Ethel Hill's freedom was taken when a probate judge appointed a guardian to take over the elderly woman's financial affairs and other life decisions.
Now the guardian has lost her freedom, jailed after being charged with stealing the elderly woman's life savings, leaving Hill to die as a pauper at age 98.
Now prosecutors say they are investigating whether Wright took money from the 12 other elderly wards she was overseeing until a judge removed her from the guardianships last year.
Wright was appointed emergency guardian over Hill in July 1990. Just a month later, she was appointed plenary guardian, which gave her authority over every bank account and every decision in Hill's life, said Fort Lauderdale Police Detective Joe Roubicek, who investigated the case.
Although a court order prohibited Glendale Federal Bank in Fort Lauderdale from allowing the withdrawal of Hill's money without court approval, police say Wright withdrew Hill's money at will.
She was later allowed to spend $2,000 of Hill's money each month for the cost of Hill's care. Over the course of the guardianship, additional court orders allowed for the withdrawal of $104,949 from Hill's estate.
Still, that should have left the estate with more than $280,000 when Hill died. She had no family and always lived a frugal life, Roubicek said.
"There's no one to guard over the guardians," Roubicek said.
Although probate judges approve or deny guardian expenditures, there are too many expenditures crossing their desks for a judge to always know which ones are valid. And probate court has no criminal investigators, Roubicek said.
Full Article and Source;
Guardian Charged, Held in Thefts From Elderly Client
See Also:
Financial Abuse of the Elderly
12 comments:
Glad to have Mr. Roubicek out there informing the public about guardianship abuse. He called it right back in 1995!
Joe Roubicek is the best!
Wow, the perps have just gotten better over the years.
I wish Joe Roubicek would move to my state!
Joe said it then and it's true today. Except for one thing: there's more media and that brings a different kind of oversight.
I wonder if this was Detective Roubicek's first run in with guardianship theft from a guardian.
In the last line, Joe Roubicek says, "...and probate courts have no criminal investigators..."
THAT's exactly what they need!
Thanks everyone and hey Steve, not the first. The first was a public guardian arrested for exploiting his own aunt, one of his many wards, pocketed thousands of dollars in false billing after abandoning her... psycopaths, what a bunch, right?
I admire and respect Joe Roubicek for all he has done for the elderly and the things he had taught me through his advocacy.
I wonder if people were shocked when this article came out and I also wonder what happened to the players.
Everybody please listen to the T.S. Radio broadcast that is being aired tonite regarding this very issue of guardianship abuse. We have a VERY HUGE CRISIS going on in all 50 states and MUST become informed while spreading the word to everyone we know. This battle will require as many soldiers and all avaliable resources as we can bring together if we are to succeed at abolishing the entire guardianship process as it currently stands. If we don't STOP this, countless lives will be destoyed/ended unlawfully and it could in fact amplify into the ultimate demise of this nation!!!
Great guy, Joe R!
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