Four months before he died, Mickey Carroll signed papers turning over control of all his assets to his caretaker, Linda Dodge.Carroll, 89, was best known as a Munchkin, one of the little people in the movie "Wizard of Oz."
Relatives estimate he left an estate of more than $1 million. They filed a suit in Clayton claiming that "unscrupulous agents" have taken control of the assets and put them "in imminent danger of continued dissipation, waste and theft."
The eight heirs also maintain that Carroll suffered from dementia and was mentally incompetent to sign the legal papers.
Dodge calls the allegations "foolish."
On Jan. 7, five days after moving in with Dodge, Carroll — whose real name was Michael Finocchiaro — signed a durable power of attorney transferring control of his investments and assets to Dodge.
He signed a second durable power of attorney for health care, giving Dodge authority to make medical decisions if he became incapacitated.
In the suit, Janet Finocchiaro says she was concerned about her uncle's health. In a recent hot line complaint to the state of Missouri, she said her uncle was the victim of "elder abuse."
Full Article and Source:
Heirs sue to gain control of Munchkin Mickey Carroll's $1 million in assets
8 comments:
I remember the Munchkins from the Wizard of Oz. But prime in my memory as a youngster was the Wicked Witch! I was so frightened by her, that I ducked under the theatre seat!
Today, I'm more frightened by corrupt probate courts and lawyers and judges who ignore the wishes expressed in your durable power of attorney and health proxies, so that they can create a guardianship and S-U-C-K out everything you own, leaving your family to fight for your freedom instead of enjoying your last years together.
We never really know a person's motives, but I tend to side with caregivers. Perhaps Linda Dodge gave Mickey Caroll excellent care - maybe even paying more attention to him than even his family.
In the end, isn't that worth $1 mil?
"Four months before he died, Mickey Carroll signed papers turning over control of all his assets to his caretaker, Linda Dodge."
In my opinion the word "all" is suspicious. The events went down too fast in one person's direction to profit solely from a significant estate, all the assets were directed towards Linda Dodge who was a total stranger.
In addition, caregivers know how their patients depend on them, and respond to them making it very easy to take advantage of an elderly patient, with or without dementia or other age related problems.
We have family members who work in a nursing home facility. They revealed during innocent conversations after a funeral of oa relative, how they go out of their way to befriend the residents of the nursing home who do not have visitors, bringing them gifts and spending extra time with them.
On the surface, this revelation to others might sound that their intent was of a caring nature, but the truth of the matter is these particular individuals, mother and daughter team, have a shadey reputation, they are opportunists with incidents of being manipulative, con-artists and schemers and worse always with their eyes on the $$$$$.
As they spoke, I knew exactly where their intentions are going. I remember I felt sick, almost to the point of fainting.
People with dementia can still know what they want.
Having dementia doesn't automatically mean a person is "out of it."
We don't know Mickey Carroll's family and whether or not they were close to him or cared for him when he needed care. So, we're guessing.
But, at the same time, I think if Linda Dodge took care of him for a long period of time, that should mean something.
The heirs will be spending more in attorney fees than they stand to gain.
I wonder if Ms. Dodge would have cared for Mr. Carroll if he didn't have one million dollars. I also wonder why one of the concerned relatives wasn't caring for him. Sounds like everyone is just greedy.
The way I see it, old folks with money are targets for a parade of predators - period.
Facts: Heirs are heirs many inherit money and property just because they are alive; they are heirs, family, and hey, that's okay as long as this transfer of money and stuff proceeds legally.
I always have red flag moments and suspisions and issues with strangers, people who appear on the scene in a variety of capacities in the 9th inning, especially when there is a strong possibility of a person with greedy intentions redirecting elderly persons assets to the newcomer in the 9th inning.
Many caregivers have been the recipients of their patients generosity whether or not they deserved the recognition or not.
Where was this person years ago, during the entire life of the elderly person, in the first inning?
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