We discovered that judges routinely approved the sale of wards' homes (in most cases, their largest asset) without obtaining appraisals from a certified appraiser.
Guardian Patricia Johnson has used fellow Pinellas Park City Council member Richard Butler (who was her campaign manager) to conduct nearly all of the sales of ward's homes since 2010.
Records show Butler has sold 14 of Johnson's ward's homes for a total of $1,252,500.
Claudette Batton's home 216 54th St. N., St. Petersburg sold twice on Nov. 8, 2012. The first time, it sold for $52,500, then again for $58,500.
Rebie Jimenez's home at 5965 15th St N., St. Petersburg sold for $85,100 on Oct. 5, 2012 and was resold on Feb. 28, 2013 for $170,000.
Ronald Till's home at 6141 26th Ave N., St. Petersburg sold for $69,000 on Sept. 27, 2012. It was resold for $132,000 on Mar. 22, 2013.
Source:
Questionable Guardianship Real Estate Transactions
34 comments:
They sell 'em fast to assure a cash flow for billing.
Who is the Judge in all these cases? Does the Judge have any idea about what is going on in Pinellas County Guardianships! Does the Attorney General know what is going on in Pinellas County Guardianships??!! Does anyone know??!! Or is all about the money! in Florida. Sounds like a dangerous place to live!
Oh my gosh, this report should blow the lid off of the buzz words, "best interest of the ward."
Thank you ABC and Adam Walser!
Patricia Johnson again in the news and not in a good way. I wonder who the Judge? Patricia Johnson's financial status most be quite well considering her 50+ wards and these realestate transactions. Guardianship in Florida certainly looks like big money business. Thanks ABC Adam Walser for this story.
Keep digging there is more the real estate area of probate holds information follow the $ off the records see the cast of characters well worth the efforts. Hello Chicago news reporters where are YOU? Any brave ethical reporters out there?
I just love ABC for this!
Real estate scams are apparent in Cook County (Chicago) IL guardianship proceedings. The judges eo not require certified appraisals, the properties typically sell in less than 6 weeks (in good real estate markets as well as bad), and the properties are then sold quickly for a profit, which obviously does not benefit the ward. Can you spell "INSIDER TRADING?"
My loved one's home was handled in this manner, as have many others, as seen in a review of many court records. One ward's family member told me this was occurring in her loved one's case; I called the realtor to only be told no outside bids were being accepted on the home (!)
Check this out on Probate Sharks:
http://probateshark.blogspot.com/2010/12/real-estate-and-land-trust-scams.html
MEDIA, PLEASE VISIT COOK COUNTY!!!
We have known this happens all over the country but haven't been able to collect so much proof.
Thank you Adam Walser. You are my hero!
I love ABC news for this too! Something very wrong is happening. I hope Patriia Johnson is thoroughly investigated.
I love ABC for this too. I hope Patricia Johnson is thoroughly investigated, as well as others.
Questionable? No doubt about it, it's more than questionable! It's criminal and I join with everyone here in thanking ABC.
Figure out the connections between the straw purchasers and the guardian and the ultimate purchaser, and you will have a RICO case.
You go ABC!!!!
It's not only the homesteads, its the antiques and other items of value. After the GAL and others pick over the possessions they want to keep, they hand over the rest to antique dealers, car dealers, etc in their racketeering group to peddle for a nice commission or profit. In one case here, a woman was thrown out of her mother's house so the GAL could sell it. She had no other place to live and became homeless.
always follow the almighty $ dollar sign there are many ways to hide wards assets in the ring of thieves connected to the g-team ~~~ ask yourselves why are most of the judges allowing the pro g team to run the courtrooms ~~~ in this long enough to get it now when will the feds begin to audit case files where they are guaranteed to hit the big bingo when will authorities get it? thats the question and as far as media and press those brave souls get our deep appreciation for their role in doing whats best for mankind by exposing the dirty secrets that affects everyone of us directly and indirectly with eye on the boomers so i suggest working on our exit plans to avoid court ordered hell thank you abc god bless you for your hard work and efforts
OOPS, looks like guardian Patricia Johnson has a lot of explaining to do.
And what will be the consequence for her? That's going to be interesting.
Wow -- that's all I can think of --- just WOW. I am so glad to see ABC take this approach.
Now, what's gonna happen to Johnson?
She should immediately be removed and her files sealed pending investigation.
I join with those wondering what the judges were doing while these homes were sold so low, especially the one that was sold before the guardianship. The buck stops with the judge and the judge should be held accountable as well.
Sounds to me like the family has grounds to sue both.
Hot diggity dog! Thank you Adam Walser and ABC, for this great report and for caring enough to keep reporting!
Great comments! Please be sure to go to the ABC page and post them as well as share the article. We need to spread the word via every means possible! We need this kind of exposure.
As I continue to connect the dots, let me add some more fuel to this guardianship abuse fire. The Pinellas county abusine guardian
in question now is Teri St. Hilaire. The probate judges are Jack St. Arlnold and Lauren Laughlin,F.Y.I. In this case, St. Hilaire sold the home of the ward way below value for $226,000.00 which was worth roughly $300,00.00.
This same team, along with the owner of the home where the ward ward is locked up,Audra Ackerman,
are key players in this nasty scam.
More to come...
As I continue to connect the dots, let me add some more fuel to this guardianship abuse fire. You all have seen my comments before. The Pinellas County guardian in question now is Teri St.Hilaire. The probate
judges are Jack St. Arnold and Lauren Laughlin. The ward's home in this case was sold for $70,000.00 below value. The furnishings were priced so low, I became nauseated! The grandfather clock, easily worth $1,000.00 was sold for $100.00. St.Hilaire and one of her many players, Cathy Christmas of DCF, railroaded the ward into her life on death row without mentioning anything to the designated POA, or Health Care Surrogate. She now exists in a secretive place called: Curlew Care Home I owned by Audra Ackerman of Ackerman Enterprises. Ackerman and St.Hilaire have offices in the same bldg. together by the way. Was the judge even told that ward had advance directives in place? When the ward was still a person, she was raped by a staff member @ Largo Rehab and Spa. When she reported the crime, instead of a proper investigation, it appears the best cover-up was for DCF to declare her delusional, and pass the prize onto the sharks...Google St.Hilaire's name. It's not her first feeding frenzy. How many other wards are @ that faculty? How many others are being eaten alive by the Pinellas Probate System?
Great article. This would be a good opportunity for the law enforcement agencies of each jurisdiction of the closings, to conduct mortgage fraud investigations, with a reasonable suspicion based on the information provided by this article.
Great advice Joecitizen. Real estate transactions holds many deep dark secrets with profits off the records and you can bet those profits are divided among the players now I wonder if those profits are declared on IRS tax returns? As unearned income? Follow the $$$$ connect the dots the roadmap is there not only in Florida but in other areas it's a patter of operation now where is the IRS? and the feds? Anybody able to see what we know?
...More from Pinellas County, Fl relating to what appears to be the anatomy of a huge conspiracy un- folding. It's important for many of us to compare notes whenever possible because LIVES are truly at stake! Once there is enough solid information based on specific facts, this group of cannibals and others like them, can be exposed and charged for the heinous crimes they are committing. We must all work together here, but because of the very suspicious nature of this apparent scam in Pinellas County, with these 2 Guardians, Patricia Johnson and Teri St.Hilaire, along with the same probate judges, it is going beyond supposition; it's beginning to quack like a duck. - Too many issues are in common here to disregaurd or ignore these are just ethical violations. Just hours ago, I Googled Patricia Johnson's name. Besides the I-Team reports from last month and yesterday's article, this women appears to have a lot of other questionable acts of foul play to her credit. One could easily assume these two guardians and all their experiences, along with the fact they are using the same judges, probably many or all of the same fiduciaries, are running a HUGE ward-for-profit operation here...When I made attempts to confront this issue in the past, I was stepped on like a bug before I got to the starting line. I believe they will stop at nothing to keep from having their spiffy operation exposed. - Way too much money at stake and way too much prison time to risk. For now, I'm working with some key individuals to gather more information and I'm asking for all of us to pull together for this profoundly urgent cause before many other innocent loved ones must face this pathetic, horrid, tragic, nightmare. For my pretty girl and all the other silent victoms,
Rocky
P.S. I'm not signing anonymous anymore.
Colorado: Silvia Bush's home was sold under false pretenses by trustee, Wells Fargo Bank, in 2009 for $165,000, and resold 4 months later for $240,000.
Apart from my usual out cry of "Free Willy" and disgust that this should have ever happened in the first place anywhere in the Western World.
My attention as many others I am sure is now focused on Guardian Patricia Johnson, that appears to be worthy of closer investigation by both State and Federal Authorities should they wish to keep their own credibility intact at this point.
Putting my personal opinion to the side and my wish to see Guardian Patricia Johnson, become Inmate Patricia Johnson at the earliest available moment.
This should highlight to both Florida's Governor and Attorney General the immediate need for investigating this matter forthwith, develop a State Wide System of Structure and Audit so as to track these Professional Guardians and an algorithm that sets off alarm bells with big RED FLAGS...!!
Do You Remember Adele Fletcher?
Dear Gus Bilirakis:
To help refresh your memory, as a Tampa area attorney you assisted your client with improperly guardianizing Adele Fletcher, which resulted in your
client's conviction for felony scheming to defraud.
You did not come to your client's aid during her criminal trial.
Below are your documents that facilitated this fraud, which may assist in refreshing your recall of events:
The document at right provides a summary of the closing days in Adele Fletcher's' life. Please review the information for accuracy and let us know if you have any questions. Pdf: Summary
The two documents below reveal what turned out to be implausible reasons for your claimed need to take away a senior citizen's freedom to live. Pdf: Incapacity page 1 / Incapacity page 2
The next two documents below reflect your "investigation" attested to under penalty of perjury that Adele Fletcher had no money or assets.
You may recall that your meeting with Adele, in her home, to discuss what to do with her inheritance, that added an additional tax liability, to her existing income, and existing accounts with her stock broker, was arranged for you and Fran Lang by Adele's stock broker.
A reasonable assumption that you did not raise during your investigation is that the mere existence of a stock broker in Adele's life points to the presence of assets. Pdf: Indigent page 1 / Indigent page 2
The document below shows that eventually you found Adele Fletcher indeed had money and assets, but by that time the assets previously hidden from the court's knowledge were securely under your control by way of your client Fran Lang. Pdf: Terminate Insolvency
For additional reading about your client's conviction you can review a news article at this web site:
http://www.sptimes.com/News/031301/Pasco/Ex_guardian_gets_prob.shtml
You can also watch a short video at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQ5GrH5aPMg
The Friends of Adele Fletcher
If you need further assistance please email us at:
AdeleRemembered@gmail.com
http://adeleremembered.mynetworksolutions.com/
I am so grateful that Adam Walser believed the first story he heard on guardian abuse and was motivated enough to do more stories on victims in Pinellas County. It is my hope that we can get ABC News Investigative Teams nationwide to do stories on the abusive practice of guardianship. Vulnerable adults are dying everyday due to the greed of court appointed strangers.
Patricia Johnson is running for a seat on the Pinellas Park City Council. I have copied information about her from ABC and Google and will spread the news. We need more publicity from the newspapers to stop this abusive woman. My children have POA but it seems to be ignored. Time to move out of Florida when you are a senior?
So glad this kind of thing is getting exposed in the news. Media exposure is our best bet. Abusive guardianships will not end until the public becomes informed and there is an outcry.
Looks like patti johnson might just be in need of a guardian herself. I think that would be apt punishment indeed. Perhaps she needs to be in a locked memory ward since she seems to have problems determining if someone actually has alzheimer's. It's about time these cockroaches are stopped, not just in Florida but across the US.
HOW CAN THESE PEOPLE STEAL FAMILY MONIES FROM THEM??? THERE HAS TO BE A LAW !!!!!!!!!! THIS IS DISGUSTING AND DISGRACEFUL WHEN THESE CRIMINALS ARE DOING AND SEEM TO BE GETTING AWAY WITH. WELL IT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED IN MY FAMILY WHO WORKED HARD FOR THEIR MONEY AND SOME JERK OFF , OFF THE STREET COMES IN AND STEALS FROM THEM SORRY BUT THIS WILL NOT BE HAPPENING TO ME. THIS IS MY NEW JOB TO TAKE CARE OF MY PARENTS AND THEIR HARD EARNED SAVINGS. SCREW ALL OF YOU WHO TRY TO TAKE THAT AWAY FROM US!
She is an outrage to humanity. I don't live in Florida but up here in NY. My intentions were to move o FLA at some point but I will never. Not that NY is any better, but looks like there are more predatory guardians in the state of FLA due to the sheer number of elders in that state. I hope a predatory guardian comes to get her, perhaps we should let April Parks know about her when she is out of prison. Patti, your days are numbered. you are getting old yourself and may you meet the fate of those you have imprisoned and impoverished. Elder advocate, give me a break.
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