Compiled by Joseph M. QuinnAbstract:
Amelia Lewis de Gremli; an elderly Shakespearean scholar recently incapacitated by a stroke, speechless, and living in a Carson City, Nevada, nursing home. All therapy & medical care is terminated. With access to her bank accounts, the Duttons purchased a new car, forced her from her home and secretly move her to Bend, Oregon.
In Bend, using Amelia's funds, they purchased a 3-bedroom, 3-bath home. They sell her Nevada home and keep the equity (100%). Amelia's Will is rewritten by the Duttons, naming themselves as beneficiaries. She is then abandoned in a Care Home while they wait for the Will to kick in. At the Care Home, the Duttons leave specific instructions not to provide speech and physical therapy. Amelia's care is paid for by her own monthly Social Security & VA Pension: the remaining is pocketed by the Duttons. She is given no expense money and is allowed to go without such necessities as "toothpaste." Her remaining assets are liquidated as the Duttons purchased RV vehicles and provided ongoing financial assistance for their three adult children.
For six years Amelia is kept a prisoner; physically by the Duttons, mentally by her own aphasic condition. All attempts to contact Amelia are intercepted by the Duttons: they block Amelia's repeated attempts to contact her old friends, including her only living relative, a sister.
In August, 1991, after numerous unsuccessful attempts, she miraculously and secretly managed to have a letter (without a street address!) delivered to her Nevada friends. In a child-like aphasic sprawl, the letter consisted of the word, "Help."
Oregon’s laws on elder abuse were changed because of Amelia’s plight.
Source:
The Abduction of Amelia Lewis de Gremli
See also:
A former resident of Carson City who should be remembered
Elderly Kidnap Victim Lived Role She Played On Stage
The woman who put a face on elder abuse
As I read this story, my heart is pounding and I am dizzy with rage. Then I read this:
ReplyDelete"IN an astonishing 1993 ruling, a Deschutes County judge acquitted the couple of charges that they stole money from de Gremli. She later prevailed in a civil suit but received very little of the judgment because her abusers filed for bankruptcy and their only source of income, a government pension, could not be attached."
I cannot write what is in my heart or what I really want to say because my comment will be very offensive towards the defendants, this judge and the ineffective system that allowed this injustice thereby leaving my comment rejected for posting.
Who says crime doesn't pay?