Class action lawsuit alleges Alaska mishandled public guardianship duties

By Iris Samuels 

Former guardian Tom McDuffie at a public fitness review hearing for his private guardianship nonprofit, Cache Integrity Services, at the Nesbett Courthouse on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024. (Bill Roth / ADN)

Several disabled Alaskans have filed a class action lawsuit against the state of Alaska over its mishandling of the guardianship services it was required under law to provide.

The lawsuit stems from the Alaska Office of Public Advocacy’s decision two years ago to request that dozens of public guardianship clients — all disabled and vulnerable adult residents of Alaska — be transferred from the care of the state to the care of a private guardian who proved incapable of ensuring their basic needs were met.

Under a 2022 court order, private guardian Thomas McDuffie took over dozens of cases from the Office of Public Advocacy even before McDuffie formally received his guardianship license. What followed were reports of neglect and abuse that led some wards to lose property, incur massive debt and suffer from declining health.

According to the lawsuit, which was filed on behalf of 10 named plaintiffs by Anchorage civil rights attorney Caitlin Shortell, Alaska’s Adult Protective Services agency received multiple complaints about McDuffie’s misconduct and negligence, but the agency failed to respond to the complaints and investigate the wrongdoing as required by law.

McDuffie is facing numerous lawsuits over his alleged misconduct in neglecting and mishandling his duties to care for around 122 guardianship and conservatorship wards between 2021 and 2023. No criminal charges have been filed against him.

This is the first lawsuit that names the state of Alaska and heads of public agencies as partially responsible for the damage suffered by McDuffie’s former wards.

Alongside McDuffie and his private guardianship agency, Cache Integrity Services, the lawsuit filed in July names as plaintiffs Beth Goldstein, the deputy director of the Office of Public Advocacy, and Anthony Newman, the director of Adult Protective Services within the Alaska Department of Health.

The plaintiffs, who belong to a group of around 122 guardianship and conservatorship wards that were transferred from the care of the Office of Public Advocacy to McDuffie’s agency, are seeking compensation from the defendants on account of their misconduct.

According to the lawsuit, the actions of Newman and Goldstein resulted in “egregious neglect, abuse, and loss of real and personal property, money and benefits.” The lawsuit states that Newman and Goldstein “knew or should have known that they were obligated to protect plaintiffs but were deliberately indifferent to their duties.”

The state of Alaska has not yet formally responded to the lawsuit, and has several weeks to do so.

“As a general matter, we can all agree that the actions of Cache Integrity are tragic, and OPA and the Department of Law have been working diligently on solutions,” Alaska Department of Law spokesperson Sam Curtis said by email. “Our focus remains on how to improve the situation and ensure Cache Integrity can do no more harm. It is unfortunate that the State has been included in this lawsuit when the responsibility lies with those that caused the injury.”

Individuals placed under a court-appointed guardianship are adults who rely on their guardian to ensure they are housed and their most basic needs are met. The guardian is also responsible for ensuring wards receive public benefits, on which wards typically depend.

According to the lawsuit, Goldstein “recommended, transferred and referred” Alaskans who had been wards of the state to McDuffie’s agency but did not verify that McDuffie met the requirements of a private guardian.

The Adult Protective Services agency, overseen by director Newman, then “received numerous complaints” regarding neglect of the plaintiffs by McDuffie and his agency “but inexcusably failed to direct staff to investigate those reports of harm, prolonging and compounding the harms” to the plaintiffs in the case, according to the lawsuit.

After McDuffie and his agency proved incapable of caring for their guardianship and conservatorship clients, the individuals were transferred back to the responsibility of the Office of Public Advocacy in 2023, and Goldstein was appointed “special investigative conservator” by Anchorage Superior Court Judge Eric Aarseth.

Since then, McDuffie’s former wards “have been unable to recover lost property and funds” and have lost access to public benefits, leaving some of them unable to pay for room and board, and causing some to be evicted from their housing, according to the lawsuit.

Goldstein and the Office of Public Advocacy “failed to remedy the harms caused by McDuffie and Cache Integrity Services,” according to the lawsuit. The state did not hire a forensic accountant as ordered by the Superior Court, and the plaintiffs’ funds were not released to their new guardians and conservators.

“We had hoped that Goldstein and the State of Alaska would act, but their ongoing negligence and failure to protect Plaintiffs has necessitated the filing of this class action complaint,” Shortell said in a written statement. “We are seeking damages and injunctive relief for Plaintiffs and all 122 former wards of Thomas McDuffie and Cache Integrity Services.”

Between August 2022 and November 2023, Adult Protective Services, an agency within the Alaska Department of Health charged with investigating potential mistreatment of adults, received several complaints alleging that McDuffie and his agency were neglecting the wards assigned to the agency.

Complaints submitted to Adult Protective Services are not made public until investigations are complete.

The complaints included allegations from assisted living homes that McDuffie was not submitting payment for wards’ housing, according to the lawsuit. They also included reports from care coordinators that McDuffie did not respond to requests for signatures on needed documents to authorize Medicaid services. Family members of wards reported that McDuffie and his agency had breached their conservatorship or guardianship duties.

In one case, McDuffie left one of his wards in the hospital for more than a year when hospitalization was not necessary, incurring a hospital bill of more than $615,000, according to the court filing.

In another case, McDuffie failed to file and pay taxes on behalf of a ward, until the IRS seized the ward’s property and froze the bank accounts of the ward’s daughter.

Adult Protective Services is required by statute to “promptly initiate an investigation to determine whether the vulnerable adult who is the subject of the report suffers from abandonment, exploitation, abuse, neglect, or self neglect.” According to the lawsuit, Adult Protective Services did not conduct the required investigation and take action to protect the wards from neglect and abuse.

The plaintiffs are requesting financial compensation. They are also asking the court to prohibit Goldstein from serving as special investigative conservator, and to ensure that a forensic accountant is hired to unwind the finances of the plaintiffs and return their property to them. Aarseth, the judge assigned to oversee McDuffie’s former wards, previously declined requests to appoint an independent investigator.

[Judge rejects call for independent investigation of state-endorsed private guardian who neglected dozens of clients]

If the court certifies the class described in the lawsuit, including all of wards that had been transferred from the state to McDuffie’s agency, then every one of those wards could be entitled to compensation, rather than just the 10 named plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

William Earnhart, an attorney representing Cache Integrity Services, has filed a motion to consolidate the six separate lawsuits targeting McDuffie and his agency that have been filed in recent months.

According to the motion, Cache Integrity Services “is for all practical purposes bankrupt.” The agency has a $1 million general liability policy that could cover some of the damages requested by the plaintiffs, Earnhart wrote in the motion.

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Class action lawsuit alleges Alaska mishandled public guardianship duties

New Florida law allows people with intellectual developmental disabilities to maintain rights

By Cody Butler

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Burau) - Florida residents who have developmental disabilities now have a chance to live more independently.

An estimated 50,000 people across Florida live under court-ordered guardianship. Advocates are hoping that number will drop under a new state law.

The new law requires judges to consider the needs and abilities of a person with a developmental disability when determining whether to appoint a guardian advocate or allow a supported decision-making authority agreement. Michael McCreight was the first person in Florida to get one of those agreements.

“This is a very exciting day for people with intellectual developmental disabilities,” McCreight told state lawmakers in February. “After being in a very abusive guardianship, by my own guardian and being held hostage from my family and my friends, not being able to do any of the volunteer work that I fought to do.”

Guardianships involve someone else making decisions for people in their care including where they live and how they spend their money. Meanwhile, supported decision-making authority takes a more consultative approach.

Disability Rights Florida Director of Community and Healthcare Services Caitlyn Clibbon said supportive decision-making is not as restrictive as a guardianship.

“It’s rights preservation. All of us have rights and I think everyone wants to be able to protect their rights and keep their rights,” Clibbon said.

Dina Justice, Arc of Florida’s chief operating officer, said supportive decision-making allows people to gain authority over their life decisions.

“Individuals with intellectual development disabilities can make decisions on their own. Everybody is different. Everybody will talk to their family, friends or peers to help them make these decisions just like you and I would,” Justice said.

Under the new law, schools will also be required to provide information to adult students with developmental intellectual disabilities about their options for Supported Decision-Making Authority.

“This is going to open doors to people to make outstanding decisions. I went from being in a guardianship to working my dream job at Universal Orlando Resort,” McCreight said.

The Florida Department of Elder Affairs is working on creating a guardianship database under a state law passed a couple of years ago.

Those experiencing issues with a registered professional guardian can file a complaint with the state and petition to transition to the Supported Decision-Making Authority.

Full Article & Source:
New Florida law allows people with intellectual developmental disabilities to maintain rights

Disability Rights Nebraska exposes flaws in state’s guardianship system

By 10/11 NOW

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Disability Rights Nebraska has released findings from a year-long investigation into the state’s guardianship system, revealing significant concerns.

More than 10,000 Nebraskans are currently under guardianship. The organization reported visiting dilapidated and unsanitary facilities where people with disabilities were placed by their guardians. They conducted numerous interviews and reviewed thousands of legal documents from guardians profiting from vulnerable adults.

The report includes seven personal stories from Nebraskans under guardianship.

One Omaha man with addiction and mental health issues said his guardian moved him to a town over 100 miles away, isolating him from any support network.

“How am I supposed to get sober and get on my own two feet when I’m just being warehoused and dictated to by a total stranger?” he said.

According to the report, the assisted living facility where the man was placed has been the subject of multiple complaints to Disability Rights Nebraska, including issues with air conditioning, hot water, bed bugs, and assaults.

The report also highlights serious financial concerns within Nebraska’s guardianship system, including:

• Lawyers charging clients legal fees for non-legal work, such as $225 an hour for mailing a rent check or calling a pharmacy
• Guardians using debit cards to charge up to $500 with no accounting
• Guardians receiving thousands of dollars annually for their services without itemized explanations of their time

“We understand that judges and county court personnel simply lack the time or resources to do a line-by-line review of every guardianship case,” CEO Tania Diaz said. “However, many red flag expenses we saw in our review of selected court files should set off alarms. Sister states have hired independent auditors to review guardianship filings. These programs have been so successful that they have recovered more in assets than the program cost.”

Diaz noted that states including Alaska, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, Texas, and Utah have reformed their guardianship systems to prevent abuse and neglect.

Disability Rights Nebraska plans to advocate for new laws, more education for judges, guardians, and lawyers, and increased use of supported decision-making instead of full guardianships.

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Disability Rights Nebraska exposes flaws in state’s guardianship system

Audit finds lax management, scattered conflicts at Miami-Dade’s Guardianship Program

By Douglas Hanks

BEFORE: Express Homes bought this Kendale Lakes home on Southwest 138th Place from the Guardianship Program for $430,000 in January 2022. The Multiple Listing Service shows the house was not listed. Once Express Homes rehabbed the four-bedroom house, a listing did show up in May ahead of the property’s $695,000 sale that summer. Google Street View

A county-funded charity failed to pursue the best deals in selling homes of incapacitated people under its supervision, relying on a small circle of investors, appraisers and real estate agents to handle sales that often weren’t offered on the open market, according to an audit released Wednesday. Two of the three charity employees assigned to help manage property sales left their jobs after investigators pointed out deals that seemed to benefit them personally. 

The Inspector General report on the Guardianship Program of Dade County (GPDC) described poor recording keeping, indifference to internal rules and inconsistent practices in the relatively infrequent instances when a person under the charity’s care also had a home to sell. The non-profit, funded by Florida and Miami-Dade county, was responsible for 2,800 incapacitated people during the nearly six years covered by the audit, a time period when 60 homes were sold, according to the report.

With a budget of about $6 million a year, the Guardianship Program steps in to manage a person’s financial affairs and healthcare after a judge deems them incapacitated but can’t find a family member or friend to serve as a guardian for them. Investigators found that when an incapacitated person — known as a ward — required a home sale, the Guardianship Program’s tiny real estate staff often didn’t follow internal procedures that would help get as high a price as possible, such as circulating it widely to would-be investors or listing it as for sale on Realtor websites. 

The audit “revealed questionable transactions and it exposed deficiencies in GPDC’s internal controls, particularly in its failure to follow its existing policies and procedures, which would have prevented, or detected and corrected many of the issues identified in this audit,” the report said.

The report also recommends minor changes to fix the Guardianship Program’s real estate problems, such as sticking to a checklist of best practices and listing properties for sale, and urged the charity to continue to taking on cases where incapacitated people have homes to sell. 

Investigators began looking into the Guardianship Program after a 2023 investigation by WLRN raised questions about whether the charity was getting fair-market value on property sales because multiple properties went to a small pool of buyers. One of those buyers was a real estate investor who is also married to Victoria Méndez, then the city attorney for Miami. Méndez and her family denied any impropriety and those transactions were not cited in the Inspector General report. 

The media coverage prompted Miami-Dade to suspend funding for the Guardianship Program until the charity agreed to stop taking cases of incapacitated people who had homes to sale.

At the time, administrators of the charity emphasized the property sales were a tiny portion of the court-supervised work it did for wards. They also said that by the time someone is incapacitated enough to need a court-appointed guardian, their home often is in deplorable condition, limiting the pool of willing buyers. 

In a July 11 letter to Felix Jimenez, Miami-Dade’s inspector general, the Guardianship Program expanded on that point, noting that a quick sale can be vital after a ward has let home insurance lapse and a distressed property can be at risk of code violations and liens that would create even more of a financial mess. 

“If a hurricane or fire were to happen while waiting for additional offers on the MLS, the Ward would bear the entirety of that loss,” the letter read.

“GPDC is under extreme pressure to manage the Wards’ properties, many of which are in very poor condition.” 

The audit found the Guardianship Program relied on an email list to offer properties up for real estate agents and appraisers interested in doing work for the charity. Paperwork was spotty showing how often the charity utilized the email list, but records revealed a small circle of professionals tapped for the work. Three appraisers performed 84% of the appraisals reviewed by investigators, and three real estate agents handled half of the sales when properties weren’t sold directly to investors. 

Along with a poorly supervised sales operation, investigators identified two questionable deals that led to the departure of Guardianship Program employees.

One sale from 2015 involved a home that wasn’t placed on the Multiple Listing Service, a database of homes for sale that real estate agents can access and which populates real estate websites, such as realtor.com and Redfin. Investigators found an investment company purchased the home for $125,000, then sold it weeks later for $149,000 to the girlfriend of the Guardianship Program property coordinator who helped manage the sale. The couple ended up living there. The original buyer, MAIA Investments, was owned by the father of a real estate appraiser who frequently got hired by the Guardianship Program employee on other deals, according to the report. 

Investigators described the sale to the employee’s girlfriend as a “clear” violation of state rules governing financial conflicts with court-appointed guardians. Guardianship Program administrators said they weren’t aware of the unnamed employee’s connection to the property and said the employee resigned after investigators revealed their findings. In a rebuttal, the Guardianship Program said records show it was a charity lawyer who reviewed the three bids for the property and authorized the sale to a buyer who later sold it to the employee’s girlfriend. 

Another unnamed property coordinator in the three-person real estate staff also left after investigators pointed out a partner in a property-management company he ran on the side had purchased an unlisted Guardianship Program home in 2019, submitting the highest of three bids.

While investigators fault the Guardianship Program for failing to follow its own best-practices for selling real estate, the report also described the charity as performing “an essential function” and having “a dedicated staff who work hard to ensure the wards are well taken care of, are visited by case managers, and receive benefits they are entitled to.”

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Audit finds lax management, scattered conflicts at Miami-Dade’s Guardianship Program

Families testify during State Senate committee hearing on guardianship reform bills

By: Heather Catallo , Brandon Speagle

(WXYZ) — Give us our families back and change the laws. That was the constant refrain from families Tuesday during testimony in front of a state senate committee hearing on guardianship reform.

The 7 Investigators have been exposing problems in the state’s guardianship system since 2017, and now there are several proposed guardianship law reforms still under consideration in Lansing.

On Tuesday, families had the chance to tell state senators how much guardianships have hurt them, and why they want the laws to change.

VIDEO: Sparks fly in Lansing as probate judges push back on proposed guardianship reforms

“How would you like it if it was one of your family members that was handcuffed, detained, or even arrested for standing up against this abuse,” said Jodi White about the state’s probate court system.

The Michigan Senate Civil Rights, Judiciary and Public Safety Committee listened to three hours of public testimony from local families who are desperate to reform the state’s guardianship and conservatorship laws.

“I want to thank Channel 7 and Heather Catallo who has done stories about abuse in the system, and that’s what we have to do is make sure people know-- because it hasn’t changed,” said Senator Ruth Johnson (R-Holly), who has been trying to get reform legislation passed for several years.

Attorney General Dana Nessel’s Elder Abuse Task Force has worked for five years to create legislation to increase protections for vulnerable adults.

VIDEO: Community steps in to help special needs man save childhood home in guardianship battle

If you’re declared legally incapacitated and put under guardianship, you lose the right to make your own medical and financial decisions.

Families have alleged for years that judges appoint professional guardians who then separate loved ones from their families and drain their estates.

VIDEO: Michigan woman makes history in guardianship case, advocates for alternative option

“I would go on to have 7 attorneys and over $200,000 in legal fees fighting for my mother. My mother would be isolated for 14 months,” said Cynthia Mifsud.

The bills would provide several protections, including making sure probate judges put their reasons on the court record if they choose a professional guardian over a family member, and they would require more detailed reports from those appointed to evaluate whether someone needs a guardian.

 Still opposing the bills are the Michigan Guardianship Association and several probate judges.

“Stop favoring the state bar and their attorneys so people can protect the wards and their loved ones,” said Jeff White.

 “I expected the judge to follow the rules and her cannons. She did everything except that. She had her own agenda and her own guardian to assign to my mom,” said Christine Abood.

Committee Chair Senator Stephanie Chang thanked everyone who testified today and said they are taking this issue very seriously.

Senator Chang said she hopes to finish the work on the bills in committee and to vote in the fall.

VIDEO: Detroit man who is Deaf-Blind freed after spending more than 2 years under guardianship

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Families testify during State Senate committee hearing on guardianship reform bills

Former NH lawyer, Democratic congressional candidate arrested for deceiving client with brain injury

By Marc Fortier 

Former New Hampshire lawyer and one-time Democratic congressional candidate Justin P. Nadeau is facing multiple charges for allegedly tricking a client with a traumatic brain injury into giving him two loans totaling nearly $300,000 and then concealing his actions.

Nadeau, who lost a bid for New Hampshire's First District Congressional seat in 2004, is charged with theft by deception, forgery, multiple counts of falsifying physical evidence and financial exploitation of an elderly, disabled, or impaired adult, the New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella announced Wednesday.

The court affidavit alleges that Nadeau induced two loans totaling $281,500 from a former client who had recently suffered a traumatic brain injury under false pretenses, and then took efforts to conceal his misconduct from the New Hampshire Attorney Discipline Office by altering electronic file metadata and submitting false documents, according to the attorney general's office.

Nadeau was disbarred in April by the New Hampshire Supreme Court's Professional Conduct Committee.

He is scheduled to be arraigned Sept. 9 in Rockingham District Court in Portsmouth.

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Former NH lawyer, Democratic congressional candidate arrested for deceiving client with brain injury

Crisis in senior care: 19 more nursing homes in Pa., West Virginia declare bankruptcy

by Kris B. Mamula

Guardian Healthcare, a Jefferson County-based long-term care provider for seniors, has filed for voluntary protection from creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, affecting 19 nursing homes, pharmacies and related businesses in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

All Guardian facilities are operating as normal as the for-profit Brockway-based company undergoes financial reorganization. Included in the filing were facilities in Bethel Park and Munhall in the Pittsburgh area and Beaver, Clarion, Erie, Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland counties.

“This action was taken to facilitate the divestitures and transfers of operations of its facilities, ensure continued services for its residents and preserve critical health care jobs,” the company said in a statement.

Guardian listed assets ranging between $1 million and $10 million and liabilities of $10 million to $50 million.

Guardian’s financial woes were blamed on the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, labor shortages, wage inflation, new minimum staff-to-patient ratios and other factors. “Many more (providers) ultimately face closure,” the company said.

“Skilled nursing providers in Pennsylvania are facing a crisis in the current environment,” Guardian President and CEO Michael Herald said in a prepared statement. “Guardian Healthcare attempted to do everything possible to overcome this crisis. Despite these efforts and faced with the industry environment in Pennsylvania, Guardian’s current situation is unsustainable.”

Guardian Healthcare, which was founded in 1995 and operates more than 1,700 skilled nursing and personal care units, is the latest senior care provider to file for reorganization in bankruptcy court. In May and June, 21 skilled nursing facilities filed for bankruptcy protection, including 12 in the Pittsburgh area.

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Crisis in senior care: 19 more nursing homes in Pa., West Virginia declare bankruptcy

Federal court sides with Ohio voters with disabilities, strikes down state law

By: Morgan Trau

Ohioans with disabilities and their families are cheering a new federal court ruling that strikes down a section inside a controversial voting law.

When Ohio passed legislation overhauling voting laws in 2022, Barbara Friedman Yaksic was worried about the impact it could have on her family.

“My brother and people like him have the right to vote,” Friedman Yaksic said in December of ’22.

Her brother Joel had a stroke two decades ago. While he lives in a nursing home, she has been his legal guardian. She, an attorney who advocates for voting rights, continues to fight to make sure he can cast his absentee ballot.

“My brother is very informed and a concerned voter,” Friedman Yaksic said Monday. “There’s absolutely no reason that it should be more difficult.”

House Bill 458 of the 134th General Assembly changed state law so the only people allowed to deliver a sealed absentee ballot besides the voter are members of the postal service or specific relatives. This includes a spouse, a parent, grandparent, child, sibling, aunt or uncle, niece or nephew.

It excludes caregivers, employees of a care facility, grandchildren, cousins, neighbors, friends and anyone else unrelated.

If anyone not listed returns the ballot, that would be a fourth-degree felony. If a voter receives a felony for helping their loved one, they would no longer be able to vote.

“If something happened to me, my husband — a brother-in-law — couldn’t do it,” Friedman Yaksic said.

Jen Miller with the League of Women Voters of Ohio filed a lawsuit with the ACLU, saying Ohio is violating the federal Americans with Disabilities Act and the Voting Rights Act.

Federal law states that voters with disabilities are allowed to “select a person of their choice to assist them with voting.”

“Many Ohio voters need to rely on grandkids, in-laws, roommates and neighbors to return their absentee ballot or assist in other ways,” Miller told me. “But those folks could have faced a felony sentence, which is wrong.”

Case Western Reserve University law professor Jonathan Entin explained the lawmakers probably didn’t mean to disenfranchise voters with disabilities.

“Legislators were concerned about the possibility of a practice called ballot harvesting — that some slimy, unethical or corrupt people will go and corral a whole bunch of votes, absentee ballots and turn them in in a way that undermines the integrity of the election,” Entin said.

To be clear, there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.

Ohio leaders, like Sec. of State Frank LaRose, have acknowledged this, but Entin said this is another “preventative” step for them.

Both Miller and Friedman Yaksic think there is another motive.

“The people that are passing these laws think that the people that will be impacted by these laws wouldn’t vote for them — so they don’t want them to vote,” Friedman Yaksic said.

The League of Women Voters has been trying to prevent against restrictive voting changes, and is now championing the anti-gerrymandering constitutional amendment that was just certified to make the Nov. ballot.

“We need to have lawmakers who listen to us, the people of Ohio, right now because lawmakers know they will win their seat over and over again,” Miller said.

Judge Bridget Meehan Brennan at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio sided with Miller on access, striking down that specific provision of the law.

“The chances of getting this ruling overturned, at least at this stage, are pretty slim,” Entin said.

Friedman Yaksic said this is great news.

“We need to encourage and enable as many people as possible to exercise their right to vote,” she said.

We reached out to the defendants on the case: the attorney general’s office, sec. of state’s office and Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s offices. Only the AG’s office responded, saying that they are talking with the other defendants and “are considering all the options.”

Full Article & Source:
Federal court sides with Ohio voters with disabilities, strikes down state law

DU Expands Efforts to Protect Older Adults From Financial Fraud

by Connor Mokrzycki

Older Americans are at high risk for financial fraud, losing more than $20 billion annually, according to a 2023 report from AARP. To help protect this vulnerable population in the state of Colorado, the Paul Freeman Financial Security Program (PFFSP) in DU’s Knoebel Institute for Healthy Aging formed a coalition in 2023, thanks to support from the federally funded National Center for State and Tribal Elder Justice Coalitions.

The coalition is an interdisciplinary group made up of state and local agencies, elder advocacy organizations and DU researchers whose goal is to evaluate the complex issues related to elder financial fraud and develop possible solutions for prevention. The PFFSP team is tasked with building the coalition, developing tools and trainings for frontline workers, and creating a central hub for information and resources.

In April, the coalition held their inaugural meeting and announced an expanded collaboration with the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA), the top consumer protection agency in the state. DORA’s Financial Engagement Unit joins other members including the Office of Governor Jared Polis, the offices of the state and Denver district attorneys, the Colorado Office of Financial Empowerment, AARP ElderWatch and AgeWise Colorado.       

Eric Chess, clinical professor and director of PFFSP, says the massive amount of money lost to exploitation is just the tip of the iceberg. “When people lose money, it affects their emotional health, their mental health, their cognitive health and entire well-being,” he says. “This includes worsening chronic diseases and symptoms that you see in the doctor's office.” 

At the root of the problem is the little-understood connection between health and finances, which can turn into a vicious cycle, Chess says. “The first signs of clinical cognitive impairment are often seen in impaired financial decision making, which leaves individuals at an increased risk of exploitation or fraud—which in turn can worsen cognitive health.” 

PFFSP aims to highlight the importance of understanding this connection as they develop frameworks and tools to protect and improve mental, physical and financial health of people as they age.

However, Chess notes, the issue is a concern not just for older adults. “Older adults get taken for more money—often because they have more money—and they also have less ability to recover from financial loss than younger folks. But it's also under-appreciated that younger adults actually get taken advantage of more often, just for lesser amounts.” What’s more, “The older adults of tomorrow are today's kids. So, if you're really going to tackle all these issues, you have to look at it throughout the life spectrum.”

Chess and his team are also developing a financial vulnerability scale that would alert individuals when they are vulnerable to financial exploitation and, crucially, provide detailed insight into why. 

“A key issue is that people are vulnerable for different reasons—it can be from a social standpoint, a behavioral standpoint, or a cognitive standpoint. There are a lot of different areas of vulnerability—and it's necessary to have (multidisciplinary) expertise be part of building the scale.”

Bringing policymakers, government agencies and, in particular, frontline workers into the conversation is crucial to successfully develop and implement any solution to combat financial fraud and abuse. “They have to be part of this equation,” Chess says. “You cannot try to create academic solutions and then impose them on the community and the people who are doing the work.”

Full Article & Source:
DU Expands Efforts to Protect Older Adults From Financial Fraud

NH seniors continue to fall prey to scammers as schemes proliferate

Victim of a phone scam? The New Hampshire Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Hotline is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and can be reached by calling 1-888-468-4454 or (603)-271-3641.

By Shawne K. Wickham

They pose as bankers, government agents, IT experts, lottery officials, romantic partners — even relatives — with one goal: Stealing your money.

Despite ongoing news stories and warnings from law enforcement agencies, more than 100,000 Americans fell for scams last year — and two-thirds of them were seniors.

New FBI statistics show more than 400 New Hampshire residents 60 and older fell victim to scams in 2023 at a loss of more than $11 million.

Why is this happening?

Kristen Setera, spokesperson for the FBI’s Boston division, which includes New Hampshire, said seniors are targeted for several reasons. “They’re often more polite and trusting,” she said. “They may be lonely and spend a great deal of time alone.”

But she went on, “We also think they’re a ripe group for targeting because they’re financially stable and own their own homes.”

Bryan Townsend, senior assistant attorney general, said that while not only seniors fall victim to a variety of scams, “They’re targeted first and foremost because they have the most assets.”

“They’re a generation that saved well, that planned well, they have a variety of investment accounts that they can tap into, and scammers know that,” he said.

Townsend, who is the lead prosecutor for the Department of Justice’s elder abuse and financial exploitation unit, said the number of people engaging in this kind of criminal conduct is on the rise, both within the United States and internationally. In some ways, we’re making it easier for them.

“The more that our lives become automated, and we purchase things online, and our lives become online, our personal identifying information gets shared, and ultimately gets stolen and gets compromised,” he said.

As the population ages, scammers are changing how they approach potential victims, the FBI’s Setera said.

“The younger seniors, the Baby Boomers, have more computer skills than the older seniors, which means criminals are modifying their targeting techniques,” she said. “While the traditional scam artists and bad actors will use telephone calls and mass mailings, now there are burgeoning online scams like phishing and email scamming.”

Scammers often insist on confidentiality in their dealings with their targets, and do research online to find out details about their targets to be more convincing, Setera said.

One-fourth are tech scams

According to the FBI’s annual report on elder fraud, tech support fraud was the No. 1 scam perpetrated on seniors last year, while investment scams were the most costly for that group. Nationally, total losses topped $3.4 billion, an 11% increase from those reported in 2022.

In New Hampshire, 97 out of the 408 cases reported last year involved tech support scams. Romance or confidence scams led to the highest loss amounts here, a total of $2.45 million, followed by nearly $1.8 million from tech support scams.

As staggering as those numbers are, experts say these crimes go vastly underreported to state and federal authorities.

“I think a lot of seniors are less likely to report the crime out of shame and fear and embarrassment,” the FBI’s Setera said.

The DOJ’s Townsend has seen that reluctance by victims to report in cases he has prosecuted. But he said, “It’s not about being stupid at all. It’s about individuals preying on some sort of vulnerability that the victim has.”

“Whether that vulnerability is a sense of fear in the case of a grandparent scam, a sense of loneliness in the case of a romance scam, or a sense of desperation in the case of a lottery scam, it’s always feeding off some sense of vulnerability. And once they find it, they target that,” Townsend said.

One ongoing scam involves what the FBI calls “government impersonation,” in which someone poses as a police officer, IRS agent or another official, and insists the individual must pay a fine or risk arrest. “No one’s ever going to call and threaten you with arrest if you don’t send money,” Setera said. “That’s not the way any law enforcement agency operates.”’

In New Hampshire last year, 100 cases of reported fraud involved the use of cryptocurrency or cryptocurrency wallets to steal the victims’ money.

Townsend explained how that works: “What typically happens is the scammers will instruct a victim to go to a nearby convenience store that has a cryptocurrency ATM, to insert cash in the cryptocurrency ATM which then converts it to cryptocurrency, and then send it to a crypto wallet which the scammer controls.”

In some cases, scammers take cash directly from their victims and then use a crypto ATM to send it internationally, Townsend said.

Sting operation

The AG’s office recently announced the arrest of a Massachusetts woman who allegedly acted as a courier in a tech support scam that involved at least three victims.

Rachel Chen, 25, of North Andover, Mass., was indicted by a Merrimack County Grand Jury in June for conspiracy to commit theft by deception and attempted theft by deception, both Class A felonies. Authorities allege that Chen went to an Allenstown home on instructions from an “unknown co-conspirator” and obtained a package that she believed contained $22,000 in cash.

Instead it was a sting operation, and Chen was arrested.

The case arose after an Allenstown man became suspicious when a stranger contacted him to proffer technical support.

”This individual had been told that this computer was infected and his bank accounts were compromised, and that he needed to pay money to keep his money safe,” Townsend said. “The instructions were that …a bank employee would be coming to the house to collect the money and ultimately keep it safe.”

The man called Allenstown police who, in coordination with the AG’s office, conducted the sting operation that led to Chen’s arrest, Townsend said. Investigators have since identified two other victims, one in Nashua and another in Vermont, he said.

It’s sometimes difficult to understand how someone could fall for such a scheme. But Townsend said, “Unless you’re involved, unless you’re panicking about this significant loss of assets, you can’t really understand the panic and fear that happens. So I think that tends to cloud the judgment a little bit.”

Setera said families should be having ongoing conversations about the kinds of scams out there, and reminding older relatives not to divulge personal information online or over the phone.

Townsend advises having “a trusted person that you can rely on, whether it’s a family member or a good friend, or even someone at your local police department, who you can connect with and give a quick call to if something just doesn’t seem right.”

If you have been targeted, authorities say, it’s important to contact law enforcement quickly.

Consumers can call the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Hotline: 603-271-3641. In addition, report scams to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), online at: ic3.gov.

Full Article & Source:
NH seniors continue to fall prey to scammers as schemes proliferate

The Wendy Williams Documentary Raises Critical Questions About Guardianship and Incapacity

 

by Linda Bell

For many reasons, Lifetime’s Wendy Williams documentary was hard for me to watch. 

I will begin this story in the 90s and 2000s. That's when I heard Wendy dishing out hot topics on New York radio stations Hot 97 and later on 107.5 WBLS. Love her or hate her, she always had the streets talking. I’m not one for celebrity gossip, but Wendy had a way of making listeners feel like they were her longtime friends. 

When The Wendy Williams Show debuted in 2008, I was not surprised. It was like seeing a local celebrity of sorts moving onto greater heights. The controversial media personality that reigned in New York’s Tri-State area was now unleashed on the world. Daytime television would never be the same. 

How I Met Wendy Williams

In 2010, I had the pleasure of interviewing Wendy to discuss her successful talk show, her radio career and being the second Black woman inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame. We met at the NASDAQ Marketsite, where she celebrated the second year of her show by ringing the opening bell.  

We memorialized the meeting with the picture above. Wendy joked that we should stand because of “the hilarity of it all.” For context, I am 5 ft 2 and a little over 100 lbs on a good day.🙂 Wendy giggled at how she towered above me in her six-inch heels. (This was before she stopped wearing heels due to lymphedema, a blockage in the lymphatic system that causes swelling in the feet.)

Outspoken, witty, and personable are three words I would choose to describe Wendy. As a writer, I am seldom at a loss for words, yet I only have one word to describe the Where is Wendy Williams? documentary. Disturbing. It never should have seen the light of day.

Wendy’s Struggles Documented 

Lifetime’s four-part documentary gave us a bird’s eye view into Wendy's challenges with alcohol, health issues, and declining cognitive functions.  

I was shocked to hear that four years ago, Wendy had to be rushed to the hospital after she was found unresponsive at her home. Her nephew said she had to receive three lifesaving blood transfusions. Despite this near brush with death, Wendy professes her love for vodka early in the documentary. She later curses her manager when he confronts her about finding an empty vodka bottle in her room. 

It was tough to see how Graves Disease, hyperthyroidism, and lymphedema have affected Wendy’s appearance. In one scene, Wendy says she can only feel 2% of her feet, which are swollen and discolored. “This is lymphedema...Do you see what this looks like?” she said tearfully. 

The documentary is riddled with even more unfortunate scenes, including one where Wendy’s publicist asks her if she wants to attend the Oscars. Wendy, who is synonymous with all-things-celebrity, uttered two simple words that spoke volumes. She paused and asked, “What’s Oscar’s?” with a strained and confused look on her face. 

How is Wendy doin’? Clearly, she is not well. 

Wendy’s Diagnosis Revealed 

Days before the premiere of the documentary, we learned that Wendy suffers from primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). 

Aphasia is a condition affecting language and communication abilities, while FTD is a progressive disorder impacting behavior and cognitive functions. Wendy’s son revealed in the documentary that her dementia is caused by excessive alcohol use. 

Wendy has always been open and honest about her struggles with drugs and alcohol. Several unfortunate events in recent years have likely added to her challenges. 

In 2019, her 20-year marriage ended in divorce after her husband fathered a child with his mistress. The same year, the outspoken talk show host tearfully revealed on her show that she was living in a sober house. In 2020, the COVID pandemic brought the world to a standstill, coupled with the death of her mother, Shirley Williams. Two years later, the Wendy Williams Show was canceled after 14 years on the air. Because of health issues, Wendy would not host the final year of her show.

The purpose of the Lifetime documentary was to chronicle Wendy’s return to the airwaves as a podcast host. What we got was anything but. 

Producers say if they had known about Wendy’s diagnosis, they would not have taped the documentary. How could the producers not see that something was wrong and stop filming?

Wendy has been under court-appointed guardianship since 2022 after Wells Fargo said she was a victim of financial exploitation. While her legal guardian tried to block the documentary from airing, the move was denied in court. Where was the guardian while the documentary was being filmed?  

I was also surprised to see that Wendy and her family are listed as executive producers of the documentary. Why did her family sign off on this unfortunate project?

As I searched for answers to my questions, even more questions arose. I soon found myself falling deep into the rabbit hole that is the guardianship system. What I found out was not pretty. 

The Failed Guardianship System 

Guardianship is a legal arrangement when the court appoints someone to make decisions for an incapacitated individual like the disabled or elderly. An estimated 1.3 million adults are under guardianship in the United States, encompassing about $50 billion in assets.

If there is any redeeming value in the Wendy Williams documentary, it’s that it shows the system designed to protect vulnerable Americans is broken. 

Lack of Transparency 

Guardianship cases are often shrouded in secrecy. Not only is there a lack of available data, but states are governed by different laws. In New York, adult guardianships are filed under Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law.

Léonie Rosenstiel, author of Protecting Mama: Surviving the Legal Guardianship Swamp, has spent two decades researching problems in the system. Rosenstiel’s mother was placed under court-appointed guardianship after she became incapacitated. 

“One of the things that's really painful for families, is they're very often not given any explanation for what happened,” she says. “It just happens. They’re in the dark and they can't find out why because all the documents are sealed and secret.”

Rubber Stamping Petitions

In most states, anyone can petition the court to appoint a guardian for a person alleged to be incapacitated. That includes government agencies, families, and health care providers.

Diane Dimond, an investigative journalist and author of We’re Here to Help: When Guardianship Goes Wrong, has conducted an eight-year investigation into guardianships. She says one of the flaws in the system is how petitions are sometimes approved without proper consideration.

“For a guardianship to start, someone has to initiate it, go to a lawyer and the lawyer draws up a petition for guardianship. And in that petition, they explain to the court why the targeted person needs protection,” says Dimond. “Judges keenly just rubber stamp those. Okay, good, fine, guardianship. Next case, please.”

Flawed Appointment Process

Additionally, Dimond cites failings with how guardians are appointed. 

Dimond, who has communicated with Wendy’s sister, Wanda Finnie, says that Wanda was asked if she wanted to act as Wendy’s guardian. Wanda said yes and was willing to take the required day-long class in New York. Ultimately, Wanda was not chosen. The court has the discretion to appoint a non-family member, such as a professional guardian or agency for incapacitated individuals.

“That’s what judges across the country are doing, they’re not picking the family member because then the money stays in the family,” says Dimond. “They want to spread it around amongst their cronies.”

Potential Abuse of Power 

A 2023 hearing from the Senate Aging Committee highlighted how exploitation, abuse, neglect, and financial impropriety are unfortunate realities in some guardianship cases. While some well-intentioned, honest guardians exist, their power can open the door to malfeasance.

“The guardian is not just in charge of the money, the guardian is in charge of all medical decisions,” says Dimond. “The guardian can order medications to be given to the person. The guardian can take the person out of their abode and put them in a facility…They can keep the family away. They can take the ward and put them in another state. If a female ward is pregnant, they can order an abortion. These people have complete judicial authority.”

Wendy’s family has complained that they don't have a say in her treatment or know where she is. 

“Guardianship is a system designed to protect the most vulnerable, at-risk people,” says Dimond. “How does it help protect them if you keep them from people who love them? Why is that allowed?

Never-Ending Oversight  

If it's no longer required, courts may terminate the guardianship while the person is still alive, as the Britney Spears conservatorship case demonstrates. However, guardianships typically end when the person dies. Unfortunately, that means Wendy’s rights and the rights of other incapacitated individuals are potentially lost forever. 

“Wendy Williams is now a ward of the court,” says Dimond. “She loses all of her civil rights. She can't vote. She can't spend her own money. She can decide where to live. She can't decide who gets to see her. She can't travel. She can't do anything. And all of her money is put into the name of the guardian. All of her assets or property, her money, her investment, everything.”

The Guardianship Bill of Rights Act was legislation introduced in 2023 to reform the repressive system. The law aims to create a national council advocating for less restrictive alternatives for individuals in or being considered for guardianship. Bills in Florida and Michigan have also been introduced to improve protections for vulnerable adults. 

Fighting Court-Ordered Guardianships 

So where exactly is Wendy Williams a year after filming the documentary? 

She is currently at an undisclosed medical facility receiving care. Dimond was told by Wanda that Wendy is flourishing and showing signs of improvement. Unfortunately, Wendy’s family still doesn’t know where she is. While Wendy can contact them, they can’t contact her. How can this be in her best interests? 

“The mechanism would be to hire a lawyer, hire an expensive lawyer to fight it,” says Dimond. “It’s really hard for these families and any families across the country I've spoken to, to find a lawyer that will take on other lawyers.” 

Dimond notes that as an inheritor of Wendy’s estate, her son could hire a lawyer. However, going that route can be a costly and lengthy endeavor. 

“The guardian now has the right to hire their own lawyer to protect them,” says Dimond. “Wendy Williams pays for that. Wendy Williams will pay for every aspect. Wendy Williams’ estate will pay to fight her own son. As he fights, I don't know where he would get money to hire a lawyer to fight this. He's also diminishing his inheritance. The attorneys and the guardian on Mom's side are draining the money that he would otherwise inherit. There are cases where I've seen millions of dollars spent in fights and then the person dies and there's no money left. It’s all gone.”

Preparing for Incapacity 

As I wrote this article, the personal finance journalist in me was determined to glean financial learnings from Wendy’s situation. 

Rosenstiel notes that while Wendy is only 59 years old, it’s important to discuss incapacity with loved ones well before they become incapacitated. Families can explore implementing advance directives like living wills and healthcare proxies, or powers of attorney and trusts. Signing a power of attorney or other legal document after someone’s cognitive functions have declined can raise red flags, as reportedly happened with Wendy’s son. 

“There are people like Bruce Willis or other people who are getting dementia younger and younger and younger. So you need to have this in place,” says Rosenstiel. “It's not a question of when I get to be 70 I have to sit down and do this. You don't know. You could be in an accident anytime. People are incapacitated, either for a period of time or forevermore. You never know when something is going to happen. You need to have a mechanism in place. And you need to have people use trust.”

When I think about Wendy’s situation, I can’t help but think about my mother and her declining mental capacity near the end of her life. I often wonder what would have happened to her if I wasn’t there. 

I managed my mother’s medical care and finances as her power of attorney, health care proxy, and Social Security representative payee. I made sure those systems were in place well before her mental and physical health declined. 

By taking those critical steps, I was able to tend to all of my mother’s needs. I made sure she remained in her home where she was comfortable. I visited her as many times as I wanted to. I was able to hug her, hold her hand, and see her smile every time I saw her. 

Make sure you can do the same for your loved ones.

Full Article & Source:
The Wendy Williams Documentary Raises Critical Questions About Guardianship and Incapacity

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Wendy Williams

Web Of Whispers: A Memoir of Unmasking Munchausen by Proxy Kindle Edition

by Alaina LeBlanc

In this powerful and emotionally searing memoir, Alaina LeBlanc shares the harrowing true story of her family's descent into the nightmarish depths of Munchausen by Proxy abuse at the hands of her half-sister, Eve.

What began as a troubling guardianship case over their aging mother, Tara, soon spiraled into much darker territory as Alaina uncovered Eve's pattern of deceit, manipulation, and the insidious fabrication of medical crises. With her mother confined to a surveillance-riddled basement, trapped in a chilling cycle of deprivation and control, Alaina embarked on a desperate quest for truth and justice.

However, her pleas for intervention were met with disbelief and legal stonewalling, forcing Alaina to confront a dizzying labyrinth of systemic injustice. As she delved deeper, whispers from Eve's children—once silenced but now defiant—revealed their own harrowing stories of religious indoctrination, isolation, and psychological subjugation also shedding light on the mysterious death of one of their siblings.

Weaving in insights from renowned experts on Munchausen by Proxy, "The Web of Whispers" is a blazing exploration of this insidious form of abuse. It's an intimate portrait of love's tenacity, a family's unbreakable bonds, and the relentless pursuit of truth against a maze of deceit and malice.

A profoundly moving and eye-opening story of overcoming the darkness, this memoir shines a light on the shadowed corners where this cruelty persists. Both a searing personal odyssey and a call for change, it raises crucial awareness while offering hope and validation for victims and survivors. 

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Web Of Whispers: A Memoir of Unmasking Munchausen by Proxy Kindle Edition