Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Lawyer Accused of Elder Abuse

John Robert “Bob” Bonner, 72, had died without a valid will in the spring of 2005 and left a fortune of millions of dollars. Bonner, an only child who was never married and childless, had been dead weeks at his home in the Gardens of Oak Hollow development before anyone noticed.

Bonner’s maternal aunt, who in January 2006 was ruled his sole heir.

Now allegations that her troubled granddaughter who effected the heirship has been bleeding her fortune and the Bonner estate of hundreds of thousands of dollars for personal benefit.

Michelle Valicek, a San Antonio criminal defense and family lawyer, eventually took over the administration of the Bonner estate in 2006 on behalf of her grandmother, Margaret Lorenz, 94, an aging but drifting beauty whose estate she also oversaw.

A judge stripped Valicek of these responsibilities after allegations of elderly abuse surfaced this spring in the form of a Texas Adult Protective Services investigation that was revealed in a letter to the court asking that a guardian be appointed for Lorenz. One was.

The allegations state that Valicek had taken out credit cards in Lorenz’s name, gifted $150,000 to other family members and had engaged in “exploitations” against Lorenz’s investments, “in excess of $400,000.

A court investigator wrote in a report to the court that one of the estate’s bank accounts that had $475,000 last July was depleted to $121,000 recently and that Valicek was spending at a rate of $25,000 a month off the Bonner fortune.

According to an inventory prepared for the court, Valicek used money from either the Bonner estate or her grandmother to purchase a $25,000 Lexus, a $13,500 Steinway baby grand piano, a pool table, a mansion, another house where her mother apparently was living, and to pay $20,000 in back child support for her younger brother.

The probe is ongoing. Valicek has invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in recent hearings. She faces the loss of her law license and the loss of her freedom.

Full Article and Source:

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Michelle Valicek is a prime example of the need for greed, love of money driving many lawyers into the probate estate and guardianship racket.

Michelle Valicek deserves old time old West justice, look for a tall OAK TREE just like when a horse thief was tracked down like a rat and captured and brought to justice.

There are other's likeMichelle Valicek
out there, a parade of greedy thieves wearing lawyer and guardian costumes, this one got unlucky and got caught.

Boo hoo...........

Anonymous said...

The real punishment would be incarcerating these greedy lawyer types in a nasty nursing home where they are given lots of mind-numbing drugs and forced to sit in a wheelchair for hours on end, like most prisoners of probate.

Anonymous said...

She is just one of many greedy lawyers around. I have no pity for her. I hope she gets strip from her lawyers status. And it gives me great pleasure in saying " what goes around, comes around". Throw her in jail and throw the key away!

Anonymous said...

Michelle Valicek gets what she deserves. I too would lock her up and throw away the key. Like a comment was made what goes around comes around. I lost my grandson because of her negligence as a lawyer. Now my grandson has to endure the pain and physical abuse until he is 18. As of today we as grandparents have no more rights because of her compassionate feelings for the abuser and her negligence and incompetence on our case so from we as grandparents and from our grandson, lock her up and let her rotte.

bcm said...

I HAVE KNOW THIS ATTORNEY FOR 12 YEARS IN THE FAMILY LAW ARENA, AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT SHE SHOULD HAVE LOST HER LICENSE LONG AGO. SHE HAS HURT SOOO MANY PARENTS AND THEIR CHILDREN. THE DAMAGE IS IRREVERSIBLE. I HAPPEN TO KNOW A CHILD WHO IS IN THEIR TEENS THAT HAS PERSONALLY ASKED HOW TO SUE MS. VALICEK FOR ALL OF HER LIES IN COURT AND HER ADVICE TO CLIENTS. MS. VALICEK ENCOURAGES HER CLIENTS TO BE IN CONTEMPT OF COUT AND PERSUADES HER CLIENTS TO KEEP FIGHTING LONG AFTER THE COURT BATTLE HAS ENDED INSTEAD OF PROMOTING GOOD RELATIONSHIPS AND COMMUNICATION BETWEEN BROKEN FAMILIES. SHE DOESN'T CARE THAT THE END RESULT IS TRAUMA IN THE CHILDS LIFE. WHERE ARE HER ETHICS? I GUESS WE KNOW NOW THAT SHE HAS NONE, BUT HOW CAN THE STATE LET HER INVOLVE HERSELF IN OTHER PEOPLES LIVES, WHEN ALL SHE DOES IS CAUSE CHAOS AND HEARTACHE? I SUPPOSE WHOEVER LETS HER KEEP PRACTICING WILL BE LIBEL FOR HER ACTIONS...SOMEONE WILL HAVE TO BE! MS. VALICEK GLOATS ON THE PAIN OF OTHERS, IT IS TIME FOR HER TO BE IN JAIL WHERE SHE CAN NO LONGER DESTROY THE LIVES OF SO MANY OTHER PEOPLE...ESPECIALLY CHILDREN!!!

jerri said...

bcm it sounds like you know this woman very well for quite a long time and along with knowing of her your words describe the pain you have inside you knowing what you know and others know yet Valicek is still on the loose hurting others thank you for sharing my hope is that one day you will see Valicek held accountable and all those who kept blind eyes will be discovered and dragged into court to answer for their silence

Anonymous said...

Michelle has no busy being an attorney. Thinking back had I only knew what she really was about I would not have hired her to represent me in my case. With that being said once I terminated her -she still felt the need to show up to my court dates, but yet took someone else to impersonate me in a TX court...scary!

Sylvia said...

TO: Anon

Have you submitted complaints Michelle Valicek to appropriate agencies?

I am aware many people do not go through the procedures and processes available to them believing it is a waste of time, nothing will be done etc.

Yes, that is a possible outcome, but it does matter how many complaints are submitted / received and more importantly following procedure for the record and your records is worht the time and effort.

Please remember: Send all complaints via USPS certified mail with return signature card, tracking.

**If you don't get it in writing: it didn't happen.

**If you don't get the proof of receipt of your complaint: they never heard of you; they never saw it!

learning girl said...

jesus she is my lawyer what should i do!?

Anonymous said...

learning girl you have a big problem you need to speak with others who can give you sound advice asap you can contact NASGA at E-mail Correspondence:
Info@StopGuardianAbuse.org
for suggestions

Anonymous said...

Look. Michelle was given permission to use that credit card by her grandmother when she was at a "sane" age in great thanks for all of the care that was given to her. But, now, everyone says that her grandmother is too old to testify for her granddaughter. Besides. I don't think hanging her would be justice in a tall OAK TREE would be justice... Besides, When her grandmother was dying, her grandmother's new care-taker was giving her grandmother her soda to drink and junk food to eat. And also, how has she hurt thousands of families and their children? She has been a family defense attorney for decades.

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