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| Red Smith |
One speaker called it the “perfect crime of the 21st Century.”
Another speaker, Dawn Trotto, said, “It’s only going to get worse because of all the baby boomers retiring.”
They were referring to elder-adult abuse, which was the subject of a “listening tour” staged Monday by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, accompanied by two state Supreme Court justices and two lawmakers.
Nessel is conducting the statewide tour to suggest new laws to address the increasing financial, physical and emotional abuse on older people from family members, duplicitous friends or the Probate Court system. The new laws would emanate from the Michigan Elder Abuse Task Force Nessel created in March, less than three months after taking office.
Nessel promised at the fifth tour stop that when the laws are passed, “We will have made more progress in this area than we have in the past 30 years."
She pointed out a recent Macomb County case her office handled is “emblematic” of the problems within the guardianship/conservatorship system. The case involved the guardianship of a Utica couple that was given to a Clinton Township company over the family late last year. The family filed a lawsuit in circuit court and regained control in June.
“I don’t mean to speak out of turn, but in my opinion that was everything that is wrong with the system and all the reasons why we need to work so hard to fix it,” Nessel said.
Nessel was joined by Supreme Court Justice Richard Bernstein, concurring that guardianships and conversatorships are granted too easily, out of proportion to their impact. Someone under a guardian and conservator has less rights than a criminal prisoner, losing their ability to make medical and financial decisions, they pointed out.
“There is no more substantial way that a person really loses their rights in this country then to have a full guardianship placed over them,” Nessel said. “In many ways it’s more restrictive than for a person who is convicted of a very serious crime and placed in the Department of Corrections.
“What we were seeing is cases where you would see more thought and deliberation put into deciding whether a person violated a speeding law or traffic-citation case than you were in a hearing involving a petition for guardianship.”
The Utica case prompted Nessel’s office to investigate decisions by Macomb Probate Judge Kathryn George, and the case was transferred to another judge. Nessel after the event declined to comment on the probe into George.
During the two-hour event at the Clinton Township offices of the Macomb Intermediate School District, 22 people spoke in addition to remarks by Nessel, Bernstein and Justice Megan Cavanagh.
Speakers described various versions of abuse they either witnessed or have suffered.
Two people suggested there needs to be mediation or counseling for families who are fighting in court over issues to help prevent forcing a probate judge to award the guardianship/conservatorship to a company or lawyer over a family member.
“Why don’t the courts refer it to an objective third party for mediation between the two families?” a woman said.
Some said more regulation needs to be placed on caretakers who are hired by a guardian or guardianship company.
Multiple people talked about “isolation” and “retaliation” sometimes practiced by caretakers. When a caretaker learns about a complaint by their subject or subject's family, he or she sometimes will retaliate by limiting or eliminating contact, they said.
“The squeaky wheel gets hurt,” one woman said.
Two people suggested extending mandatory reporting for some professions from child abuse to elder abuse.
Bernstein questioned a nurse from Oakland County about how guardians charge clients for their services. She said in her frequent dealings with attorney guardians she rarely talks to the actual guardian but rather a secretary – and typically only for a couple of minutes. But the client gets charged as if the guardian was involved and the charge typically is listed as a 15-minute or 30-minute call.
Alison Hirschel, director of the Michigan Elder Justice Initiation, a nonprofit organization, said afterward the complaints are consistent with ones she has heard elsewhere.
“I think it was a powerful setting but reflective of what we’ve seen for years,” she said. “There are nuances and off-shoots to every issue. There is so much to be done."
She said a big problem that was mentioned was unlicensed care-taking facilities. Some elderly people and their families may believe a residential facility is licensed when it is not.
“We don’t even know how many unlicensed facilities there are,” Hirschel said.
At the start of the event, Nessel listed other areas the task force will look at, such as requiring public administrators, who handle cases that families don’t, to be bonded and certified and meet professional standards.
The task force is considering a mandatory evidentiary hearing for a judge to award a temporary guardian.
Also seated at the front table were legislative task force members state Sens. Paul Wojno, D-Warren, and Michael MacDonald, R-Macomb Township, who said afterward they will work on the bi-partisan effort to get a bill package passed.
Attendees included state Rep. Doug Wozniak, R-Shelby Township, an elder law attorney who said he and a Democratic representative have sponsored a bill package that includes elder law reforms.
He said he believes reforms in his bills don’t conflict with those the task force is considering.
The trio was scheduled to conduct a similar event, Monday afternoon at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor and Tuesday morning at the Farmington Community Library.
To report abuse, call 855-444-3911. To file a criminal complaint for abuse, contact your local police department.
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Officials look to reduce 'perfect crime of 21st Century'
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