Clay County officials announce task force that targets mismanaged guardianships

by Scott Johnson

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – Clay County officials announced a Guardianship Task Force Tuesday to identify, investigate and prosecute mismanaged or illegally conducted guardianships that have left elderly residents and children vulnerable, officials said.

The effort is led by Clay County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Tara Green and Clay County Sheriff Michelle Cook and includes the state attorney’s office and law enforcement partners from surrounding counties.

The task force will centralize investigations, improve information sharing and ensure cases involving vulnerable victims receive coordinated attention from complaint to prosecution, officials said.

“Hundreds of children and vulnerable adults receive services through court‑appointed guardians,” Green said.

Her office audits guardians’ reports annually, focusing on wards’ physical well‑being, financial accounts and the status of their assets.

Green described recent cases uncovered by auditors, including one in which a guardian depleted the bank account of an elderly woman, took her monthly pension, sold her property and left her destitute without personal effects while medical bills went unpaid. The exploitation was committed by a family member who had been caring for the woman, Green said.

“When guardianships are carried out legally, these vulnerable adults and children are properly cared for,” she said. “But when a guardianship is mismanaged or conducted in an illegal or even criminal manner, the results can be devastating.”

Cook said complaints previously were handled piecemeal, with administrative reviews by the clerk’s office and criminal probes by sheriff’s investigators often pursued separately.

The task force is intended to put all agencies “on the same page,” she said, allowing officials to share information earlier and coordinate investigations that may cross jurisdictions.

Officials urged the public to educate themselves before appointing or hiring a guardian, to ask questions and to report suspicious activity.

Resources and contact information are available on the Clay Clerk’s website and relatives, neighbors and care providers are encouraged to call the task force even if they are unsure a crime has occurred so experts can evaluate concerns.

You can also call the Florida Department of Children and Families Abuse Hotline at 1-800-96-ABUSE. If you suspect a court-appointed guardian is not being ethical, call their hotline at 1-855-305-3030.

“We want to make sure everyone knows we will be watching, and if you’re taking advantage of someone you have guardianship over, you will be held accountable,” Cook said. 

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Clay County officials announce task force that targets mismanaged guardianships