Saturday, November 22, 2014
I-Team Exclusive: Senior Says She Was Forced Into Nursing Home
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A prominent attorney and guardian plead guilty to stealing millions from her elderly clients. Now, a woman in a separate case says she too is a victim.
Eyewitness News’ Investigative Reporter, Charlotte Huffman talks to the senior citizen who says she had everything taken from her and is being forced to live in a nursing home.
“I don’t belong here. I want my life back,” said Helen Hugo, an 85 year-old who says she’s been held against her will in a New Jersey nursing home for more than three years.
Hugo says her visitors are turned away.
In order to hear Hugo’s story, the I-Team had to go inside Hugo’s nursing home undercover.
“(People) should be made aware this kind of thing is going on,” said Hugo.
Hugo’s story
In 2011, Hugo says she was forced out of her apartment at a senior living center and into the nursing home.
She says her IRA was cashed out and her belongings were taken.
“I still haven’t found my jewelry,” said Hugo who has not returned home or seen her cat since she was taken from her apartment in Buena, NJ on July 19, 2011.
Hugo blames her then court-appointed guardian, Barbara Lieberman.
“She steals, she lies, she’s an evil person,” said Hugo.
Guardianship in New Jersey
By New Jersey law a guardian is the person who is given the legal right to be responsible for the decision making and financial management of a person who is determined to be incapable of making their own decisions.
The I-Team obtained documents showing Atlantic County deemed Hugo “a mentally incapacitated person” shortly after she was removed from her apartment.
But a psychiatric evaluation performed in September at the request of Hugo’s family showed no evidence of incapacitation.
Instead, the New Jersey board certified psychiatrist, Joel Glass, M.D. writes in his summary that he found Hugo “is fully competent to decide where she would like to live and to make financial decisions.”
In separate case, Lieberman pleads guilty to bilking other seniors
Lieberman recently admitted to stealing millions from other seniors who she was supposed to be helping.
On November 3rd in front of Superior Court Judge Michael Donio, Lieberman pled guilty to one first-degree count of financial facilitation.
Back in March, the Atlantic County court-appointed guardian and prominent Northfield attorney who specialized in elder-law was arrested by New Jersey State Police and accused of conspiring with Jan Van Holt and two others to steal from their clients.
Jan Van Holt is the owner of an in-home senior care company, “A Better Choice” and is a former county case worker for Adult Protective Services.
Van Holt allegedly referred clients to Lieberman, and vice versa.
Authorities say the two forced seniors into nursing homes and stole more than $2.4 million from at least 10 victims, most of who have since died.
Lieberman and Van Holt allegedly used the money to pay off six-digit credit card bills and buy things like a BMW and a luxury condo in Florida.
“I’ve got the state’s charges here saying you forged a power of attorney, transferred money into your own bank accounts, even executed wills for the people so you could steal from them after they died. How do you sleep at night?” CBS3 Investigative Reporter, Charlotte Huffman asked Lieberman.
Lieberman would not answer Huffman’s questions. Instead, she hid from cameras and called security.
In exchange for her guilty plea, Lieberman, 62, faces a 10-year prison sentence and has forfeited $3 million for restitution. She will also be required to cooperate with the state by providing information and potentially testifying against the others alleged to be involved.
Van Holt faces pending charges of first-degree money laundering, second-degree conspiracy and second-degree theft by deception. She remains in jail unable to post her $300,000 full cash bail.
The others charged in connection are Van Holt’s sister, Sondra Steen, 59, of Linwood, who helped run “A Better Choice,” and Susan Hamlett, 55, of Egg Harbor Township, who worked for them as an aid for elderly clients. Both face pending charges of second-degree theft by deception.
The charges against Steen, Hamlett and Van Holt are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Because the charges are indictable offenses, they will be presented to a state grand jury for potential indictment.
Full Article & Source:
I-Team Exclusive: Senior Says She Was Forced Into Nursing Home
The Saddest Story in the World
Marilyn Rupard sued John David Crow and the John David Crow Evangelist Association on Nov. 13, in Brazoria County Court.
Rupard claims that Crow "represented himself as a pastor and investment advisor" when she met him. At the time, Rupard was pursuing a personal injury claim involving artificial hip implants that had disabled her.
When Crow learned about her personal injury claim, Rupard says, he "began to pressure her to reach a settlement as soon as possible."
Crow told her "that once she got a settlement he would assist her in investing her money and that he would take care of her personal needs," according to the complaint.
In September this year, when Crow learned she was about to get "a significant settlement" for her claim, he invited her to move into his home "on the pretext that he could assist her with her daily personal care, and assist her in investing her money," the complaint states.
Rupard says she moved into Crow's house on Sept. 20.
Crow "insisted on accompanying the plaintiff to her attorney's office to pick up the settlement check," which was for $270,000 Rupard says.
She claims that Rupard took the check from her attorney, "and kept it."
With her check in his hand, Rupard says, Crow told her that if she deposited the money in "her name only" she would lose her Social Security disability and Medicaid benefits.
He offered to deposit the $270,000 in his name and put the money under the control of his evangelistic association, Rupard says.
He could only do it, however, if Rupard wrote a letter giving him authorization - so she did, Rupard says.
She claims that Crow had the letter notarized - though she did not appear in front of the notary - and that on Oct. 2 Crow deposited the check into a new Wells Fargo account under both their names and Crow's evangelistic association.
When Rupard asked if she could have a debit card for the account, Crow "said she could not have a debit card and laughed at her," according to the lawsuit.
Full Article & Source:
The Saddest Story in the World
Documentary coming soon: The Economis Rape of America's Secret Wealth Exchanges
This preview of the documentary "The Economic Rape of America: Exposing America's Secret Wealth Exchanges" reveals the economic impact of destruction to America's families and economy as a result of probate courts and frivolous litigation. The wealth exchanges in probate courts are greater than the wealth exchanges on Wall Street. Additionally, $1.5 billion dollars a year goes for attorney fees at the expense of America's families. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, America's litigation addiction costs our economy $264 billion dollars per year making America unable to compete globally.
This documentary is a must see for all Americans. America must demand probate reform so that the pillaging of estates by lawyers and non beneficiaries ends. America must wake up and demand better watch dogging of the judicial system which allows for an unfettered abuse of power.
Produced and Directed by Athena Roe, J.D. of theharcompany.org in collaboration with Shaun T. Lally of Still Focus Media.
Source:
HAR Justice presents, The Economic Rape of America's Secret Wealth Exchanges
Friday, November 21, 2014
Nursing Home Care Levels May Be Much Lower Than Families Think
This story was published by The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit, nonpartisan investigative news organization in Washington, D.C.
Many U.S. nursing home patients may not be receiving the level of care their loved ones believe they're getting, a Center for Public Integrity probe has found.
Staffing levels reported
by thousands of nursing homes on a widely-used government website were
higher than the staff levels calculated by the Center for Public
Integrity through an analysis of annual financial reports submitted by
the homes, suggesting that consumers in those facilities may not be
getting as many hours of skilled care as they expect. Experts have shown
that the amount of care provided by nursing homes is linked to the
quality of care.
The discrepancies raise profound questions about the accuracy of the information in the so-called Nursing Home Compare website
that many consumers use to pick a nursing home for family members. The
reporting discrepancies occurred for all types of positions, but were
particularly high for registered nurses, the most skilled and highest
paid workers.
More than 80 percent of
the facilities reported higher registered nurse staffing levels on the
public website than those the Center calculated through its analysis of
the cost reports. In more than 25 percent of nursing homes nationwide,
the amount of staff listed on the public website was at least double the
level in the cost reports.
Close to 100
peer-reviewed, academic studies have shown that the amount of care,
particularly that provided by registered nurses, is most strongly
connected with residents’ quality of care. Lower levels of care are
associated with a higher likelihood of injury and even death.
Eight of the 10 states with the largest levels of discrepancies in the reporting of registered nurse staffing levels
were southern. Among them: Louisiana and Arkansas, where the average
self-reported levels were at least twice the amount calculated through
the cost reports analysis.
Jon Lowenstein / NOOR
A systematic problem
Data on the publicly
available Nursing Home Compare website, which is promoted by the
government for comparison shopping, reflects staffing levels
self-reported by nursing homes during a two-week period before annual
inspections. Advocates say many homes work hard to prepare for these
visits. As a result, critics say, those staffing levels may be
artificially inflated.
In 2005, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
(CMS), the federal agency responsible for overseeing nursing homes,
said cost reports to the Medicaid program, which are harder for the
public to locate and understand, are a more accurate source of
information than Nursing Home Compare.
The Center analyzed staffing
levels in Medicare cost reports that contain largely the same
information as the Medicaid documents, and compared them to those
reported by Nursing Home Compare.
CMS declined to comment
on this issue since it had not seen the Center’s analysis. Dr. David
Gifford, senior vice president of quality and regulatory affairs for the
American Health Care Association,
the nursing home industry’s largest professional organization, said he
is “not surprised by these findings since the way the cost reports
collect information on staffing is different than [Compare].” He added
in a statement that daily direct care nursing hours have increased for
residents at all levels of nursing staff from 2008 to 2013.
But Robyn Grant,
director of public policy for the Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group
the National Consumer Voice, said the Center’s analysis was shocking.
“We all recognize the
data is flawed, but I am truly stunned by [the] findings and appalled
that you’re finding this level of over-reporting” Grant said.
Rep. Jan Schakowsky
(D-Ill.), said the self-reported data included on the Nursing Home
Compare website shows an “extreme overestimation.”
Full Article & Source:
Lawsuit Claims Campaign Contributions Influenced Ruling by Former Judge Mike Maggio
CONWAY, AR - Misdeeds by a disgraced Arkansas judge have coming to
light as a family that lost a loved one in a central Arkansas nursing
home plans to sue.
A family whose jury-awarded settlement was cut by former Judge Mike Maggio is planning to go back to court.
In
March allegations were made that campaign donations by the owner of
nursing homes around the state were in exchange for the reduced jury
verdict in a negligence case.
The attention to
Maggio began when an Arkansas blog called "Blue Hog Report" revealed the
former Judge was the person behind posts revealing a confidential
adoption by actress Charlize Theron.
After a judicial investigation, Maggio was stripped of his judgeship by the Judicial Discipline & Disability Commission.
The
attorney for the family filed the lawsuit Tuesday (11/18) naming three
defendants including Maggio as well as five additional unnamed
defendants.
The suit outlined a previous
wrongful death suit, the decisions made by Maggio that corresponded with
donations by the defendant in that case that's also a defendant in the
latest suit.
Now the family wants money they say they're owed.
The
lawsuit filed in Faulkner County by the attorney for the family of
Martha Bull, who died in a Greenbrier nursing home, claims Maggio
received campaign contributions that influenced his decision in the
case.
After the 2013 trial a jury awarded Bull's estate $5.2 million.
The defendant in that case, Michael Morton, appealed the amount and Maggio later lowered it to $1 million.
The
lawsuit points out that Morton, on the day of the ruling, donated $21k
to different political action committees, which were all believed to be
funneled to Maggio's campaign for Appellate Judge.
The family claims Morton intended to reduce the jury verdict.
Their
lawsuit names Maggio and Morton along with Gilbert Baker, who allegedly
acted as an agent for Maggio soliciting campaign contributions.
The
family has asked for punitive damages as a result of "judicial
corruption and having been denied their constitutional rights".
We spoke to the family earlier this year when they first learned of the claims.
Rosey Perkins said, "To most of us it didn't seem right but we're just a family that tries to take care of ourselves."
Full Article & Source:
Lawsuit Claims Campaign Contributions Influenced Ruling by Former Judge Mike Maggio
Decatur mechanic charged with 'financial exploitation' of elderly customer
An Athens man who
owns a Decatur automotive repair shop has been arrested for charging a
75-year-old woman more than $10,000 for bogus repairs and duplicate
billings, records show.
However, the mechanic — Billy Wayne Hood, 52, of 21404 Looney Road, owner of Billy’s Liberty 2000 garage in Decatur — told The News Courier Tuesday the customer authorized the work, he performed it, and she told him he did a good job, though he did admit he accidentally duplicated a charge.
Hood was charged Nov. 4 with first-degree financial exploitation of an elderly person. He is accused of charging for work never performed and duplicating charges for work on Bernice Bagwell’s 1953 Plymouth. He was released from the Morgan County Jail after posting a $5,000 property bond, records show.
Decatur Police Sgt. John Harris investigated the case and filed a detailed affidavit showing probable cause why an arrest warrant should be granted. According to that document, a master mechanic at a Madison shop who was asked to look at Bagwell’s car after her brother became suspicious about the repairs said it was the “worst case of fraud” he had seen in his 35 years in business.
In addition, some of Hood’s former employees told Harris that Hood had engaged in “fraudulent business practices for years but intimidated people into not filing reports,” according to Harris’ affidavit. The document did not detail how Hood allegedly intimidated unhappy customers into not filing reports.
The contract
Harris offered the following probable cause in order to obtain the arrest warrant:
On Oct. 7, Bagwell and her brother, Jerry Jacobs, came to Decatur Police Department to file a theft report. They met with Officer Danny Pepper and explained that in August, Bagwell had taken her car to Hood’s shop to have some work done. Bagwell said she told Hood she wanted to get the car in “show car” condition, according to Harris’ detailed affidavit.
Over the course of a month — between Aug. 29 and Oct. 1 — Hood kept the vehicle at his shop and billed Bagwell more than $10,000 for repairs. Bagwell paid Hood in three separate checks over the month. However, when she picked up her car on Oct. 1, the vehicle did not seem any different than when she dropped it off.
Full Article & Source:
Decatur mechanic charged with 'financial exploitation' of elderly customer
 |
| Billy Hood |
However, the mechanic — Billy Wayne Hood, 52, of 21404 Looney Road, owner of Billy’s Liberty 2000 garage in Decatur — told The News Courier Tuesday the customer authorized the work, he performed it, and she told him he did a good job, though he did admit he accidentally duplicated a charge.
Hood was charged Nov. 4 with first-degree financial exploitation of an elderly person. He is accused of charging for work never performed and duplicating charges for work on Bernice Bagwell’s 1953 Plymouth. He was released from the Morgan County Jail after posting a $5,000 property bond, records show.
Decatur Police Sgt. John Harris investigated the case and filed a detailed affidavit showing probable cause why an arrest warrant should be granted. According to that document, a master mechanic at a Madison shop who was asked to look at Bagwell’s car after her brother became suspicious about the repairs said it was the “worst case of fraud” he had seen in his 35 years in business.
In addition, some of Hood’s former employees told Harris that Hood had engaged in “fraudulent business practices for years but intimidated people into not filing reports,” according to Harris’ affidavit. The document did not detail how Hood allegedly intimidated unhappy customers into not filing reports.
The contract
Harris offered the following probable cause in order to obtain the arrest warrant:
On Oct. 7, Bagwell and her brother, Jerry Jacobs, came to Decatur Police Department to file a theft report. They met with Officer Danny Pepper and explained that in August, Bagwell had taken her car to Hood’s shop to have some work done. Bagwell said she told Hood she wanted to get the car in “show car” condition, according to Harris’ detailed affidavit.
Over the course of a month — between Aug. 29 and Oct. 1 — Hood kept the vehicle at his shop and billed Bagwell more than $10,000 for repairs. Bagwell paid Hood in three separate checks over the month. However, when she picked up her car on Oct. 1, the vehicle did not seem any different than when she dropped it off.
Full Article & Source:
Decatur mechanic charged with 'financial exploitation' of elderly customer
Thursday, November 20, 2014
Petition to Correct Nevada Guardianship Law
Please clip, sign and mail or sign the petition online at www.TheVegasVoice.net
(Nevada law requires a guardian be a resident of the state. Many retirees move to Nevada and their families, still in the workforce, live in other states; thereby preventing family from being appointed as guardian despite being ready, willing and able to serve -- and the Alleged Incompetent Person's wishes for family to handle his/her affairs rather than a professional guardian or a Public Guardian)
(Nevada law requires a guardian be a resident of the state. Many retirees move to Nevada and their families, still in the workforce, live in other states; thereby preventing family from being appointed as guardian despite being ready, willing and able to serve -- and the Alleged Incompetent Person's wishes for family to handle his/her affairs rather than a professional guardian or a Public Guardian)
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Some clients of PA guardianship agency are being repaid
A reimbursement check for $4,446 came in the mail in early October, he said.
“I really didn’t think it would happen, that we would see any of that money,” said Stigers, an Air Force retiree. “But I’m still disgusted by how quiet this has been kept. People need to know.”
PublicSource first reported in February that the Social Security Administration is investigating alleged embezzlement from Distinctive Human Services [DHS], a Cambria County guardianship agency that serves as legal guardian for the elderly, disabled or ill who have been deemed incapacitated in court.
About $100,000 of the $311,000 allegedly embezzled from the nonprofit DHS and the accounts of vulnerable people under its care has been repaid.
The money people like Stigers received was paid by the insurance company for DHS, said Cambria County Judge Patrick T. Kiniry.
“A large chunk of the money has been put back and people have been made whole, but it’s not done yet,” said Kiniry, who’s been supervising the case.
Allegations against the co-founder of DHS, Peggy Walsh, have surfaced in a police report and among those involved in the case, but have not been substantiated.
DHS has been guardian for up to 150 wards, primarily in the counties of Cambria, Blair and Somerset, its executive director, Ellen Hamilton, said in a July 2013 interview.
Court-appointed guardians often manage every aspect of their wards’ lives, both personal and financial. Guardians decide where they live, what they wear, who they see. They handle estates; accept payments from Social Security, pensions or stocks; and maintain or sell properties.
DHS did just that for Stigers’ wife, Deborah, 59, for about a year and a half after she was declared incapacitated in court because of her mental health.
Not everyone has seen a check, though.
Mark Good, a journalist in Maine, said his uncle, who had schizophrenia, was under the guardianship of DHS for about two years until his death in late 2013.
Good and his sister are the only remaining heirs to his uncle’s estate, but Good says they were never contacted by the agency. When they learned of their uncle’s death, they didn’t expect anything but a few family artifacts.
Not only have those photos and heirlooms gone missing, but Good says they are also out more than $50,000.
Good said his attorney has told him to expect a partial payment through the agency’s insurance, but he doesn’t know how much or when.
“It’s been very difficult to deal with DHS,” he said. “They’re not very forthcoming. We’ve been getting the runaround and it’s been a year.”
The investigation
A court document from the Cambria County Court of Common Pleas asserted that the funds were embezzled by a former employee.A Johnstown Police Department report, dated May 2013, shows that Hamilton accused Peggy Walsh, who co-founded DHS in 2003 and had been its director of administration and finance.
Hamilton told police that her business partner had been embezzling money since early 2012. She reported that nearly $252,700 was bilked from wards' accounts and about $58,300 was taken from the agency’s operations budget.
The report states Walsh was fired in March 2013. Hamilton told police that during the termination, Walsh said, “Sometimes you need to pamper yourself.”
Walsh did not return a voicemail message left at her home. She has declined to comment for previous stories.
Kiniry said the Social Security Administration “asked the local police to back off until they do their part of the investigation.”
The administration’s Office of the Inspector General could not comment for privacy and law enforcement reasons, Tracy B. Lynge, the acting assistant inspector general for external relations, wrote in an email.
“Generally speaking, though, representative payee investigations can take six months to a year or more, then once the investigation is complete or mostly complete, and a prosecutor accepts a case, the judicial process can be quite long and drawn out as well,” Lynge wrote.
Nothing had been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania at press time.
‘Wrapping up’
DHS continues to be assigned as guardian of the person, making it responsible for choosing living arrangements, medical care and other daily needs.Kiniry said he has not been appointing the agency to new cases as representative payee or guardian of the estate, charged with managing the finances and property of a ward.
A plenary guardian handles both personal and financial decisions.
“Given the fact that this is somewhat wrapping up — people allegedly involved are no longer there, and they made significant changes to their board and procedures on money handling — I’ll probably be appointing them to other cases [as representative payee or plenary guardian],” he said.
Calls went unreturned from Hamilton and Eric Hochfeld, the Johnstown attorney representing DHS.
In the past, Hamilton has said she could not comment because it would violate confidentiality required by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.
Full Article & Source:
Some clients of PA guardianship agency are being repaid
Police brass caught in cop's disputed inheritance case
The notes were written by attorney Gary Holmes and made public after his Oct. 16 deposition. Holmes wrote a last will and trust for the late Geraldine Webber, which is now disputed by multiple parties alleging Goodwin exerted undue influence over Webber, while she had dementia, to inherit most of her wealth.
More than 100 pages of Holmes’ handwritten notes about the case were obtained by the Herald and one of them, dated April 12, 2012, states Holmes learned from Goodwin’s attorney, Chuck Doleac, that a Herald reporter called Webber and that Deputy Police Chief Corey MacDonald “had off record conversations” with the reporter. The Herald did on that date have a 25-minute conversation with Webber, as well as an off-record discussion with MacDonald about the situation, in general terms, for background information.
Holmes’ notes dated Sept. 21, 2012, document a conversation he had with the Herald. He wrote he told the Herald there were “many sides” to the story and he was “sure” the Herald had heard “of other facts” that involved Portsmouth attorney James Ritzo, who wrote Webber’s 2009 will that did not name Goodwin as a beneficiary.
Holmes, who authored Webber’s last will and trust, made notes saying the Herald responded it had not heard the “other facts” about Ritzo, “in spite of (Holmes) being told by Chuck (Doleac) yesterday that Corey MacDonald had off-record conversation about Ritzo.” In other words, MacDonald told Goodwin’s lawyer he had an off-record discussion with the Herald about the controversy and somehow that was communicated to the lawyer who drafted Webber’s contested will the next day.
Attorney Paul McEachern, who is representing four of Webber’s former friends contesting her last will and trust, said Holmes’ notes, showing communications among MacDonald and lawyers for Goodwin and Webber’s estate, “support my original instinct that this is official corruption and they support it.”
MacDonald explained one of his jobs as deputy chief is to monitor ongoing litigation that could affect the Police Department. He said he contacted Doleac at that time “to gauge the status of” Goodwin’s case, “its impact on the department, and (Doleac’s) observations as to its impact on Aaron Goodwin, as he was under extreme stress by all accounts, and was serving as a police officer for the department.”
“During my conversation with attorney Doleac, I may have also included a statement that I provided the Herald an “off the record” perspective on the department’s take on the Goodwin-Webber matter at that time,” said the deputy chief. “My goal in providing the Herald that information was so that our newspaper would have a better understanding of what the department was doing and why, though I could not officially comment at that time. Though I have no recollection of it, I equally have no reason to believe I would not have mentioned to attorney Doleac that I had expressed the department’s position to the Herald as ‘background.’”
Chief Stephen DuBois said MacDonald has “above average” communication skills and for that reason, he interacted with Doleac, which “is exactly what this administration and prior administrations have expected of him.”
By letters dated Sept. 18, 2012, and sent by certified mail to the Police Commission and DuBois, the Herald first inquired about the allegations against Goodwin. According to his handwritten notes dated the following day, Holmes wrote that the Herald had written to the Police Commission for comment and that “police will respond — Aaron will not.” Holmes’ notes for that date also say, “the police commissioners have been told they support Aaron but no comment.”
Police Commission Chairman John Golumb denied the commissioners were told how to respond to the inquiry. “Nobody told us how to respond,” he said.
If someone had suggested how the Police Commission should answer a media inquiry, Golumb said, the commission would acknowledge the suggestion politely, but then act on its own. “But I can make it clear that did not happen,” he said.
Full Article & Source:
Aging Boomers: A New Frontier?
Elder Law Attorney Ramsey Bahrawy and Alexis Abramson of alexisabramson.com discuss aging Boomers.
While aging is an inevitable part of life, will boomers will revolutionize, rather than fear, the aging process? By setting new expectations and maintaining the proper balance, will Boomers transform attitudes about aging and thereby convert aging into the next new frontier?
Source:
Aging Boomers: A New Frontier?
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
PA creates office to protect seniors
 |
| Mary Little |
The new office was recommended by a 38-member Elder Law Task Force, which released its report today after 18 months of research.
When the elderly in Pennsylvania can no longer handle their personal or financial affairs, a judge can appoint a guardian to make decisions for them. Often, guardianship can be a lifeline to a senior whose life or estate could be in jeopardy.
However, a ward is also stripped of most basic rights when assigned a guardian. This unbridled power over another person and their assets has proven to be too much temptation for some unscrupulous guardians.
Until now, guardianships were largely unregulated. Almost anyone can become a guardian without a background check, and there is little to no oversight.
Pennsylvania isn’t alone in this. Most states don’t know how many of their residents have guardians. Everyone in the field refers to a 2011 estimate by the National Center for State Courts of 1.5 million active guardianships.
Elder justice and protections will only grow in importance as the state’s more than 3.3 million Baby Boomers join the 60-and-older population. Already, older Pennsylvanians make up more than 20 percent of the population, making it the fourth oldest state.
“It’s a wonderful thing to have the input and continuing contribution of elders in Pennsylvania,” said state Supreme Court Justice Debra Todd, who chaired the task force, “but along with that comes challenges to the court system and all levels of government to sustain services and make sure that elders are fairly treated.”
Elder exploitation and abuse affects everyone, because abused seniors are three times more likely to die and because almost one in 10 will go on Medicaid once their bank accounts have been drained, according to the National Adult Protective Services Association.
Few states have taken on the system of guardianship in a comprehensive way.
“Pennsylvania is in the minority here,” said Elaine Renoire, president of the National Association to Stop Guardian Abuse.
The Office of Elder Justice will open in January. An advisory council, whose members will be announced next month, will guide the office and connect with agencies and the state legislature.
The task force is asking the legislature to consider about two dozen suggestions. Among them: Creating a fund to pay for guardianship services for those with limited resources; increasing state funding to the Supreme Court; and sending some lottery funds to elder justice programs.
Guardian training
Going forward, becoming a guardian will most likely include extensive homework and giving the courts personal information that wasn’t required before.The Elder Law Task Force recommends training for all guardians, whether he or she is a lawyer, a caseworker with a guardianship agency, an independent professional guardian or a family member.
There may also be a criminal background check and firearms search as well as a requirement to submit a credit report every year.
The task force also suggested the creation of minimum guidelines for guardians, such as visiting a ward at least quarterly.
At Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Pittsburgh, guardianship caseworker Patricia McKeown said they visit their 200 wards at least once a month.
“It’s important to have guidelines to help guardians ensure a person’s autonomy is respected,” she said. “We frequently struggle with decisions that may affect a person’s autonomy in an effort to ensure the person’s safety. It’s a hard balance at times.”
A laundry list of requirements may deter some people from becoming guardians when it’s already a struggle to find people qualified for the job, said Janice Kunak, an independent guardian to 25 wards in Allegheny County.
Though she doesn’t disagree with the requirements, she said that making guardians meet them could also cause guardians to snub wards with limited resources.
“I’m one of those people who has always been willing to take those people not able to compensate me,” said Kunak, 51, “but if paying to meet these requirements lands on me, I would probably get out of the business.”
Todd said the Office of Elder Justice will determine how best to handle costs of a training program for individual lay guardians. Training programs for lawyers who are guardians would be covered under continuing legal education.
Indiana County resident Norma Carpenter said her mother is isolated in a nursing home nearly 100 miles away from all the family she has because of choices made by her court-appointed guardian.
She thinks her mother’s life and their relationship would be drastically different if these requirements had been in place when her mother became a ward about two years ago.
“They shouldn’t be in the business of breaking down families,” she said. “This is a start in the right direction, but I’d have to see it.”
The task force says judges should choose family whenever possible to serve as the type of guardian that handles personal choices, like residence, clothing and food. However, when the person has significant assets, the judge should assign a professional guardian to oversee the estate.
Renoire said families are often villainized in these situations, and it ignores how professional guardians misuse the law to their benefit.
“I think there’s a propensity to say family is bad and this kind of reinforces that,” she said. “I know there are bad families, of course, but families are the best we have in this world when it comes down to trusting someone.”
Oversight and fee schedules
The first step to better supervising guardians is standardization.Some guardians charge $50 an hour; some charge $250 an hour.
The task force suggests that a fee schedule be issued that tells guardians how much they can charge for phone calls, doctor’s appointments and other guardian duties.
Anyone who suspects elder abuse may call the following hotlines anonymously:
- Statewide Elder Abuse Hotline: 1-800-490-8505
- Office of Attorney General Elder Abuse Hotline: 1-866-623-2137
Task force member Diane Menio, director of Philadelphia-based Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly (CARIE), said the task force developed standardized forms to create uniformity in the guardianship process and to aid in data collection.
These tools will make it easier to see red flags, to prevent someone from falling through the cracks.
“It translates into a better-run system with better care,” she said.
The state of Indiana has a guardian database that tracks all active guardianships, who the guardians are and how much they’re making, Renoire said.
“People are starting to wake up and realize we need to have guardianship reform, which starts with monitors and data collection,” she said.
University of Pittsburgh law professor Lawrence Frolik, a nationally recognized expert on elder law, said it will take more than keeping tabs on the data and the guardian’s annual reports.
“I don’t know if that catches the bad guys. A guardian who’s exploiting a ward, I don’t think they’re going to hesitate to file fraudulent reports,” he said. “You really need field audits, someone to go out there and say, ‘Is this true?’ Visit the ward. Ask for bank statements to reconcile.”
Power of attorney instead
Guardianship should be a last resort.And it is much more likely to happen when a person does not establish a power of attorney. Frolik said people of all ages need to be encouraged to plan.
The task force thinks elder law clinics at academic institutions across the state could make it easier for people to sign these documents.
It also addressed abuses that can occur under power of attorney. The task force asks the legislature to make banks a mandatory reporter of suspected financial abuse and to broaden who can petition the court for a review of the person acting as someone’s power of attorney.
Judges are also to be trained to recognize when a limited guardianship may work. In most guardianships, a guardian is making all personal and financial decisions. A limited guardianship would divvy out what the guardian should do and what the ward can continue to do.
For example, a judge could decide a person is no longer capable of managing a pension and IRA but can still handle how he or she spends monthly Social Security checks.
“We’ve had many conversations with people who feel they unjustly became a part of the system,” Menio said, “so I think we all want to make sure people are not getting into the system unless absolutely necessary, and, when it is, we want to make sure the process works well.”
Full Article & Source:
PA creates office to protect seniors
Lawyer for Ohio lawmaker accused of misleading investors says he won't change not guilty plea
State Rep. Pete Beck has pleaded not guilty to more than 60 charges including felony theft and securities fraud. A hearing is scheduled Monday for any possible change of plea or to set a new trial date.
"I can tell you there will be no plea," Beck's attorney, Ralph Kohnen said, when contacted about the hearing.
Kohnen has said previously that the charges are false allegations and that Beck "steadfastly maintains his innocence."
The Republican legislator's trial was scheduled to start Monday. It was delayed to allow both sides more time to review the large amount of material in the case, according to the Ohio Attorney General's Office, which is leading the prosecution. Dan Tierney, a spokesman for that office, said they cannot comment on whether any plea deal has been offered or on any other issues involving pretrial strategy.
Beck was indicted last year on 16 counts. A second indictment this February charged him with 53 new counts, including one alleging that he engaged in a pattern of corrupt activity by repeatedly lying to securities regulators. If convicted of that count alone, he would face a mandatory sentence of 10 years in prison.
Beck served as chief financial officer of the now-defunct Christopher Technologies. The 61-year-old accountant from the Cincinnati suburb of Mason has been accused of being part of an enterprise that misled investors, laundered money and improperly diverted investors' money. He also has been accused of passing some of the money to his campaign committee.
The legislator resigned as chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, which helps review and set tax policy, but has rejected calls for his resignation. He lost his bid to retain the House seat he has held since 2009 when he was defeated in the Republican primary in May.
Beck later opted for a bench trial, which means a judge will determine his guilt or innocence rather than a jury.
Michael Benza, a criminal law professor at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, says that whether to go with a bench trial or a jury trial is a tactical decision.
In cases involving charges against public officials, the defense might choose a bench trial to avoid any reactions by jurors against those officials, Benza said.
"A concern may be that a jury might be thinking about its animosity toward a political party or to politicians in general that might interfere with their ability to fairly consider a case," he said.
Bench trials are more common in cases involving white-collar crimes, said Joshua Dressler, a criminal law professor at Ohio State University in Columbus.
"Sometimes there are a lot of complexities in the evidence, and sometimes the defense may think it would be better to have a law-trained judge rather than a jury," Dressler said.
Full Article & Source:
Lawyer for Ohio lawmaker accused of misleading investors says he won't change not guilty plea
Macomb home health care worker charged with financial exploitation of the elderly
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| Shiela L. Owens |
Shiela L. Owens, 61, was charged with financial exploitation of the elderly.
The sheriff's office reports that the warrant was issued after detectives investigated large amounts of money being paid to Owens by an 89-year-old client she was providing home health care for in rural Macomb.
Owens is accused of exerting unauthorized control over at least $78,000 during a two and a half year time period, the sheriff's office said.
Owens was released from the McDonough County Jail after posting $10,000 bond.
The investigation is ongoing and additional charges may be filed, the sheriff's office reports.
Full Article & Source:
Macomb home health care worker charged with financial exploitation of the elderly
Monday, November 17, 2014
Judge refuses to dismiss Schend ex-client's claim
Judge Mitchell Metropulos said that despite the insurance company's claim it is not liable for the losses, the penniless victim deserves his day in court.
"The reasons we have bond in guardianship cases is because if there are acts of fraud or dishonesty or embezzlement, there is a recourse, an insurance for people who are being abused," Metropulos said.
The ruling means the civil case involving Minnesota-based Platte River Insurance Co. will move one step closer to trial. One of Schend's ex-clients, John Pike of Appleton, says he's trying to recoup close to $35,000 he accuses Schend of stealing or misusing.
Carey Reed, Pike's attorney, said two others have come forward with potential claims after reading Post-Crescent Media's story on Sunday about Pike's struggle with the insurance firm. The firm's lawyer said it had also refused a claim from the Social Security Adminstration, which could be considered a third-party beneficiary in the case.
Central to the case is whether Schend's $250,000 business service bond provided financial protection for those placed under his care after they were found incompetent. Platte River argues since Schend killed himself without being tried and convicted of a fraudulent or dishonest act, it can't be held liable.
Metropulos disagreed and said he based his decision on whether the company's contract language clashed with state law or public policy.
"Certainly the state has had individuals that are bonded and then commit acts of fraud or dishonesty who should not, in essence, have their acts validated because they are not able to proceed to adjudication in court," Metropulos said. "This is a situation that cries out for justice, and (dismissing the case) would really not enable Mr. Pike or others to have their day in court and prove the underlying fraud."
Full Article & Source:
Judge refuses to dismiss Schend ex-client's claim
See Also:
Ex-guardian's death leaves void for elderly, disabled
Letter: An unsettling veil of secrecy in N.C. courts
You don't know? Don't feel bad. Neither did anyone else, thanks to a terrible piece of legislation crammed through the General Assembly in 2013 and signed by Gov. Pat McCrory.
Until then, the state court system's webpage contained any complaint that had been filed and the judge's response. Now, the page is blank except for this disclaimer: "All proceedings for judicial discipline are confidential."
It's not as if everything was open under the old law. Proceedings of the Judicial Standards Commission were secret until a committee determined there was sufficient evidence to warrant punishment. A different committee then would evaluate the findings in a public hearing.
The commission itself handled minor issues, usually procedural errors such as not signing documents on time or signing them improperly. Major issues had to go to the Supreme Court, unless the judge in question sat on that court, in which case the determination would be made by a seven-judge panel from the Court of Appeals.
Now, everything the commission does is confidential and all punishments must be made by the Supreme Court. The complaint becomes public only if the Supreme Court decrees punishment. If the judges overrule the commission or do not decide, everything remains secret.
What if the complaint is against a Supreme Court justice? Yes, you read the preceding paragraph correctly. The Supreme Court judges its own in secret and no one ever will even know a complaint had been filed unless punishment is meted out.
"The new process is rife with risk and will impugn the credibility of the court and the entire judicial system in our state," Catherine B. Arrowood, president of the North Carolina Bar Association, wrote in the November issue of North Carolina Lawyer. "The damage from this will be incremental and slow to manifest itself but ultimately will be deadly to our system of justice."
Lawyers, the people most affected by these rules, are opposed to them. So how did they get adopted? Thanks to the stealthy way in which the law was enacted, no one knows. It arose as a committee substitute for an unrelated bill, a common subterfuge to hide the origin of legislation.
Initially it was rejected in the Senate. Then a number of senators who had opposed the bill switched sides, presumably after some arm twisting behind closed doors.
But why? Who gains from this? No sane scenario comes to mind. We cannot believe the Supreme Court would suppress wrongdoing by judges. If that were true, then our system of justice would be truly on the rocks.
Does the General Assembly think the voters are incapable of separating valid complaints against a judge from complaints filed by a disgruntled litigant or a personal enemy? Arrowood says the old system worked well. "Between 1973 and 2012, the Supreme Court took action against judges in only 50 cases … The commission had 57 pending complaints at the start of 2013 and 235 new complaints were initiated.
"Formal investigations were ordered in 25 cases and the commission found probable cause to initiate formal disciplinary proceedings in one case. In 2012, The North Carolina Supreme Court entered orders of suspension and censure in two cases" growing out of 2011 commission deliberations.
Government works best when the people know what it is doing. Bills crafted in secret designed to keep workings of government secret undermine the trust upon which a free society must depend.
Full Article & Source:
Letter: An unsettling veil of secrecy in N.C. courts
Former caretaker accused of stealing $15,000 from her 84-year-old employer turns herself in
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| Suavonya Shantal Sykes |
Authorities booked Suavonya Shantal Sykes, 37, on 12 counts of fraudulent use or possession of a credit card and one count each of first-degree theft and first-degree financial exploitation of the elderly.
On Nov. 5, Mobile Police Department spokeswoman Ashley Rains said Sykes used her employer's debit card multiple times at stores throughout Mobile and Prichard.
She stole about $15,000 over the course of four months while working as a caretaker for an 84-year-old woman, Rains said.
Sykes has no known prior arrests in Alabama, according to court records.
Full Article & Source:
Former caretaker accused of stealing $15,000 from her 84-year-old employer turns herself in
Sunday, November 16, 2014
MI nursing home fined $100,000 for failure to perform CPR on resident calling for help
The 80-year-old resident had been calling for help for hours before a registered nurse found her unresponsive and without a pulse, according to local NBC affiliate WOOD. The nurse did not perform CPR or call an ambulance, contrary to the resident's advance directive.
That event occurred in May 2012, and later that year the state fined the facility, Laurels of Sandy Creek in Wayland. It has been fined nearly $229,000 over the last three years, WOOD reported.
“They could have potentially revived her,” a former Laurels of Sandy Creek aide told the television station. “Nobody took responsibility. Someone I think was on lunch, said ‘It wasn't my responsibility,' and the job didn't get done and the lady died.”
However, the facility maintains that it followed best practices. After seeing the signs of clinical death, the nurse followed American Heart Association Guidelines and did not perform CPR, according to a statement issued by Laurels of Sandy Creek Administrator Angel Brummette. The RN's response also follows guidance issued in 2013 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the statement notes.
“The Laurels of Sandy Creek is and has always been committed to quality care and improvement,” the statement reads. “Through this commitment, our facility has successfully been removed from the Special Focus Facility List that CMS maintains for all nursing facilities."
The Michigan Health Care Association, a group representing long-term care providers, said the incident is not indicative of pervasive problems.
"While any adverse event in a nursing facility is not acceptable, what is being reported does not represent a pattern of poor care at a single facility or throughout the state," HCAM President and CEO David LaLumia stated. Skilled nursing facilities are highly regulated, adverse events are promptly investigated, and all Michigan facilities are improving outcomes through quality improvement and assurance initiatives, he added.*
In May, a Florida nursing home received a $16,000 fine for reviving a resident with a do-not-resuscitate order.
Full Article & Source:
MI nursing home fined $100,000 for failure to perform CPR on resident calling for help
Elder financial abuse a growing problem as population ages
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| Researcher Sarah Williams of Scripps College |
It’s a commonly-seen phenomenon: An aging relative or friend becomes slower at processing bills and calculating tips, or finds it increasingly difficult to decipher a medical bill; arithmetic errors in the checkbook register make it all the harder to balance the account at the end of the month.
This is an expected part of aging, but such difficulties can also be warning signs of a financial competence decline that makes seniors more vulnerable to abuse by caregivers, scam artists or family members granted control of an elder’s finances.
While the term “abuse” may conjure up visions of physical injury or neglect, the most common form of elder abuse is financial exploitation, according to Naomi Karp, a senior policy analyst for the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Office for Older Americans.
Karp was part of a financial exploitation panel discussion last week at the Gerontological Society of America’s 2014 Annual Scientific Meeting in Washington, D.C.
Elder financial exploitation is defined as “illegal or improper use of an older adult’s funds, property or assets” by any type of perpetrator, from close a relative to a repair contractor to a telephone swindler. It is a growing but underreported crime. Karp cited recent estimates that 5 percent of community-dwelling seniors have been victims — but that for every reported financial abuse incident, about 43 cases go unreported.
Daniel Marson, a professor of neurology at the University of Alabama-Birmingham School of Medicine, listed warning signs to watch for in aging adults, including increased slowness in processing bills, missing key details (for instance, a warning that payment is overdue), increased trouble with financial arithmetic, and decreased understanding of financial concepts such as medical insurance deductibles.
The ranks of older adults are expected to swell nationwide in the coming decades as the large Baby Boomer generation reaches their 60s and 70s. Here in Boston, following a decline between 1990 and 2000, the older adult population has been on the rise. From 2000 to 2020, Boston will see a 32.1 percent increase in the number of residents 60 and older, and a 21.3 percent rise in those 65 or older, according to projections from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs. Older adults are the fastest growing population segment worldwide and locally.
With this increase, more and more relatives or caregivers may be thrust into a “financial caregiver” role. For some, this may be an easy role that draws on natural abilities or money management experience. Others will lack the skills, confidence or time to do the job well. And some will use the role to rob elders of their life savings.
In Boston, the nonprofit Ethos in Jamaica Plain functions as the state Elder Protective Services agency for Greater Boston in collaboration with Central Boston Elder Services and Boston Senior Home Care.
Sandy Hovey, Ethos’ director of elder protective services, said the agency receives 160 to 200 reports of elder abuse monthly, many of which involve an elder victimized by a financial scam or taken advantage of by a family member.
Full Article & Source:
Elder financial abuse a growing problem as population ages
Pair charged in McLean stabbing listed as attorneys
Alecia and Andrew Schmuhl appeared to many to be working their way up in a region of strivers: She was a corporate attorney for a prominent Arlington firm, and he was a former judge advocate in the Army at Fort Belvoir.
But that trajectory was suddenly reversed after Alecia Schmuhl was fired recently, two people familiar with a police investigation said.
The Springfield couple allegedly drove to the McLean home of one of the firm’s managing partners Sunday night.
Andrew Schmuhl knocked on the front door of the nearly $1 million rambler on Spencer Road and then stabbed the man, police said.
When the man’s wife came to see what was going on, Schmuhl stabbed her, too, police said.
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| Alecia Schmuhl (Fairfax County Police) |
They are being held without bond.
Detectives and acquaintances are trying to piece together why a couple with apparently so much going for them would allegedly throw it all away.
Police said investigators have not been able to interview the McLean husband and wife, who continue to fight for their lives in the hospital.
The Washington Post generally does not identify crime victims without their permission. They are both 61.
The incident shattered the peace of what is normally a quiet and low-crime neighborhood in McLean.
“It’s a horrendously sad situation,” said Merrit Green, a founding partner of McLean’s General Counsel, P.C., where Alecia Schmuhl had previously worked. “She was on a good, bright career path, and so was her husband. It’s just unbelievable.”
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| Andrew Schmuhl (Fairfax County Police) |
He described her as outgoing and friendly and said he had good interactions with Andrew Schmuhl. She worked on corporate and intellectual property law.
After she left the firm, Green said, Schmuhl joined the Arlington firm, where she was recently fired. A job announcement for her said she had been working in intellectual property law there.
The Post is not naming the firm, and a managing partner declined to comment on the case, citing the police investigation.
Alecia Schmuhl speaks three languages, according to an online profile, and was on the board of the Arlington-Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless. James Watson, a fellow board member, described her as constructive and helpful.
He said he was “totally shocked” by her arrest.
Both Schmuhls graduated from Indiana’s Valparaiso University Law School in 2009, a spokeswoman said. Andrew Schmuhl was a former judge advocate in the Army at Fort Belvoir, an Army spokesman confirmed.
A LinkedIn page said Andrew Schmuhl oversaw a staff of five paralegals and worked on medical lien cases there until 2012.
His LinkedIn profile said he was seeking employment in military or health-care law. The profile said he joined the Army as early as 2006.
During their brief arraignment Wednesday, the Schmuhls appeared separately before a judge via videoconference from the Fairfax jail.
The Schmuhls didn’t address the charges against them during their arraignment, only answering yes to a judge’s questions. Andrew Schmuhl appeared stiff and used a walker to get to a lectern where he spoke, but police said the issue was the result of a health problem unrelated to Sunday night’s incident.
Full Article & Source:
Pair charged in McLean stabbing listed as attorneys