RALEIGH -- In late March, Robert Anthony Watkins ran into his father’s burning home, yelling “Dad!” as he helped firefighters rescue Oscar “Pete” Watkins from a rampaging fire.During the next two months, as his father, 75, recovered from devastating burns, Robert Watkins was awarded legal guardianship of Pete Watkins’ affairs, only to have the status removed by the Wake County Clerk Of Court’s office less than two weeks later.
Robert Watkins, 51, has a record of criminal convictions that includes multiple felonies. And according to filings in the case, he had begun dipping into his father’s holdings, estimated at more than $450,000, mostly in the form of the downtown building he once ran as Watkins Grill, now the Oakwood Grill.
Efforts to reach Robert Watkins were not successful.
His brief guardianship career is an example of the potential pitfalls of the process, said Lorrin Freeman, Wake County Clerk of Superior Court. Watkins slipped through the cracks of a system that handles nearly 500 such appointed guardianships a year – and uses criminal background checks to test their fitness as guardians, Freeman said.
“We basically are giving an individual control over somebody’s life,” Freeman said. “That includes everything from what medical care they get, to where they live, to what they can buy, to whom they can associate with.”
Full Article and Source:
Wake case shows perils of family members as financial guardians
It behooves the guardianship practitioners to beat up on family as that justifies the professionals' interloping. But, the truth is even family thieves aren't as adept at stealing as the pros. Family can steal tens of thousands, sometimes, even over $100,000 but the pros --- they steal millions.
ReplyDeleteAt least, criminal background checks are required in NC - but not in all states. Legislating that requirement is not too easy. The GAO Report found that only 13 states require background checks and only 9 prohibit probate judges from appointing convicted felons.
ReplyDeleteWhy don't they say how much it will cost a professional guardian to take care of this man, under the current probate system. Where are all the stories about the cost and care the elderly are receiving under probate professional guardianship! They are public record and should be available to the public to see and decide what is really in the best interest of families! Stop these attorneys and their friends from robbing families and abusing the elderly today!
ReplyDeleteParadox explained !!!!!
ReplyDeleteWhen my Mother died (who was Dad's caretaker) my brother (who is still the suspect in a "OPEN" unsolved investigation for her death) has a CONVICTED CRIMINAL record deep enough he can't get a job and even if he could his wages would be garnished as he has a 104% CREDIT DEBT. (I pulled his history).
My Dad has been professionally diagnosed twice Mentally Impaired with Dementia needing a guardian who can't handle his finances or person yet the judge called my Dad competent against all the clear and convincing evidence leaving my Dad in his house in the hands of this bum-a-holic son "ILLEGALLY". This leaves Dad and the estate unaccounted for.
Dad lives in abuse who has had a suicide assessment, EMR runs finding he hasn't had his medicine, taxes delinquent, house roof blown off now with no insurance, etc. His affairs are in explosive conditions and not even sure there is anything remaining out of $500,000 estate after the judge approved a final inventory missing $177,000 and this judge doesn't even have his Oath of Office recorded. He was holding it himself and against our laws, which is treason.
So again explain why Freeman said:
“We basically are giving an individual control over somebody’s life,” Freeman said. “That includes everything from what medical care they get, to where they live, to what they can buy, to whom they can associate with.”
Does anybody see the paradox here? These aren't "DISCRETION" rulings they are "WHAT IS THE WAY THE JUDICIAL BRANCH CAN MAKE THE MOST MONEY".
How much DOCUMENTATION of PROOF do we need to bring the house of "judicial tyrants with their heinous miscreant legal criminal flying winged monkeys" down and send them to jail or death, where they belong?
This is NOT America,
Rosanna
Great point Stand Up. All I would like to add is that as investigations are being conducted on family members criminal and financial pasts, they should take a good look at the relationship that family member has with the incapacitated person. A person who has been estranged from the family for 20 years should not necessarily guarantee him an appointment of guardian or conservator simply because he is the last remaining living child. Nieces, nephews, and even grandchildren should be considered for the position.....IF their relationship is and has always been a good one with the ward.
ReplyDeleteAlso, money is the root or all evil. It tempts people to do crazy things. Any person with access to a family members bank account(s) will be tempted to steal some of it, whether they have a criminal history or not. That is why I think more consideration into their relationship history should be something considered and looked into further...... in ALL cases and ALL states.
Everyone will be glad to know professional guardians and conservators in Colorado will now have to pass a background check, along with family members. What is not spoken is professionals have no criminal backgrounds relative to probate cases, because probate judges give them immunity for anything they do during guardianship or conservatorship; another win for government class discrimination strategy, and another loss for the concept of family independence. And above all, another win for the bank accounts of professional fiduciaries. Since professional fiduciaries are working with Human Services and the courts and the police and the legislatures and the state judicial branch,one may wonder if these professionals also get an income tax reduction, as well.
ReplyDeleteSounds like this guys is pre qualified to be a future Court appointed Conservator or Guardian although the money he spent pales to what the "system" can abscond.
ReplyDeleteIn our case the bad guys are Colorado the court appointed attorneys, "guardians (who do no more then guard that all their buddies get an equal cut of the pie) " , nurse groups to over see nurses that rarely see him that over see "caretakers" who should make no more then min wage and all making sure he is not getting the medical attention he needs IMHO.
As such have spent over 700K in a short period "protecting" our relative from his money that he saved his whole life.
FROM THE GAO REPORT
ReplyDelete"North Carolina does not require guardians to obtain certification; however, the North Carolina Guardianship Association (NCGA) offers a state certification exam.
To obtain certification from NCGA, guardians must:
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Register with NCGA
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Pass North Carolina Guardianship Competency Exam
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We registered to take the state exam using fake educational and professional backgrounds and North Carolina addresses.
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Certifying organization did not require Social Security numbers or other identifying information and did not conduct background checks or credit checks on our fictitious applicants.
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Certifying organization did not verify the educational or professional credentials we claimed.
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Exam proctor verified the photo identification of one applicant, but did not ask to see photo identification for the other.
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We passed the North Carolina state exam in May 2010 and our fictitious applicants received badges attesting to their status as certified guardians 2 weeks later.
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Certifying organization officials told us they do"
How many corrupt and ruthless guardians and conservators "slip through the cracks?" My guess would be ONLY the ones that have been scruntinized. The rest dont need to fall through the cracks...what they do to destroy others is considered "legal" by probate courts. Remember WWII?? Genocide was LEGAL at the time.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDelete84 year old WWII veteran
April 2004
Attorney / North Carolina
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A federal indictment accused the guardian of embezzling $332,730 over a 14 year period, during which he was allowed to continue serving as a guardian despite clear indicators of fraud.
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The victim had been a ward of the court since his discharge from the military in 1946, according to the indictment. The guardian was the former president of the county bar association
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The guardian wrote checks to himself from the victim’s estate and cashed a CD worth $163,000 for his personal benefit, according to the indictment. He also filed false accountings with the court and the VA to cover up his misappropriations. For example, he certified that the victim’s bank balance was $356,142, when in fact the account had been depleted to $21,792.
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The guardian also deposited the victim’s funds into guardianship accounts for other wards to disguise his misappropriations from these individuals, according to the federal indictment.
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Despite two suspensions of VA benefits for failure to file accountings, he was allowed to continue serving as the victim’s guardian and representative payee.
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After pleading guilty, the guardian served a 51 month prison sentence with 3 years parole according to his federal sentencing. As of June 2010, he had paid $3,112 of the $467,000 in court ordered restitution.
Family members get prosecuted because they're not protected like lawyer guardians.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of abuse from within the system in Colorado, probably more by the system then by family members if the dollar amount was added up.
ReplyDeleteThe attorney Catherine Anne Seal, "Cate Seal" from the law firm Kirtland Seal LLC along with Sara Qualls... and Catherine Seal is also the Public Administrator in Colorado Springs has even helped author book " /Changes in Decision Making Capacity in Older Adults Assessment and Intervention"
http://www.scribd.com/doc/26453872/Changes-in-Decision-Making-Capacity-in-Older-Adults-Assessment-and-Intervention
and this book which is a disaster plan for anyone that is subject to its teachings, the book is also is used in law school to teach other lawyers and judges and is a book about how to "legally" steal from people that can be deemed in incapacitated in any means. She lectures on this.
In the book she feels that the system is better than families and she is graciously paid thousands to tens of thousands of dollars when she submits her bills to the probate judges in El Paso County.
What is noticed is that the same names / law firms keep popping up in other cases in Colorado as they appear to pass the people / wards / seniors amongst themselves once they gain access legally to their funds.
We have seen upwards of a 100,000 dollars a month spent and approved by judges just for legal fees.
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:MP6JqhGjn4EJ:www.mercurynews.com/bay-area-news/ci_21338353/california-more-permissible-than-many-states-allowing-attorney+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
As people pay attention this is the only way we can hope to protect others from the legal theft going on within the system.