Feds: Stealing from dead gave judge a luxe life in auto exec's home

by Robert Snell

 

Suspended 36th District Judge Andrea Bradley-Baskin helped loot dead people's bank accounts during a conspiracy involving more than $2.9 million, helped her husband acquire a dead person's home and lived a life of luxury in an automotive executive's luxury townhouse after years of financial problems, federal court records show.

A fuller picture of the scale and scope of an alleged conspiracy to steal money from incapacitated people in Wayne County's probate court system emerges from a review of state and federal court records two weeks after Bradley-Baskin was indicted alongside her father, attorney Avery Bradley, and two others.

A review of court records also helps to identify victims who are referred to by initials in the indictment and shows how Bradley-Baskin and others are accused of targeting the elderly and the ill, the isolated, the wealthy and the dead. Many of the 18 victims identified in the indictment had fat bank accounts, homes that were liquidated and flipped for profit, while others were charged rent at group homes where they never lived, which are owned by a member of the alleged conspiracy.

"Everyone is out for greed. It's just apropos for what goes on in this day," St. Clair County resident Bruce Affelt told The Detroit News after learning his late cousin, retired Ford Motor Co. engineer William Kamin, was one of the alleged victims. "It's wrong, and I think people should be held accountable."

There have been immediate repercussions. Last month's indictment led to Bradley-Baskin being booted off the bench and suspended with pay from her $186,164-a-year job. The case also threatens to strip Bradley-Baskin of her law license and send her to federal prison for 45 years if convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, two counts of money laundering and lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Bradley-Baskin, 46, did not respond to messages seeking comment.

The alleged conspiracy spanned from January 2017 to July 2024, a timespan that predates Bradley-Baskin's tenure as a judge. The case portrays her as conspiring with others to enrich herself by embezzling money and using false pretenses to keep money and property belonging to multiple incapacitated wards of the probate system.

The victims of the alleged conspiracy were easy targets, suffering from dementia, old age and health problems with no support system.

Lawyer worth $5M targeted

Kamin, 92, is one of the wealthiest victims in the case. The retired bachelor, who died in 2021, had no spouse, children or immediate family, but was worth millions of dollars.

Kamin, like all victims in the case, is referred to in the indictment by initials, “W.K.” But dates and dollar amounts in the indictment match details from Kamin’s file in the Wayne County Probate Court, including May 25, 2022, the date Avery Bradley was appointed to represent the estate. 

Kamin died in January 2021 and spent his whole life in his childhood home, a brick bungalow 20 blocks west of his alma mater, the University of Detroit Mercy. When he died, he had more than $5 million in assets, mostly investments and life insurance proceeds, court records show.

Avery Bradley, a veteran lawyer in the probate court system, is accused of stealing more than $161,000 of the dead man's money.

Bradley was appointed by the Wayne County Probate Court to gather Kamin’s assets, pay bills and disburse money to his heirs as prescribed in Kamin’s will.

In December 2022, Bradley cut checks to more than 30 of Kamin's heirs. The payouts ranged from $8,079 to $49,549 and, in all, the heirs split $743,000 — a detail from Kamin's probate court file that matches the federal indictment.

Those heirs included Affelt, 75, a distant cousin.

“He was kind of a loner,” Affelt told The News about Kamin. “I never got to know him or meet him.”

Kamin's alma mater was supposed to receive a much larger piece of Kamin’s estate. For starters, Bradley cut a $17,437 check to the university in June 2023.

“Bradley never dispersed the funds for the benefit of the estate of W.K.,” the indictment reads.

Instead, Bradley deposited the money in his law firm’s account at Comerica Bank, prosecutors allege.

That same month, Bradley transferred $60,000 from Kamin's estate to his law firm's bank account, according to the government.

"Bradley never dispersed any of these funds for the benefit of the estate of W.K.," the indictment reads.

The same day, Bradley transferred $261,072 from Kamin's estate to the attorney's law firm, according to the government.

Bradley sent $185,964 to Detroit Mercy, consistent with Kamin's will. But the attorney never dispersed the rest of the money, more than $75,100, the indictment alleged.

Bradley, 72, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and three counts of money laundering. If convicted, he faces more than 20 years in prison. Bradley did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Feds: Bradley directs widow's cash to daughter

The federal investigation into the finances and treatment of Kamin and others in the probate court system surfaced in July when The News obtained sealed FBI documents and search warrant records. The records showed FBI agents had raided multiple locations in Metro Detroit and seized more than $580,000 while targeting the judge, her father and others.

In September, an investigation by The News revealed Bradley-Baskin teamed with two criminals to help buy and sell homes belonging to vulnerable people in the probate court system for far less than the properties' market value.

In several instances, those homes were sold to the boyfriend of a probate court guardian after Bradley-Baskin proposed the sale or drafted the deeds. That includes a Dearborn Heights ranch that was flipped in less than a month for a 72% profit.

The News reporting from five months ago and details about alleged victims, including the late Ethel Ciotti and her son, Curtis Ciotti of Lincoln Park, are mirrored in last month's indictment.

Ethel Ciotti was a 92-year-old widow who worked at an insurance company, at a Lincoln Park bowling alley and as a greeter at Meijer before dying in 2018. Ciotti, who is referred to in the indictment as "E.C.," left behind an estate worth more than $493,000, including almost $385,000 in the bank and a bungalow. 

A judge appointed the firm Guardian and Associates to serve as the elderly woman's guardian in early 2017. The firm is headed by Nancy Williams, a probate court veteran and criminal convicted of trying to influence the 2020 general election.

Williams and her boyfriend, group home owner Dwight Rashad, are charged alongside Bradley-Baskin and Avery Bradley.

During the conspiracy, Williams placed court wards in homes owned and operated by her boyfriend, prosecutors allege. She also authorized payments from the wards' bank accounts of up to $6,000 a month to Rashad's firm, Empowerment Homes.

In all, Empowerment Homes was paid approximately $2 million, the indictment alleges, which includes money for legitimate services.

Since last year, FBI agents have seized at least $69,981 from Williams, Rashad and their companies. Prosecutors also slapped a lien on residential and commercial properties linked to Williams and Rashad in Oakland County.

Bradley, meanwhile, was appointed to manage Ethel Ciotti's finances in April 2018.

One year later, Bradley cut a $4,460 check from Ciotti's bank account and gave the money to a landlord who owned a home in Westland rented by Bradley-Baskin, according to the government.

"The $4,460 check was not used for the benefit of (Ethel Ciotti)," the indictment reads. "Bradley fraudulently issued the check to benefit Bradley-Baskin."

Williams took $25,000 from another victim and Bradley-Baskin used the money to pre-pay a year's worth of rent at the Westland home, prosecutors allege.

Judge had money problems

During the alleged conspiracy, Bradley-Baskin's fortunes changed dramatically.

Before prosecutors said Bradley-Baskin started stealing people's money, she had big cash problems.

Bradley-Baskin and her ex-husband filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2013, listing more than $278,000 in liabilities and $6,550 in assets, according to court records. The debts included $17,644 owed on the future judge's new Mercedes-Benz.

The money woes continued in 2020, when she was sued in the 36th District Court for more than $9,400 by an automotive lender.

Bradley-Baskin overcame the financial problems by stealing from the vulnerable, prosecutors alleged.

That included Frankie James, a 70-year-old, incapacitated woman with health problems from Detroit. Her finances were being handled by Williams' firm, Guardian and Associates, in 2019.

Frankie James died May 11, 2020. Three days later, Williams gave the elderly woman's stately brick Colonial-style home to Bradley-Baskin's half-brother, prosecutors alleged.

The deed was drafted by Bradley, according to the indictment. 

In December 2020, seven months after James died, Bradley-Baskin took $26,500 from various wards' bank accounts and bought the dead woman's home, according to the indictment.

In March 2024, the home was transferred for $1 to CAB Realty, a company owned by Bradley-Baskin's husband, Corey Baskin, prosecutors alleged.

"A little more than a year later, on or about April 25, 2025, CAB Realty sold the property for $140,000," the indictment alleged.

Corey Baskin did not respond to messages seeking comment. 

Judge travels abroad, feds say

The judge's personal life, meanwhile, was improving.

Bradley-Baskin traveled the world in recent years, including jaunts to the Caribbean, Spain, France and Cancun, a court official said during the judge's arraignment. She bought a dive bar in Detroit and reaped an insurance windfall.

And in March 2024, Bradley-Baskin withdrew $54,250, and the money was used to lease a $900,000 Brush Park townhouse, according to the FBI.

 The property is owned by Felix Weller, the former vice president of Cadillac in China, according to public records.

The 2,425-square-foot, three-story City Modern townhouse, across Woodward from Little Caesars Arena, has three bedrooms, three-and-a-half bathrooms, a private rooftop terrace and a one-car garage for Bradley-Baskin, who leased a new 2023 Ford Expedition King Ranch SUV with more than $20,000 stolen from another victim, prosecutors allege.

The judge’s life in the townhouse soured last fall as prosecutors prepared to indict the judge.

Landlord Greythorne Management LLC sued Bradley-Baskin and her husband on Oct. 15 and accused the couple of failing to pay $8,650 in rent.

The lawsuit, since dismissed, was filed in the 36th District Court in Detroit — the judge's own courthouse. 

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Feds: Stealing from dead gave judge a luxe life in auto exec's home

 See Also:
Detroit judge, 3 others charged in alleged scheme to steal thousands from vulnerable and incapacitated people

Press Release: Sitting Judge and Three Others Charged with Scheme to Steal Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars from Vulnerable and Incapacitated Wards 

Detroit News: Detroit Judge Teamed With 2 Criminals to Help Buy And Sell Homes of the Vulnerable

FBI probe of Detroit probate court could lead to indictment

Nursing home administrator accused of stealing from dementia patient

Administrator faces criminal charges and license suspension

By: Clark Kauffman

An Iowa nursing home administrator criminally charged with stealing thousands of dollars from an elderly resident has agreed to refrain from practicing while an investigation is pending.

Chelsi Ingles, 34, of Tipton, is facing charges of first-degree felony theft against an older individual, dependent adult abuse by exploitation, ongoing criminal conduct and tampering with records. She has pleaded not guilty to each of the charges.

Prosecutors allege that in December 2023, Ingles, while working as the administrator at the Aspire of Muscatine nursing home, stole two checks belonging to a female resident of the home. State records indicate that at the time, the resident had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, dementia and epilepsy.

Ingles is alleged to have cashed one of the resident’s checks and collected $8,500, after which she deposited $3,500 into the resident’s trust account at Aspire of Muscatine.

A week later, she allegedly used the second check to deposit $8,500 into a bank account she had set up for herself and the resident. Later that day, Ingles allegedly transferred $8,500 from that account to a separate account she shared with her husband.

Prosecutors allege that in January 2024, during an internal investigation at the home, Aspire asked Ingles to return the resident’s money and any receipts she had for purchases that were made with trust-account money. Ingles allegedly returned only $3,202 in cash. Prosecutors say she also provided her employer with questionable documentation that falsely suggested the rest of the money was used to purchase food, furniture and a television for the resident.

State inspection records indicate executives with the Aspire chain of nursing homes admitted that they didn’t notify the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing of the suspected theft, as required by law, and also didn’t inform law enforcement officials.

Ingles worked for Cedar County and for Clinton facility

State records show that in 2022, before Ingles began working at Aspire of Muscatine, Cedar County fired Ingles from her position there as a public health manager, allegedly for timecard theft. The county had compared Ingles’ timecards with electronic data showing when she arrived for work each day and had concluded she was claiming pay for hours never worked. Ingles said she worked odd hours at times and occasionally performed work, such as viewing work-related videos, outside normal office hours.

Ingles was initially denied unemployment benefits, with the judge in her case finding that even if she had been given permission “to arrive early or watch videos and bill at odd hours, that does not excuse her ongoing, poor recordkeeping that only worked to her advantage.” The Employment Appeal Board subsequently reversed the judge’s decision, noting that Ingles “had never been reprimanded, or issued any warnings about the way she spent her time or how she recorded her hours.”

State records also show that after Ingles left her position at Aspire of Muscatine, she served briefly as the administrator at Addington Place, an assisted living center in Clinton.

Ingles’ attorney recently obtained a continuance in the criminal case due to ongoing plea-agreement negotiations with county prosecutors, who are seeking a total of $8,523 in victim restitution in the matter. A pretrial conference in the case is scheduled for March 13, 2026.

Recently, the Iowa Board of Nursing Home Administrators entered into a settlement agreement with Ingles. The board agreed that it would not pursue formal disciplinary charges against Ingles until the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing completes its investigation of the 2023 incident and Ingles has been given a chance to respond to the findings.

In the meantime, Ingles has agreed to refrain from practicing as a nursing home administrator until further order by the board. As a result, the status of her state license, which expired in December 2025, is listed as “suspended.”

During Aspire of Muscatine’s most recent annual inspection, in May 2025, the home was cited for 17 regulatory violations — an exceptionally high number. The violations included inadequate quality of care; failure to maintain residents’ nutrition and hydration status; inadequate respiratory care; failure to maintain sufficient, competent staff, and inadequate food services and infection control.

On the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ five-star quality scale, Aspire of Muscatine currently has a one-star rating for both overall quality and health inspections. 

Full Article & Source:
Nursing home administrator accused of stealing from dementia patient 

Oroville IHSS worker sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to elder abuse, felony assault charges

by Will Anderson 

OROVILLE, Calif. - The Butte County District Attorney's Office on Wednesday announced that 47-year-old Desiree Serena Herrera of Oroville pleaded guilty to charges of elder abuse and felony assault.

Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey says that Herrera's crimes involved the repeated abuse of a elderly man in his 70s, who was under her care.

Ramsey says that the case came to light in September of 2025 when deputies from the Butte County Sheriff’s Office responded to Enloe Health in Chico for a report of a elderly patient with multiple serious injuries as a result of elder abuse.

Deputies discovered that the man had been living with Herrera, who was his IHSS (In Home Supportive Services) caregiver. During their investigation, deputies observed that the elderly man was covered in abrasions and bruises, had sustained a head injury, damage to one eye, and several broken ribs in the process of healing.

The victim told investigators that he had befriended Herrera, who was homeless, several years earlier when he worked at a local hotel.

Ramsey says that in late 2024, Herrera, who was parole for theft and drug offenses, moved into the victim's home and became his IHSS worker. IHSS is a state-funded and administered program which provides a worker to assist low-income elderly or disabled persons with certain tasks.

Initially, the arrangement between the two of them went well, but the victim said that in May of 2025, Herrera began abusing him both physically and psychologically.

According to the victim, Herrera restricted his phone use, would not allow him to leave the home, would not allow him to control his own fiances, and would not allow him to see his family. The victim said that Herrera also began to physically abuse him.

Ramsey says that the victim reported the deputies that Herrera had once became angry and repeatedly struck and kicked him, which broke multiple ribs, and prevented him from seeking medical treatment.

The victim revealed that Herrera had also kicked him in the eye while they were sitting on a couch. Herrera reportedly refused to let the man go to see a doctor and would call and cancel any appointments that the victim tried to make for himself.

Throughout the late spring and summer of 2025, Herrera allegedly forced the victim to stand for hours, sleep on the floor, and denied him access to the restroom.

The victim told authorities that Herrera would sneak up on him because he could barely see as a result of the eye injury she had caused and would use a torch lighter to burn his head and face.

Ramsey says that the victim reported to deputies that on at least six occasions, Herrera had also struck him on the head with the butt of a kitchen knife.

In September 2025, after suffering through another one of Herrera's beatings, the elderly victim escaped the house and paramedics transported him to Enloe Health. After his arrival at the hospital and the extent of victim's injuries were discovered, hospital staff had summoned deputies.

Deputies made contact with the Butte County District Attorney's Office and worked with prosecutors to obtain an arrest warrant for Herrera.

Several days later, investigators from the District Attorney's Office located and arrested Herrera while she was in line at the IHSS office in Oroville with another elderly person. Ramsey says that the elderly person that was with Herrera had not suffered any abuse at Herrera's hands.

The Butte County District Attorney's Office says that Herrera has a lengthy criminal record dating back to the 1990s, including drug and theft offenses, and a 2004 conviction in Santa Clara County for robbery and attempted murder.

After serving time in prison, Herrera was released. Shortly after being released from prison, Herrera was convicted of carjacking and was returned to prison.

District Attorney Ramsey says that as part of Wednesday's plea agreement, Herrera will receive the upper-term sentence of 29 years and 8 months in state prison for her crimes against the elderly victim.

Ramsey says that his office and investigators from the Butte County Sheriff's Office have maintained close contact with the victim during the case since the initial law enforcement response. According to Ramsey, the victim is finally receiving the appropriate medical care and is now living in a safe situation.

After pleading guilty in court, Herrera was returned to the custody of the Butte County Jail, where she has been held since her arrest with no bail.

Ramsey says that Herrera will return to Butte County Superior Court on March 11, 2026 for formal sentencing.

Full Article & Source:
Oroville IHSS worker sentenced to nearly 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to elder abuse, felony assault charges 

‘It’s an epidemic’ | Elder fraud costs Tennessee seniors millions, advocates say

Police officers recognized for solving Gatlinburg case highlighting broader issue

Police officers recognized for solving Gatlinburg case highlighting broader issue

By Caroline Mueller

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Two Gatlinburg police officers recently received recognition for solving an elder fraud case that highlights a broader issue impacting older adults across East Tennessee, according to advocates who say financial abuse has reached epidemic levels.

Detective Cindy Myers and Officer Josh Cole were honored by the East Tennessee Elder Justice Coalition for their work investigating an online investment scam that targeted an elderly Gatlinburg resident. The victim was contacted through social media and persuaded to invest in what was presented as a legitimate investment opportunity. Over several weeks, the victim was manipulated into providing increasingly large sums of money, including a significant cash payment made during an in-person meeting.

Philip Gentile with the East Tennessee Elder Justice Coalition said the problem has grown significantly.

“It’s an epidemic right now with the growing older population and the scams that they fall victim to,” Gentile said.

The East Tennessee Elder Justice Coalition said many scams start with criminals building trust online before asking for money. Gentile, who is the chair of the coalition, said those schemes can develop over time.

“Generally it’s Facebook or some social media platform like that where the scammer will befriend them and make them earn their confidence and try to make them believe that they are their friend,” Gentile said. “A lot of times the suspects or the scammers will will take weeks or months to to spend time building a relationship with the older adult.”

Gentile said older adults in Tennessee lose millions of dollars each year to financial exploitation. In Knox County, advocates estimate for every reported case of elder abuse, 22 others go unreported.

“It’s hundreds of millions of dollars, but across the state, it’s probably getting close to a billion dollars,” Gentile said.

One of the fastest growing threats involves cryptocurrency ATMs, according to Gentile.

“Older adults are being told to take cash out of their bank and feed that cash into a cryptocurrency ATM, and those are all over the place right now,” he said. “Losses in Tennessee are about 160 million dollars just with that.”

Dottie Lyvers, director of the Community Action Council Office on Aging, said artificial intelligence is making scams harder to spot.

“People can replicate voices of loved ones,” Lyvers said. “So it’s always good that if you think it is a grandchild or a family member to hang up and call that other family member and find out if that’s true or not.”

Lyvers said families should watch for warning signs like unpaid bills or sudden financial changes and stay actively involved in older relatives’ lives.

“If you suspect elder abuse at all, it must be reported to adult protective services,” she said. “And so a lot of times that is the first line of defense.”

ennessee law requires suspected elder abuse to be reported to Adult Protective Services.

In the Gatlinburg case, officers intervened before further losses occurred, ultimately leading to the arrest of a suspect on charges related to fraud, theft, and the financial exploitation of an elderly or vulnerable adult.

Gentile said many victims feel embarrassed or afraid to come forward, especially if a family member may be involved. Others may not realize they’ve been scammed until the money is already gone. He says early reporting is critical to preventing more losses.

Adult Protective Services can be reached at 888-277-8366.

More resources surrounding elder abuse can be found here. 

Full Article & Source:
‘It’s an epidemic’ | Elder fraud costs Tennessee seniors millions, advocates say 

Nexus trio pleads not guilty to financial exploitation crimes

WMRA | By Randi B. Hagi 

Two leaders and an employee of the company Nexus, formerly based in Verona, pled not guilty to financial exploitation crimes in court on Monday. The case is scheduled to go to trial next month. WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports.

Michael Donovan and Richard Moore, the couple that formerly led the company Nexus, and their employee Timothy Shipe, all pled not guilty to allegedly stealing more than $400,000 from Zachary Cruz – a young man the couple took in in 2018. Donovan and Moore each face four felony counts – financially exploiting a vulnerable adult, obtaining money by false pretenses, and conspiring to commit both crimes. Shipe faces two felony charges related to the conspiracy.

Donovan and his attorney, Eugene Oliver, are due back in court on Feb. 23 to determine whether Oliver can continue to represent him, because one of the prosecution's potential witnesses was previously represented by an attorney that works for Oliver.

Also on Monday, both sides – and an attorney for Shenandoah Valley Social Services – argued over a slew of motions regarding what evidence should be allowed in the case. Lindsay Combs, an employee of the social services agency, has been appointed by the court as Cruz's legal guardian. Richard Moore's attorney, Caleb Routhier, argued he should be given the chance to interview Cruz ahead of the trial, and both he and Donovan's attorney seek access to Cruz's confidential guardianship records.

An attorney for the social services agency said this motion "should not be used as a fishing expedition." Oliver argued that Cruz's mental capacity or incapacity is central to the commonwealth's case against his client, so they need to see the relevant records. Judge Sean Workowski allowed the attorneys to obtain the commonwealth's copies of these files, with restrictions on who can access them.

Combs argued that it would be detrimental for Routhier to interview Cruz, due to "past trauma" inflicted on him by the defendants, and the fact that a previous attorney tried to get to him while he was in psychiatric care under an emergency custody order. Workowski said he was inclined to deny Routhier's motion, but allowed him to submit questions in writing for Combs to review.

Workowski did not make a decision about whether the prosecution can bring up Moore's conviction for federal tax evasion, which they say was a primary motive for the financial exploitation. Moore is currently serving a six-plus year sentence for those crimes. Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Alex Meador said the Internal Revenue Service has refused to testify in this case, which is why they need to reference the conviction.

A five-day jury trial is scheduled to begin March 9. It's been delayed six times since the defendants were arrested in 2022.

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Nexus trio pleads not guilty to financial exploitation crimes 

Commentary: New York needs a publicly funded guardianship system

Pass the Good Guardianship Act to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to this vital protection.

By Kimberly George and Cordell Cleare

In a quiet office in upstate New York, a guardian opens a folder filled with a client’s documents: medical reports, housing records and correspondence from service providers. The person they are appointed to support once lived independently and made their own choices, but now, due to illness, disability or isolation, they cannot manage entirely on their own. What the guardian sees is not just an individual in need, but a system struggling to respond.

Across New York, judges routinely report difficulty finding qualified guardians for people who need them. Thousands of New Yorkers — older adults, people with disabilities and individuals without family or financial resources — require decision-making support to remain safe and housed, access health care, and live with dignity.

Yet New York remains one of the few states without a publicly funded guardianship program. Instead, access to guardianship depends largely on geography, philanthropy and the willingness of under-resourced nonprofits to stretch limited budgets even further.

Under Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law, guardianship is a vital protection for people who cannot fully care for themselves due to illness, injury, cognitive impairment or disability. When done well, guardianship is narrowly tailored, person-centered and focused on preserving autonomy while ensuring safety and well-being. But the system can only function if there are guardians available — and today, there are not enough.

There is a solution: the New York State Good Guardianship Act. The legislation would establish a statewide, publicly funded guardianship program, ensuring that people who need guardianship and have no one else to turn to can access qualified, well-supported guardians regardless of where they live. The measure would also strengthen oversight, promote person-centered practices and help build capacity in underserved regions.

New York’s guardianship crisis is not new, and it is not temporary. The state’s population is aging rapidly, dementia rates are rising, more people are aging without family supports, and more New Yorkers are living longer with complex disabilities and limited incomes. These realities have collided with a guardianship system that was never designed to meet statewide need.

The result is a patchwork approach that leaves judges with few options, guardians stretched thin, and vulnerable people waiting — sometimes for months — for help. In some cases, individuals remain stuck in hospitals, shelters or unsafe housing simply because no guardian is available to act on their behalf.

Investing in guardianship is not only the right thing to do; it is fiscally responsible. A recent cost-benefit analysis of a person-centered guardianship model in New York found that over nearly a decade, the program saved approximately $142 million in Medicaid expenditures by avoiding unnecessary nursing home placements, reducing hospitalizations and recovering liens. When accounting for avoided shelter placements for people at risk of homelessness, total public cost reductions ranged from $155 million to $166 million for just 236 clients — nearly $67,000 per person per year.

But this issue is about more than dollars. It is about dignity, justice and basic fairness.

New York’s Master Plan for Aging recognizes the importance of supporting alternatives to institutionalization and investing in systems that allow people to remain in their communities. A robust, publicly funded guardianship program is essential to achieving those goals — not as a substitute for other services, but as a necessary complement when individuals cannot navigate systems on their own.

The guardian at their desk, surrounded by files, is doing work that the state depends on but has never fully supported. The Good Guardianship Act offers New York a chance to correct that imbalance and build a guardianship system that is equitable, sustainable, and worthy of the people it serves.

Kimberly George is the president and CEO of Project Guardianship. State Sen. Cordell Cleare of Harlem represents the 30th Senate District.

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Commentary: New York needs a publicly funded guardianship system 

Court of Appeal: Judge Erred in Quashing Subpoena for ‘Disabled’ Victim

Opinion Says Defendant Facing Felony Charges for Allegedly Kidnapping Fiancée From Facility Where She Was Held Under Temporary Guardianship Was Wrongly Blocked From Calling Her to Testify

By a MetNews Staff Writer

Div. Two of the Fourth District Court of Appeal has held that a trial judge in a criminal proceeding erred in quashing a defense subpoena relating to the victim of an alleged kidnapping, who was purportedly taken by her fiancé from a conservator’s facility after being diagnosed with schizophrenia, based on a finding that a probate court order declaring her to be “gravely disabled” was dispositive of her incompetence to testify.

Competency to testify is governed by Evidence Code §701, which provides that “[a] person is disqualified to be a witness” if she is “[i]ncapable of expressing…herself” or “of understanding the duty…to tell the truth.”

Justice Richard T. Fields authored Thursday’s opinion, joined in by Presiding Justice Manuel A. Ramirez and Justice Carol D. Codrington, noting that the “issue of whether incompetence to testify can be presumed from a grave disability finding…appears to be one of first impression.”

Pointing out that the standard applicable for finding a party to be “gravely disabled” and in need of involuntary civil commitment under the Lanterman–Petris–Short Act (the “LPS Act”), codified at Welfare & Institutions Code §5000 et seq., requires a different showing than §701, Fields opined:

“Whether a witness’s mental health disorder renders them incapable of expressing themself or understanding the duty to tell the truth must be determined by the trial court…, the answer to those questions cannot be presumed from a prior finding regarding their mental health. We therefore conclude that the trial court erred when it ruled that [the alleged victim’s] competence to testify was ‘already . . . determined’ by the fact that a probate court had found her to be gravely disabled….”

Kidnapping Charges

 Challenging the order quashing the subpoena was Alexander Esparza, who was charged in October 2024 with kidnapping his fiancée, identified in the opinion only as “L.S.,” from a Redlands-area facility run by the San Bernardino County Office of the Public Guardian. At the time she went missing from the location, L.S. was under a temporary conservatorship pursuant to the LPS Act.

After the couple was apprehended attempting to return to the U.S. from Mexico, a probate court found that L.S. was “gravely disabled as a result of mental disorder and is unable to provide for basic personal needs of food, clothing, and/or shelter.” On Oct. 11, 2024, the San Bernardino County Office of the Public Guardian was appointed as her conservator following a schizophrenia diagnosis.

In January 2025, Esparza served the conservator with a subpoena seeking L.S.’s appearance and testimony at his upcoming preliminary hearing. The office responded by filing a motion to quash, arguing that L.S.’s status as “gravely disabled” rendered her incompetent to testify as a matter of law.

San Bernardino Superior Court Judge R. Glenn Yabuno granted the motion, saying:

“[I]t is the Court’s belief that the…issue has already been determined. There has already been a finding that [L.S.] does not have the capacity to testify….I don’t believe it is a situation that has to be relitigated under 701.”

Esparza filed a petition for a writ of mandate seeking vacatur of the trial court’s order.

Other Types of Incompetence

Saying that “it is well established that other types of incompetence—to stand trial, to waive certain trial rights, to give or withhold consent to medical treatment—may not be presumed from a grave-disability finding,” Fields reasoned:

“Although those decisions do not involve the determination of competence to testify under Evidence Code section 701, we think that their holdings apply in this context with equal force….[L]ike the standards for those other types of competence, the standard for competence to testify is distinct from the standard for determining grave disability under the LPS Act….Because the two standards are different, one cannot serve as a substitute for the other.”

Citing case law that predates the 1967 enactment of the LPS Act, he commented:

“On multiple occasions, our Supreme Court has held that a mental disorder or cognitive deficiency is not, on its own, sufficient to demonstrate that a witness is incompetent to testify.”

The San Bernardino County Office of the Public Guardian asserted that any testimony L.S. might have provided at the preliminary hearing would have been irrelevant to the defendant’s kidnapping charges because, as her conservator at the time of the alleged offense, it was the only party with the authority to consent to her leaving the facility.

Material Evidence

Rejecting the characterization, Fields acknowledged that a subpoena may be properly quashed where the witness would not have contributed any material evidence but said:

“Because L.S. is the alleged victim of the charged crime, her testimony will undoubtedly contribute material evidence. If, on remand, the trial court determines that L.S. is competent to testify in the proceeding, she would be a percipient witness to the alleged crime. On a scale of materiality, it is difficult to imagine a more material witness.”

In a footnote, the jurist noted that “the trial court incorrectly referred to witness ‘capacity’ as opposed to ‘competency,’ ” but he found that the issue was properly identified as being governed by §701.

He declared:

“Let a writ of mandate issue, directing the superior court to vacate its order granting the Public Guardian’s motion to quash, to enter an order denying the motion, and to determine L.S.’s competence under the standard set out in Evidence Code section 701.”

The case is Esparza v. Superior Court (People), 2026 S.O.S. 378.

Source:

Court of Appeal:
Judge Erred in Quashing Subpoena for ‘Disabled’ Victim

Trusted Chicago judge takes Tuskegee Airman's cash, then flips it into bitcoin for herself

By Chris Tye, Michele Youngerman

Patricia Martin, a lawyer turned judge who spent 24 years on the bench, rising to become the top judge in Cook County's Juvenile Court, seemed to have the credentials to be trusted handling the finances of Oscar Lawton Wilkerson as he reached his mid-90s. 

She had been related to the former Tuskegee Airman and agreed to help. Instead of helping Wilkerson, court records show Martin instead helped herself to his cash, moving money from his accounts and buying bitcoin.

Eric Puryear has known Wilkerson his entire life, as his grandfather was Wilkerson's best friend. They trusted Martin to manage the money, considering her an adopted family member.

"Every box for trustworthiness seemed to be checked there, and so she seemed to be the perfect person," said Puryear. "She seemed like the perfect person on paper. In hindsight, she was not."

The first sign of trouble came in August 2020, when the nursing home where Wilkerson was living called to say they had not been paid in months, and $41,000 was owed immediately. Puryear started looking into what happened with Wilkerson's finances.

"Account balances weren't right, checks were being dishonored," said Puryear. "Serious financial problem."

This didn't make sense to Puryear. Wilkerson had saved plenty and now was facing a new battle after all he sacrificed. 

"He's a Tuskegee Airmen, World War II veteran, just an all-around wonderful person," said Puryear. "Dealing with segregation, dealing with all of that while still also flying, it is amazing."

Wilkerson made history as one of America's first Black military pilots. Tuskegee Airmen took frontline risks and then took heat as boundary breakers that many didn't like. After the military, Wilkerson flew for fun and became a Chicago-based radio technician. He married, never had kids, and saved for his golden years.

"It was clear Lawton should have had hundreds of thousands of dollars, certainly enough to take care of him for the rest of his life, because he'd worked so hard and saved so hard," said Puryear.

Puryear reached out to Martin about the missing funds, but wasn't getting an answer from her.

"She attempted to dodge and evade, like apparently she'd been doing for some number of months at that point, and she didn't seem to have the time to return a phone call over such an important thing," said Puryear. "You'd think, if she was innocent, that would have caused her to want to communicate right away, but she didn't."

It was a critical time for Wilkerson since, without paying what he owed the nursing home, he was told he was going to have to move out of the place he called home if things weren't settled.

"She stole the money, we can see from some of the documents we've gotten," said Puryear. "All of her actions, they shock the conscience."

Court documents show 11 withdrawals over 18 months, with Martin shutting down accounts and pocketing more than $245,000, moving most of her new wealth into hard-to-track bitcoin. She was arrested and faced various charges, including money laundering and financial exploitation of an elderly person. She pleaded guilty to one felony theft count and was sentenced to four years of probation.

"Probation and a felony conviction for that sort of theft from that sort of a victim just is not quite enough," said Puryear. "It's hard to think of something more evil for her to have done, but she did."

Puryear, an attorney, filed a lawsuit on Wilkerson's behalf to get his money back, accusing Martin of stealing more than $380,000. During that case, Martin repeatedly failed to show up for court hearings. The judge ordered her to halt all transactions, but court documents show she ignored that, too, and moved more money. In the end, the judge ordered Martin to pay up nearly $1.2 million in damages – triple the amount she stole.

"It makes me wonder what is wrong in Patricia's heart that she would do that to somebody," said Puryear. 

Martin appealed the lawsuit judgment and had it overturned, in part because Wilkerson died. Wilkerson's loved ones are planning to file another lawsuit, continuing their fight to get back the money Martin took.

She lost her law license because of all this, admitting: "… the evidence would clearly and convincingly establish the facts and conclusions of misconduct."

Wilkerson's care never suffered due to Martin's theft, but for a man whose legacy is etched in history, the moves of Martin are etched in the minds of those who loved him most.

"Lawton was such a fine man; one of the finest people I have ever met in my life," said Puryear. "And Patricia Martin is one of the absolute worst humans, and to see that contrast between them is breathtaking."

Martin declined to speak with CBS News Chicago for this story. The former judge continues to draw her government pension. 

Full Article & Source:
Trusted Chicago judge takes Tuskegee Airman's cash, then flips it into bitcoin for herself 

Report: Kornak Bought in Bulk but Gave Elderly Woman Only One Roll of Toilet Paper

By Tom Gantert

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The notes from a state investigator looking into embezzlement allegations against Traci Kornak show she charged bulk purchases to an elderly woman’s account but only gave the woman a single roll of toilet paper.

That’s just one of the details that emerged from a House Oversight Committee hearing investigating Kornak’s role as the court-appointed conservator for an elderly mentally challenged woman named Rose Burd. The committee hearing testimony came from the notes of a State of Michigan investigator with Adult Protective Services. Last week, Kornak was criminally charged with embezzlement by the Kent County Prosecutor’s Office.

An accounting firm found as much as $419,640 in questionable charges by Kornak during her duties as a conservator. Burd died in April 2025.

The investigation showed how Burd’s caregivers said in June 2023 that they noticed that receipts from Costco showed bulk items being purchased, but that Burd only received a single roll of toilet paper or paper towel. They noticed the same thing with bulk purchases of shampoo, body wash, wet wipes and frozen food.

The investigation also showed receipts from Costco that Burd had paid for that included noodles and alcohol. The caregivers told the state investigator that Burd didn’t drink alcohol and had no stove and didn’t eat noodles. The caretaker also said that many of the things on the Costco receipt couldn’t be found in Burd’s apartment at an independent care facility.

Kornak was cleared in two separate investigations by the Attorney General’s office of any wrongdoing. According to testimony at the House Oversight Committee, when Kornak was investigated by the Kent County Sheriff’s Department, she immediately told them she had already been cleared by the AG’s office. Kornak served on Attorney General Dana Nessel’s transition team and was also the treasurer for the state Democratic Party. Nessel was accused of having a conflict of interest in the case because she asked for updates and had communications with her staff about the investigation into Kornak, who had told people she was best friends with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. 

Full Article & Source:
Report: Kornak Bought in Bulk but Gave Elderly Woman Only One Roll of Toilet Paper