They’re not criminals. They’ve broken no laws. But they’re being held against their will by the State of Texas. Why? It’s a tragic story about what can happen when you are alone in the world and lose control of your rights, your money, and your ability to complain.
Jean and Michael Kidd never imagined their retirement would play out like this. “I feel like I am not in America,” said Michael Kidd. “I can’t believe I have been hi-jacked off the street, virtually from the hospital, and imprisoned,” Kidd told FOX 4.
Michael Kidd and his wife Jean have been living out of a tiny room for months. They have lost control of their money, their home, even their car. They say they’ve been robbed of their dignity and their voice. And who do they say is responsible? The State of Texas.
“It is a shock to our system,” says Kidd. “We are still kind of in a state of shock,” Kidd told Reporter Becky Oliver.
Michael Kidd worked as an engineer at KDFW for 23 years. He retired in 2001 with a pension, retirement account, and social security. Last month, he called the station for help. The Kidds have no children or relatives nearby. In November Michael fell and broke his hip. He was taken to a Plano hospital and into surgery. After a few days, the hospital called the state Adult Protective Services to report Jean had been in the waiting room for days and wasn’t eating. What happened next is a complicated, legal tale told in hundreds of pages of documents filed with the Collin County Probate Court.
Caseworkers paint a picture of two incompetent old people, age 67 and 70, suffering from dementia. Reports say the Kidds have mismanaged their finances and used poor judgment, that Michael is verbally abusive and even attempted to assault Jean. Michael says Jean has memory trouble but denies everything else. A judge determined the Kidds were incapacitated and unable to care for themselves. The state took over the Kidds lives, sent them to the Countryside Nursing Home in Pilot Point, and is now burning through their money to pay for their care.
“You have no idea how much money you have?” Oliver asked Michael Kidd. “None at all,” Kidd responded. “I know what my income was and I know it was more than enough to take care of my bills. Now, I am deteriorating instead of getting better,” Kidd continued.
The monthly tab for a couple at Countryside is about seven thousand dollars. Court records show, for five months’ care, the guardian paid eleven thousand dollars out of the Kidds’ accounts. The state’s Medicaid program kicks in the rest. “I could be at the Hilton for this kind of money,” Kidd told Oliver.
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Elderly Couple Forced Into State Custody
This is criminal! Where is law enforcement? Where are the feds?
ReplyDeleteCriminal intent / Theft UNDER COLOR OF LAW.
I pray Jean and Michael Kidd are released from their imprisonment.
I also pray that they find a way to get all of their money back and more for their pain and suffering.
This abuse of the court system must STOP!
Two for one!
ReplyDeleteWell, they got the Daily Double!
Then they should do double time!
The State of TX is gaining quite a reputation for kidnapping the elderly and vulnerable.
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry Jean and Michael Kidd and I understand your sentiment that you feel like you're not in America.
ReplyDeleteWe are supposed to be the land of the free, but the truth is many innocent people are held against their will and to the detriment.
Once again guardianship robs the golden years.
ReplyDeleteWhat gets me is the guardian's purpose is supposedly to pay the bills, etc. and instead they pay themselves and mess up a life time of financial planning.
It's a crime.
I am hopeful that this media attention will bring justice for the Kidds.
ReplyDeleteWhat they are going through is happening all across the country and they're right, people are just hi-jacked off the streets to feed the greed of abusive guardianship.
Thank you, Fox 4 for doing the Kidd family's story.
ReplyDeleteShame on the state of TX!
Disgraceful and shame on you state of Texas. Stories like this tempt me to move into drastic action, to dispose of all I own, including my assets BEFORE someone does it for me. The less a person has the safer you are from predators, better secured from losing basic human rights at the hands of greedy financial predators wearing many costumes and masks.
ReplyDeleteHow come the Adult Protective Services never steps in to "help" and "take care" of the old granny who only eats once a day or every other day because she doesn't have enough money? Could it be that there is no money to cross palms. I think these money changers need to be ejected from the temple.
ReplyDeleteFollow the $$$$, therein lies your answer.
ReplyDeleteHi Sue and everyone,
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, the predators (Adult Protective Services, Court Visitors, Public Guardians, Health Care Corporations such as hospitals and long term care facilities, lawyers for all already mentioned including government lawyers, and others) often have other motives besides money from the estate. These include making it more difficult for family to file law suits against them (who they malign in order to prevent them from serving as Guardian), protecting each other (Adult Protective Services and the Public Guardian services are part of the same county or state agency....if one has done something wrong (false claims, etc), the other moves to help protect them and validate/bolster their false claims...note, they are usually represented by the same government attorney who is dictating to two or more of the colluders what to do!!!), maintenance of the gravy train (court reporters get paid directly by petitions often, gov employees have to maintain a large client base for federal funding and to justify their cushy recession proof jobs, etc....), preventing well informed and motivated family members from attempting to change the law and other rules in the system to improve it (remember the predators are usually supported by well organized lobbyists), and then there's the political agendas of course....and I'm sure others can add to this list.
Personally, I think we need more successful litigation against the predators along with public exposure. If court visitors lie in court and/or negligently include damaging false information in their all powerful reports/testimony, shouldn't they be sued? What about Adult "Protective" Services staff that support illegal actions by nursing homes (ex: support limiting visiting hours of family members, spread damaging false information that affects the appointment of a family Guardian/care of the loved one, etc) shouldn't they be sued too?
Please contact me if you are interested in these issues and/or have stories to share....I am currently fighting my own nightmare with my Grandmother who is currently in a very bad situation (I will share this story on this site later) and I am researching things for a book/articles and litigation. You can contact me at tunicate89 AT yahoo.com
Families and friends need to fight back!!!
P.S. This is a wonderful website/organization!!!