Superior Court Judge Kenneth Pedlar acquitted Shelley Baker, 37 on charges of theft by power attorney, fraud by power of attorney and breach of trust on Friday.
The Belleville woman was charged after a police investigation concluded that between March 2012 and June 2014 she had taken $60,000 from her parents while they were residing at the Belmont Long Term Care Facility. Court heard how her parents lost their savings, their house and are now wards of the province, because the public guardian and trustee took over in the spring of 2014.
"You escaped by slim margins," Pedlar told Baker. He stated it was a sad story of a divided family and that he was still suspicious of ''who done it' while handing down his verdict. "You have been given the benefit of reasonable doubt."
Applause rang out in the courtroom, as Baker cried ‘thank you Judge Pedlar.’
Baker said the fraud charges have ruined her life making it impossible for her to get a job, an apartment or credit.
Hastings County Assistant Crown Attorney Jodi Whyte said she was disappointed there wasn't a conviction.
"It's been five years, four counsel and a lot of delays and the important message got lost which is children in this community and all across the country are taking advantage of their elderly parents and stealing their money,” she said in an interview. "We have to take that seriously.”
Pedlar said the case left him with more questions than answers.
During her testimony, Baker maintained her innocence stating that she, her father and two brothers had access to her parent's joint bank account and she never looked at bank statements.
"I can't say she was fully in possession of the all the (bank) cards, Pedlar stated.
Spreadsheets detailing $36,000 in bank withdrawals from Bakers parents’ joint account and $35,000 in a maxed out line of credit and credit cards were entered as evidence. The Baker family requested a $33,000 line of credit to be spent for renovations so the house could be sold. Baker, testified $50,000 was spent on home renovations. However, bank records presented in court indicated that $10,000 was spent on renovations.
$25,000 of the cash withdrawals were unaccounted for. Court heard how over $11,000 in unpaid Belmont bills racked up and are still owing. A representative from Belmont testified she received a letter from a lawyer stating once the home sold, they would be paid however with the house selling for $70,000 and over $69,000 in debt accrued, there was nothing left.
Prior to Baker taking on the role of power of attorney, Pedlar said $9,000 been drained from her parent's account over the course of two months. He added if it kept up like that all of the funds would have been drained in eight months.
"These people went broke collectively," he said.
"This was a dysfunctional family on all levels full of chaos, physical and sexual abuse, alcoholism...," he described.
He said Baker became 'overwhelmed' and 'stressed' at having to care for her elderly parents when no one else would step up, renovating a condemned house coupled with family dysfunction.
Pedlar agreed with Baker that the duties of power of attorney weren't properly laid out to her. He said Baker's history of mental illness may have contributed to her poor record keeping.
"She had terrible management skills, no plan, and was blindly failing to keep track of her parent's depleting bank account," he continued.
As for who did it? Whyte said the case doesn’t need to be reopened because, she thinks ‘she had the right person.’
“The difficult thing with these cases is that they only come to the attention of the authorities long after the crime has been committed because somebody stops getting paid, as in this case,” Whyte explained. “Then it's too late the money is gone.”
“These people lost their savings,” she said. “They lost chunks of their income as it came in and they lost the greater part of the value of their home, all while suffering from dementia.”
She echoed the problem is all too common.
“They lived in their homes their whole lives,” she continued. “The value of the home incurred they have pensions from jobs, old age pensions and savings and then their children take over their finances. The next thing we know they are either being moved out of a nice care situation and into a nursing home or being kicked out of their homes because the mortgages aren't being met,” she described.
“It's really a shame.”
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Daughter accused of stealing $60K from elderly parents found not guilty
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