limit or reduce fees, even when incapacitated adults ended up on state assistance programs.

Senate Bill 1499, known as the Probate Omnibus, combines elements from two competing reform proposals - one supported by judges, fiduciaries and their lawyers and the other by citizen activists - hammered together over the past month.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Adam Driggs, R-Phoenix, would:

- Require for-profit fiduciaries to preserve the assets of their clients and to avoid charges where the cost outweighs the benefits. Some have complained that fiduciaries would run up excessive bills pursuing legal actions or other goals that did nothing to benefit their clients.

- Require judicial officers to participate in training mandated by the Arizona Supreme Court. In some cases, judges assigned to Probate Court acknowledged that they didn't have a background in probate and asked for assistance from the lawyers in cases.

- Allow the ward or relatives to substitute a guardian without justification and without proof that the guardian acted inappropriately. Fiduciaries have run up costly legal bills fighting their removal from some cases, saying there was no proof they did anything wrong.

- Allow the appointment of a temporary guardian only if facts show there will be immediate and irreparable injury, damage or loss. Critics say that fiduciaries in some cases have claimed that emergencies exist in order to be appointed temporary guardian, leading to high costs.

- Require fiduciaries to provide copies of financial and other case records to their clients and families. In some cases, families have complained that records were kept from them.

A companion piece of legislation, House Bill 2424, also passed by the Legislature Tuesday, creates a legislative-review panel that takes citizen complaints about Probate Court and makes an annual report to the governor and other state officials.

The House bill was championed by self-described victims of Probate Court who said it would force more oversight of the court.

Laura Knaperek, a former state representative and co-author of the House bill, said the new bill incorporates many of the changes sought by those victims and their families.

She said "the biggest loss" is the failure of the bill to require clear and convincing evidence before someone can be appointed conservator to manage an incapacitated adult's finances.

"A lot of the victims were made victims because of that," Knaperek said, adding that judges appointed conservators in cases without a set standard.

"They are happy," she said. "They honestly believed nobody would do anything to help. They wanted to make sure reforms are put in place so what happened (to them) wouldn't happen to anyone else."

Full Article and Source:
Arizona Lawmakers OK Bills That Would Reform Probate Court

Probate Series Wins Reporting Award

Doug Pardue, The Post and Courier's watchdog and special-assignments editor, has won the 2010 Taylor/Tomlin Award for investigative reporting for a series he wrote last year on how the probate court system can victimize vulnerable adults.

The series, "The Price of Living," revealed how the probate court, which is supposed to protect the incapacitated elderly from abuse and financial exploitation, can turn against them. The stories, which ran on Nov. 28 and 29, detailed how the court can empty an elderly person's life savings through court-approved fees for lawyers, guardians and conservators.

A week after the newspaper's series ran, Jean Toal, the chief justice of the S.C. Supreme Court, which oversees the state's courts, characterized the reporting as "thoughtful and powerful."

She said the newspaper's "excellent research has given me much to ponder. I will be taking action to move this issue forward." Toal has not revealed what that action will be.

While the series was being reported, the Charleston County Probate Court also began limiting fees.

The Taylor/Tomlin judges called the series "a classic example of excellent investigative reporting by a reporter who used all of the tools of his trade -- energy, doggedness, documents and personal contacts -- to shed light on the plight of elderly citizens in the probate court system."

The judges said the series also accomplished two important criteria for the award -- it heightened public awareness and performed a public service by causing beneficial change.

The award was presented [4/13/11] during a ceremony at the University of South Carolina School of Journalism and Mass Communication, which administers the news competition.

Source:
Series on Probate Court Wins Reporting Award

See Also:
The Price of Living

Bob Queener - 'Slowly Tossed Away'

As if 79-year-old Bob Queener hasn't been through enough in the past 16 months, now his nursing home is giving him the boot.

The trouble began in December 2009 when the state yanked him out of his tidy, mortgage-free home on Des Moines' east side, supposedly because he could no longer take care of himself and his family wasn't moving fast enough to find round-the-clock care.

Queener suffers from mild dementia and mild autism. He doesn't reason or remember the way he used to, and sometimes he gets agitated.

But he's conversational and alert enough to wonder where all his money went. Before the Department of Human Services came after him, he had about $160,000 in the bank.

Now there's a few hundred in a checking account, and he has until May 16 to find another place to live. Last week, the people who take care of Queener at Trinity Center at Luther Park gave notice: He owed $6,450, with another $6,655 due at the end of the month.

Full Article and Source:
Hansen: Des Moines Man's Life Slowly Tossed Away

See Also:
Protecting Iowa's Senior Citizens

MN Bill Adds Elder Abuse to Offender Registry

A bill that adds elder abuse to Minnesota's predatory offender registry has advanced to the Senate. Republican Senator Warren Limmer of Maple Grove is the sponsor of the legislation. Limmer says nursing home employees who abuse a vulnerable resident would be added to the registry.

Full Article and Source:
Bill Adds Elder Abuse to Offender Registry

HB2424: There Is Not a Minute to Spare...

Your constitutional rights are under assault as for-profit forces try to preven due process from being applied in new probate law!

"CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE" must be a part of any court reform to protect th rights of the citizens as guaranted by the Fifth Amendment!

If you, or your parents, are over 50 years old and have savings, 401K, retirement, or pensions....this applies to you!

LAW IS BEING MADE NOW...YOUR RIGHTS MATTER!


Call or email Senator Adam Driggs

Phone Number: (602) 926-3016
Fax Number: (602) 417-3007

Email Address: adriggs@azleg.gov



THE RIGHTS ESTABLISHED IN THE US CONSTITUTION BELONG TO EVERY AMERICAN!

YOUR PROPERTY, YOUR MONEY, SHOULD NEVER BE TAKEN BY COURT ORDER WITHOUT DUE PROCESS UNDER THE LAW!

Source:
Courthouse Steps

Facebook Brings Challenges For Judges, Attorneys

The Ohio Supreme Court wants state judges to exhibit caution before padding their Facebook friend lists with people – read attorneys – who might appear or are appearing before them in court.

Advisory guidelines issued in December by the court’s Board of Commissioners on Grievances & Discipline cautioned judges about their connections and what information they are sharing on social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

“You can be a friend with somebody, but you’ve got to do it carefully,” said Jon Marshall, the board’s secretary.

Full Article and Source:
Facebook Brings Challenges For Judges, Attorneys

APS Guardian Progam in Washington State Under Scrutiny

Q13 Fox: Thousands of seniors across the state rely on court-appointed guardians to make decisions, pay their bills and manage their health care. But some Washington families and even lawmakers said there are big problems with the state's guardian system.



Source:
YouTube: Adult Protective Service Guardian Program Corruption in Washington State.




Source:
YouTube: Adult Protective Service" APS "Guardian Program Corruption in Washington State 2.

See Also:
Elderly Guardian Bills

State Senator Jim Kastama
25th District, Puyallup

Olympia Office
235 Cherberg Building
Olympia, WA 98504-0446
(360) 786-7648
Fax: (360) 786-1446

District Office
107 W. Stewart Ave. Suite E-7
Puyallup, WA 98371
(253) 840-4701

Elder Financial Exploitation Conference April 21

Elder financial abuse is a crime, and the incidence is on the rise. Fraud experts say it will be the "Crime of the 21st Century" due to a growing older population.

According to a MetLife Mature Market Institute report in 2009, up to one million older adults may be targeted yearly. The related cost of exploiting older adults exceeds $2.6 billion annually. This includes health care, social services, legal fees, prosecution, and lost income or assets.

At a time when older adults should be enjoying the labors of a lifetime, they are being exploited by con artists, unscrupulous companies, caregivers, and even family members. The outcome can be devastating. Without financial resources, emotional and physical well-being also declines and they may even lose their independence.

"Elder Financial Exploitation: Investigation and Intervention Tools" is the theme for the 2011 Rocky Mountain Conference on Aging on Thursday, April 21 at The Ranch near Loveland. Conference attendees will explore the challenges and complexities of financial exploitation, learn to recognize warning signs, and acquire tools for investigation and prevention.

Full Article and Source:
Elder Financial Exploitation Subject of April 21 Conference

Evelyn Schwartz, Gone Too Soon

Source:
YouTube

See Also:
Evelyn Schwartz Passes

Guardian Accused of Stealing from Father

A Chippewa Falls man is accused of stealing, from his father.

Investigators say Dale Schick Jr. withdrew more than $14,000 from accounts belonging to his dad, who lived in a nursing home. Schick was his court-appointed guardian. Court officials reminded him repeatedly that he could not take money out of the accounts, but say the withdrawals continued.

Investigators say there are more than 130 questionable withdrawals. Schick has since repaid some of the money, but is now charged with felony theft.

Full Article and Source:
Chippewa Falls Man Accused of Stealing from His Father

Continuing Care Residential Communities Can Be Risky

A recent report by the U.S. Senate Special Committee On Aging found that the financial underpinning of the country's continuing-care residential communities -- which basically require residents to turn over a large chunk of their life savings as an entry fee -- "is particularly vulnerable during economic downturns." And nationwide, a number of retirement communities have filed for bankruptcy, putting residents' nest eggs in peril.

The report noted that three of the five companies it investigated -- none identified publicly -- "use entrance fee deposits to repay construction loans" and to "repay other residents or beneficiaries rather than keeping deposits in the bank."

Full Article and Source:
Continuing Care Residential Communities Can be Risky During Tough Economic Times

Florida: Bill to Make Complaints Against Judges Public Record

A House panel has moved a bill that would make public most Judicial Qualifications Commission proceedings once the commission has determined whether to file formal charges.

Rep. Shawn Harrison, R-Tampa, told the House Civil Justice Subcommittee March 9 that HJR 11-05 would amend the constitution so that the JQC process matches the standards of the Florida Commission on Ethics that apply to all other elected officials. “The upside of this bill is transparency,” Harrison said. “We are giving the voters the opportunity to decide whether or not we want to have the same transparency standards apply to the members of the judiciary as apply to other elected officials.”

Nearly all records of the JQC are currently confidential. Only if formal charges are filed against a judge are the records open, and then only the records created after the filing of charges. If charges are not filed, the records never become public.

“Because this process is not open to the public, we don’t really know what the statistics are,” said Harrison, a commercial litigator. “We know how many complaints were filed [and how many] resulted in formal charges. But we don’t know what happened in the middle. We don’t know if 50 percent of the complaints — or 75 percent — are just totally frivolous and without merit, or if they were close calls. I think that is good information to have, and I think, ultimately, that’s probably information voters are entitled to have, too.”

JQC Chair Miles McGrane of Coral Gables said, while the commission welcomed the spotlight: “We fear if we just lift the blanket of confidentiality we are going to put a chilling effect on the source of the very important complaints that we investigate.”

Full Article and Source:
Bill Would Make Complaints Against Judges Public Record

Judicial Candidates No Strangers to Donations

Fourteen of the 16 candidates for Luzerne County judge contributed to prior candidates for county judge between 2001 and 2009, according to a review of campaign finance reports.

Eight of the candidates contributed to the 2005 campaign to retain Mark A. Ciavarella Jr. as judge. Eight contributed to Michael T. Toole's 2003 campaign for judge.

In February, a jury found Ciavarella guilty of racketeering and other charges. On Friday, Toole was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for accepting illegal gratuities from an attorney who won a favorable ruling in his court and failing to report income on a federal tax return.

"The indictments have changed the attitudes," said Vito DeLuca, a candidate in May 17 primary election and the Luzerne County solicitor. "Lawyers won't be as concerned if they give a contribution that they will be punished somehow. Everyone is watching what the judges are doing now."

Federal authorities in January 2009 announced the charges against Ciavarella and former Judge Michael T. Conahan, who has pleaded guilty. Ciavarella and Conahan were accused of pocketing $2.8 million in kickbacks from backers of a for-profit juvenile detention center, and Toole was charged with unrelated crimes later in 2009.

"From my perspective, I think things were different years ago than they are now," DeLuca said. "As a younger lawyer, you get an invitation to judge's cocktail party for retention, you may have felt a certain obligation, and you buy a ticket to an event."

DeLuca contributed a total of $1,500 to seven county judge campaigns since 2001.

Full Article and Source:
Judicial Candidates no Strangers to Donations

'The Whores of Justice'

IT HAS BEEN SAID, THOSE WHO DO NOT LEARN THEIR HISTORY, WILL RELIVE IT.

What has happened in the Sykes case and some of the elder abuse cases is indicative of what can happen to you, me etc. Guess who the ARDC is investigating! It is not the two guardian ad litem, it is not the attorney who breached his fiduciary relationship to his client, and it is not the attorney whose statements to the court are fictional. It certainly is not the judge who directed the candidate for plenary guardian of Mary Sykes to find a doctor who would be loose with the truth, or who revealed that an order that is final in just about all courts can be overturned with clout! H(#* no! The judge was elevated to the Appellate Bench! The dishonorable lawyer brags in Court that he is being advised in his perfidy by the Attorney Registration and Discipline Commission! Indeed, the criminal are all such august persons as to have immunity.

It is going to be very interesting to see if the United States Department of the Treasury (IRS) can be bought! Mary Sykes estate is just West of a million dollars at this point in time. Theft by a fiduciary is a taxable event - that means that the plenary guardian and her co-conspirators owe Mr. Obama about $300,000 in unpaid taxes. Add the fraud penalty that you or I would be charged that makes it $450,000.00.

Add the other plenary guardians who have stolen millions aided by the Court - if they paid the taxes due to the United States of America we could start putting a dent in budget problem.

Ken Ditkowsky
http://www.ditkowskylawoffice.com/

Full Article and Source:
Probate Sharks

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Guardian Not Paying Elderly Woman's Bills

They're appointed by the courts to help people, many of them elderly, but friends of one Thurston County woman say her court-appointed guardian hasn't done a thing. Now, 95-year-old Eleanor Barrick worries she'll be forced out of her own home.

 
Source:
Q13 Fox News: Elderly Guardian Bills

Idaho Sends Bill to Governor to Ban Assisted Suicide

The House voted overwhelmingly to send a bill banning helping somebody else commit suicide to Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter for signature.

Republican Rep. Lynn Luker of Boise argued that outlawing assisted suicide was necessary to help prevent abuse of elderly residents by their caregivers who are seeking to profit from their patients' demise.

Luker says this bill, which foresees penalties of five years in prison for violations, protects "all concerned."

Democratic Rep. Grant Burgoyne complained this is inappropriate government intervention in a private decision.

The House voted overwhelmingly to send a bill banning helping somebody else commit suicide to Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter for signature.

Republican Rep. Lynn Luker of Boise argued that outlawing assisted suicide was necessary to help prevent abuse of elderly residents by their caregivers who are seeking to profit from their patients' demise.

Luker says this bill, which foresees penalties of five years in prison for violations, protects "all concerned."

Democratic Rep. Grant Burgoyne complained this is inappropriate government intervention in a private decision.

Source:
Terri's Fight: Idaho House Sends Assisted Suicide Ban to Governor

Can Nursing Homes Learn From Jails?

Why in the world would I suggest the the people who are responsible for the care of our most vulnerable take a lesson from those responsible for most violent? The answer has to do with how nursing homes keep track of their residents.

Call it wandering, eloping or just escaping, there are reports of nursing home residents who have wandered from their facilities to their death without the facilities knowledge. When nursing home residents leave their safe and familiar facilities thay are at the mercy of a world unaware of each residents needs. Two cases highlight the need for nursing homes to take notes from the jails in the way they monitor residents, staff their facilities and implement basic safeguards to minimize the risks of missing residents.

In Chicago, 89 year-year-old Sara Wentworth was a resident at The Arbor of Itasca, a Chicago-land nursing home when she walked out a door and into a wooded area. Hours later, staff found Ms. Wentworth's dead body just a short distance away.

In Ohio, an 87-year-old resident wandered from her facility and into a nearby road where she was struck by a hit-and-run driver. The woman's body was found on the side of the road by local drivers. The woman had similar wandering episodes prior to this incident.

Perhaps the nursing home administrators should take a page from the wardens and other administrative staff of our correctional system? An out of place inmate poses a risk to other inmates in the jail and to the public at large. In a jail setting, an inmate who is known as an escape risk will also likely get increased supervision.

Full Article and Source:
Can Nursing Homes Learn From Jails?

Investigations Trigger Legislation

Several bills making their way through the Texas legislature would create tougher rules for daycare meal money programs, beef-up protection for the elderly, and provide relief for homeowners battling their mortgage servicing companies. They’re all tied to recent FOX 4 investigations.

Two years ago the state stuck Michael and Jean Kidd in a nursing home after deciding they were incapable of taking care of themselves. While in state custody their Richardson home sat neglected and in disrepair. The state also spent their money on legal fees and an unlicensed financial guardian while their home nearly fell in to foreclosure.

Other bills filed by Senator Nelson, SB 220 and SB 221 would provide protection for the elderly and disabled and for individuals and their assets while under state guardianship.

"I could not believe that what I was seeing was taking place in this country," Senator Nelson told FOX 4.

SB 220 has been referred to the Senate Jurisprudence Committee and SB 221 has passed through the Senate and is currently in the House Human Services Committee.

Meanwhile, Michael and Jean Kidd say they are doing well. They have a guardian helping with their finances but they are in their own home.

Full Article and Source:
Investigations Trigger Legislation

Idaho Bill Provides Some Free Legal Help

Lawmakers advanced a bill to help provide free legal counsel to low-income residents in cases involving domestic violence, child abuse, and exploitation of the elderly.

The Idaho House voted 38-32 to approve the legislation. It generates money through a $10 court filing fee to help Idaho Legal Aid Services provide representation in certain cases, which can also involve veterans' issues and foreclosures.

The bill narrowly survived the state House, where lawmakers set a clear precedent early in the 2011 session that tax and fee increases were unwelcome when dumping a small fee hike to help the state police academy.

Republican Rep. Cliff Bayer, of Boise, says Idaho is the only state that doesn't provide financial assistance to its statewide legal aid provider.

Bayer's bill now goes to the Senate.

Source:
Idaho bill Provides Free Legal Help in Some Cases

Fiduciaries Fight Your Fifth Amendment Rights

The effort at reforming the troubled and ineffective probate system in Arizona is at a crucial crossroads.

The question remains, who will be best served by new legislation aimed at reform...For-profit fiduciaries, the VERY people who have fleeced the public for years are fighting REFORM!

Remember Marie Long... $1.3 million in savings and now she lives on welfare after being in the care of the court appointed fiduciary!

Fiduciaries do not want to lose their ability to take hold of your money!

The Fifth Amendment is under attack!

Personal property and the right of for-profit entities to have total control of YOUR property WITHOUT due process is UNCONSTITUTIONAL and should not be tolerated!

TELL THE ARIZONA LEGISLATURE TO REQUIRE "CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE" AS THE STANDARD OF EVIDENCE BEFORE ANY PRIVATE CITIZEN CAN BE DENIED THEIR FIFTH AMENDMENT RIGHTS!

Source:
Courthouse Steps

Man Accused of Abusing Nursing Home Resident Released From Jail Until Trial

A former Lufkin nursing home employee, jailed on multiple charges of abuse to a resident, has been released from jail as he awaits his trial date.

Telesforo Vasquez III, allegedly exposed himself to one of the nursing home residents a 91-year old woman living at Castle Pines.

Vasquez was in court [4/5/11] seeking a PR bond that would allow him to leave jail pending his July 18th court date. Judge Barry Bryan, 217th District Court, granted the motion adding two conditions for release. Vasquez is not allowed to enter a hospital, nursing home, retirement home, or any similar facility. He may not make contact with the complainant or any of her family members.

Full Article and Source:
Lufkin Man Charged With Injuring Nursing Home Resident Released

Instead of Helping, VA Trustee Program is Hurting Veterans, Families Say

During the Korean War, Billy Brown faced enemy bullets, starvation and bitter cold. Now the benefits that he earned for his sacrifice have been tied up by the Department of Veterans Affairs, which in 2009 diverted his payments to trustees who have taken control not only of those funds, but of his life savings of some $100,000 as well.

Richard Wortham, Mr. Brown’s son, gained power of attorney for his father four years before the department stepped in, and found out about his father’s new financial minder only when he tried to withdraw money from the bank. “They said we no longer had access to his money — we could only get it from the fiduciary,” Mr. Wortham said.

What began as a broad effort to safeguard ailing veterans and their families from financial loss and abuse has turned into what lawyers and veterans’ advocates call a mismanaged and poorly regulated bureaucracy that not only fails to respond to veterans’ needs but in some cases creates new problems.

Families of veterans like Mr. Brown, 80, and William E. Freeman, whose sister was denied the ability to manage his benefits, and beneficiaries like Dennis Keyser, whose appointed trustee turned out to be a felon, say the system is badly flawed.

The department says it has appointed people to manage 111,407 accounts with a cumulative value of more than $3.2 billion. They earn up to 4 percent commission on the money under their care. The department, in a statement, said that beneficiaries had access to due process before a final decision was reached about appointing a beneficiary, and that the financial managers were carefully vetted. Once appointed, they “may also be required to prepare annual accountings.” In making the choice, the agency said, “priority is given to a family member if qualified and willing to serve.”

The report stated that 315 fraud investigations from October 1998 to March 2010 had “resulted in 132 arrests and monetary recoveries of $7.4 million in restitution, fines, penalties and administrative judgments.”

Full Article and Source:
Instead of Helping, Trustee Program Is Hurting Veterans, Families Say

MN Nursing Home Worker Charged With Theft

Over two years, a nursing home worker pocketed nearly $63,000 from two elderly residents at a South St. Paul senior home to help pay for her daughter's college tuition, authorities said.

Lisa Marie Blair, 43, faces four felony counts of exploitation of a vulnerable adult and three felony counts of aggravated theft by swindle, according to charges filed Tuesday in Dakota County District Court. Blair, who turned herself in to police over the weekend, has posted bail.

"It's always disturbing to see situations where vulnerable victims are taken advantage of," Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom said. "That appears to be the case here."

The alleged thefts happened in 2009 and 2010.

When questioned by police, Blair said she had "borrowed" money from the female resident to pay for her daughter's college tuition but that she planned to pay the money back.

Blair told police she would write checks payable to herself, or for cash, from the woman's account while helping her pay bills, the charges said.

Blair told police, "I maybe took advantage ... I knew it was the wrong thing to do," the complaint said. Blair said she planned to pay the money back, but "it just got out of hand."

Each of the counts against Blair carries up to 10 years in prison.

Full Article and Source:
South St. Paul Nursing Home Worker Charged With Stealing From Two Residents

Mickey Rooney Speaks at National Summit

Elder Financial Protection Network held its 8th annual Call to Action conference and awards ceremony at Mission Bay Conference Center at UCSF.

Veteran actor, Mickey Rooney, provided an emotional speech drawing tears and three standing ovations from the crowd of nearly 300 representatives of financial institutions, social services, law enforcement, legal professionals and elder justice advocates. “I am here today as the voice of millions of senior citizens to tell you that ending elder abuse is of critical importance.” Rooney said, “No one ever thinks they will be in this position in their lifetime, but the statistics are staggering, and they paint an unsettling picture. Whether the abuse is physical, emotional or financial, it is an unbelievable reality that often sneaks up on you without warning.”

Philip Marshall, elder justice advocate and grandson of New York philanthropist Brooke Astor delivered compelling testimony and called for increased national collaboration to fight this growing crime. He said, “While my grandmother was emotionally and financially abused and isolated, her case is far from isolated; there are millions of victims, today, suffering similar injury.”

Rooney read the Call to Action Proclamation which calls upon Congress to authorize the postmaster general to issue a special elder abuse postage stamp; to fund the Elder Justice Act and requests that the President issue a proclamation declaring June 15, 2012 World Elder Abuse Awareness Day and to light the White House Purple on this day. More than 200 participants followed Rooney’s lead and signed the poster-sized proclamation. An online petition was launched at the event through the EFPN’s website http://www.bewiseonline.org.

Full Press Release and Source;
Actor Mickey Rooney Speaks at National Summit on Elder Financial Abuse in San Francisco

See Also:
Elder Financial Protection Network

Florida Woman Accused of Stealing From Inlaws to Fuel Addiction

A Florida woman's gambling addiction was so severe that she pumped $14 million into the slots and is accused of stealing her in-laws' life savings to fuel her habit, police said.

Jennifer Dennison, 42, was arrested after Hernando County Sheriff's detectives wrapped up a five-month investigation. "Theoretically she could spend the next couple decades in prison," Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis said. She was charged with 16 counts including exploitation of the elderly, forgery of checks, and organized scheme to defraud.

Dennison's in-laws, 88-year-old Laverne Robert Dennison and 73-year-old Janet A. Dennison, bounced a check in August of last year, launching the investigation that led to the woman's arrest.

Full Article, Video, and Source:
Florida Woman Gambles $14 Million, Accused of Stealing From Inlaws

Housecleaning Service Owner Admits Stealing over $100K from Elderly

The owner of a Bonita Springs housecleaning service admitted to stealing gold, silver, jewelry and money from her customers, detectives said during a press conference.

The total amount allegedly stolen by Linda Flemke “was well in excess of $100,000,” said Sgt. Brian Sawyer of the Collier County Sheriff’s Office.

Full Article and Source:
Woman Charged With Stealing More than $100,000 From Elderly in Collier, Lee Counties

Federal Judge Suggest No Insurance Duty in 'Kids-for-Cash' Civil Cases

The federal judge who is overseeing the civil rights suits filed in the wake of the "kids-for-cash” judicial corruption scandal in Luzerne County has handed down a pair of opinions in favor of insurers who are refusing to provide any coverage for the cases.

The rulings by U.S. District Judge A. Richard Caputo stopped short of declaring that the insurers have no duty to provide coverage, but included strong hints that such a judgment would follow.

Instead, in both opinions - Markel International Insurance Co. v. Western PA Child Care and Alea London v. PA Child Care - Caputo was ruling on motions to dismiss the suits filed by the insureds, and the judge’s rejection of those motions means only that the suits may now proceed.

But the conclusory language used by the judge in explaining why policy exclusions would apply to bar any coverage seems to suggest that a final judgment in the insurers’ favor is now a mere formality.

Lawyers for the insurers in both cases said the defendants will be required to file formal answers to the suits and that the insurers will soon after file motions for summary judgment.

Such motions appear nearly certain to be granted, based on language in Caputo’s recent opinions.

Source:
Judge Suggests No Insurance Duty in 'Kids-for-Cash' Civil Cases

Legal Guardian Charged With Murder

The legal guardian of a 22-year-old disabled Kearns woman who was found dead March 25 has been charged with first-degree felony murder.

The charges filed Friday in 3rd District Court against 27-year-old Cassandra Marie Shepard also include one count of aggravated abuse of a disabled or elder adult, a first-degree felony, and one count of obstructing justice, a second-degree felony.

Friends and family of Christina Harms said she suffered from the effects of fetal alcohol syndrome

The state Office of the Medical Examiner determined Harms’ cause of death was homicide by positional asphyxiation.

Other details from the medical examiner’s report state Harms’ body and head had bruising that was consistent with chronic physical abuse. Her hands and wrists, which were covered with bandages, were severely damaged with the skin falling off, charging documents say. The report stated Harms was fitted with a makeshift diaper.

Full Article and Source:
Caretaker of Abused Kearns Woman Charged With Murder

Mastro Case: Judge Says Guardian Can't be Paid From Funds for Creditors

A federal bankruptcy judge closed a short, strange chapter Tuesday in the long-running bankruptcy saga of former Seattle real-estate magnate Michael R. Mastro.

Judge Marc Barreca turned down a bid by the guardian for the now-incapacitated Mastro to pay her, and her lawyer, from funds administered by Mastro's chief adversary, court-appointed trustee James Rigby.

That's the same pot of money from which Mastro's many creditors might one day recover a fraction of their losses. The bankruptcy is Washington's largest ever, with Mastro reporting debts of $570 million.

Mastro's guardian, former state Supreme Court Justice Faith Ireland, asked last week for compensation from Rigby's funds because she said Mastro couldn't pay her. She also said she needed her own lawyer because Mastro's longtime attorney had a conflict of interest:

As guardian, she argued, she's required to act in Mastro's best interests. However, she added, Mastro's lawyer is obligated to follow Mastro's instructions from before he was incapacitated — even if they aren't in his best interests.

Ireland's lawyer, Mark Walters, acknowledged in court that the proposal and circumstances were "incredibly unusual — I almost can't believe it."

Full Article and Source:
Judge Says Mastro Guardian Can't be Paid From Funds for Creditors

See Also:
Strange New Twist

Editorial: Help Make State's Most Vulnerable Citizens Safer

For many years, Washington state has enjoyed a reputation of having the most cost-effective, long-term-care systems in the nation, with ample choices to help people remain in their own homes or communities, where care is cheaper and more homelike than in nursing facilities.

Ironically, one of the central innovations of our "best in the nation" system has become a threat to that system — adult family homes. According to the state Department of Social and Health Services, the number of abuse and neglect complaints in these homes rose 53 percent between 2004 and 2010. An investigative series published by The Seattle Times last fall profiled several horrific examples of such abuse.

I recall reading The Seattle Times "Seniors For Sale" series with utter horror, not only because of the brutal abuse described but because it took me back to 2004 when my own parents, both in their 90s, were in need of such care.

Clearly there is a need for additional oversight in an industry that cares for the most vulnerable among us. The state Legislature is currently considering two pieces of legislation that would do just that.

Step one is Senate Bill 5092 and its companion, House Bill 1277, which call for more frequent inspections of adult family homes, steeper sanctions for violations and higher safety standards.

Step 2 is House Bill 1494, which would require agencies that refer families to adult family homes and other supportive housing to clearly disclose their fees and terms of service upfront. Given the abuses that have occurred, both of these measures seem long overdue and the absolute minimum oversight we should expect.

But nothing in Olympia is ever simple or without opponents.

Adult family homes are screaming bloody murder that the license-fee increase needed to implement step 1 would put them out of business. This is nonsense.

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Help Make State's Most Vulnerable Citizens Safer

'Caught on Camera'

Employee caught on hidden camera punching, kicking and stripping Alzheimer’s patient, police say.

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Woman, 78, Beaten, Stripped by Assisted Living Workers: Police

Ex-TX Judge Takes Plea in RICO Case

A former Texas judge pleaded guilty yesterday to unspecified charges in a federal racketeering indictment, admitting that he took bribes from attorneys and others during his eight years in office in exchange for favorable treatment in court cases.

Abel Corral Limas, who is presently in private practice in Brownsville, was accused in a 17-page indictment of violating the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act by operating the 404th Judicial Court as an income-producing enterprise, according to the Associated Press and the San Antonio Express-News.

Four unidentified attorneys and a middleman, who are named as persons A through E in the document but not themselves indicted, allegedly were involved in the claimed scheme. It isn't clear what their status presently is in the case. Together, the two lawyers allegedly paid the judge about $235,000 in bribes, according to the Express-News.

Limas reportedly charged fees such as $1,500 to permit those on probation to report by mail, instead of in person, and $700 to change bond terms.

He was released on $50,000 unsecured bond after his guilty plea and is scheduled to be sentenced in July.

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Ex-Judge Takes Plea in RICO Case, Admits Role in Alleged $235K+ Court Bribery Scheme