ABA Testifies Before Senate Aging Committee on Protecting Seniors from AI-Generated Fraud

Association calls for coordinated action to combat growing threat of AI-enabled scams

WASHINGTON — American Bankers Association Executive Vice President for Risk, Fraud and Cybersecurity Paul Benda will testify before the Senate Special Committee on Aging today on the growing threat of artificial intelligence-enabled scams and the need for a coordinated response to better protect older Americans from financial exploitation.

At a hearing titled "The AI Deception Machine: Deepfakes, Chatbots, and the New Frontier of Senior Fraud," Benda will outline how generative AI is making scams more convincing, personalized and scalable while enabling criminals to exploit trusted identities and communications channels. 

"The central point of my testimony is straightforward: generative AI is not replacing traditional scams. It is industrializing them," Benda said in his prepared testimony. "A criminal can now create a convincing voice, video, photograph, text message, advertisement, or online persona with little technical skill and at very low cost." 

Benda's testimony highlights how banks are using AI, advanced analytics, employee training, consumer education and information sharing to better identify suspicious activity and protect consumers from increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes. 

"While criminals use AI to make deception more effective, banks employ AI to detect anomalies and protect customers,” Benda said. “The goal should not be to restrict beneficial defensive uses. It should be to strengthen safeguards, improve information sharing, and reduce criminals' ability to exploit communications and identity systems.” 

ABA’s testimony also outlines several policy recommendations, including establishing a National Office for Scam and Fraud Prevention, strengthening telecommunications safeguards, improving fraud-related information sharing, enacting the SCAM Act and modernizing identity and authentication systems.

"Congress can help by establishing accountable national leadership, strengthening telecommunications safeguards, improving information sharing and funds recovery, supporting modern identity systems, and ensuring that every sector involved in the scam lifecycle is responsible for protecting the public," Benda said.

Benda's full testimony is available here. 

Source:
ABA Testifies Before Senate Aging Committee on Protecting Seniors from AI-Generated Fraud 

ABA Report To The House Of Delegates Resolution for States to amend their guardianship statutes

RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association urges state, territorial, and tribal legislatures to amend their guardianship statutes to require that supported decision-making be identified and fully considered as a less restrictive alternative before guardianship is imposed; and urges courts to consider supported decision-making as a less restrictive alternative to guardianship; and

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the American Bar Association urges state, territorial, and tribal legislatures to amend their guardianship statutes to require that decision-making supports that would meet the individual’s needs be identified and fully considered in proceedings for termination of guardianship and restoration of rights; and urges all courts to consider available decision-making supports that would meet the individual’s needs as grounds for termination of a guardianship and restoration of rights.

Source:
ABA Report To The House Of Delegates Resolution for States to amend their guardianship statutes

Read the ABA Report

Guardian Corruption Finances Voter Fraud in the United States

This article exposes using embezzled funds from senior guardianship accounts as a primary financial tool to commit voter fraud. This is a national problem having several players including the American Bar Association, social workers, cooperative physicians, court systems, and attorneys who make a nice living by financing voter fraud.

The example I’ll use for this article, is based upon numerous documents of obtained evidence from Clark County, Nevada. I will expose how the money flows from law firms, trust accounts and unaccounted for property sales is used to force undocumented citizens to commit voter fraud. I will reveal the story of one undocumented citizen who uses the name Hector, who was recruited by a Clark County official to commit voter fraud. I will explain why Nevada is hiding this corruption.

Nevada makes money by protecting private guardians who have bragged about stealing hundreds of millions from unsuspecting families. Unfortunately, Clark County, along with the state of Nevada, is convicting citizens who never registered as professional guardians. These citizens are being convicted of elder exploitation to hide this corruption. The beneficiaries of this corrupt system are politically connected individuals. The facts will shock you.

I’m a retired Clark County, Nevada clerk who witnessed guardian abuse on a major scale. I observed how stolen funds were used to commit voter fraud in Las Vegas, Nevada. I have personally witnessed the establishment of fraudulent guardianships. Fraudulent guardianships are encouraged by the Clark County court system because the money from guardian confiscated accounts finances voter fraud.

Paying people to commit the crime of voter fraud requires large amounts of underground funding. My observations will expose the truth behind private guardian corruption and how the state Attorney General and Las Vegas District Attorney are protecting the true embezzlers.

Due to a serious illness, I’ve decided to share what I know about the private guardian for hire system, which has never been discussed in the news media.

Guardian Fraud Begins With a System That Tolerates Lack of Accounting
In order to finance an off the books operation, a source of undocumented money is needed. Missing funds in estate accounts controlled by private for hire guardians is the perfect source of capital for a voter fraud campaign. The missing money is either ignored by the court system or passed over as normal procedure by commissioners and judges charged with overseeing these accounts. A former Clark County hearing master said senior citizens losing money was simply a process of growing old.

Hearing Master, Jon Norheim, was the Guardianship Commissioner who made this statement. I was in Jon Norheim’s court when this statement was made on November 3, 2006 to a shocked audience of attorneys and families. In countless guardianship cases, embezzled funds were never found. Jon Norheim and his boss, Judge Charles Hoskin, have been banned from hearing adult guardianship cases. Sadly, Commissioner Norheim is being allowed to oversee juvenile guardianship cases. The banning’s occurred because Commissioner Norheim and Judge Hoskin became quite controversial and over exposed as a result of victim family complaints. Please review the links in this article to substantiate this statement. The cause for the system’s tolerance for missing money results because these funds are needed to operate a powerful organization which commits voter fraud. I witnessed undocumented individuals being recruited for this practice.

How the Voter Fraud Organization Operates
Votes can be purchased by local politicians who need to win a close election. One private Nevada guardian actually owns the largest election billboard sign company in Las Vegas. His name will be mentioned later along with substantiating links to back up my statements. The organization will force undocumented citizens to vote for a particular candidate or ballot proposition. If the undocumented citizen refuses, deportation will be the final consequence. Union officials and political Party operatives apply pressure on these undocumented citizens to ensure they vote in the ballot box on Election Day. Several unions and corrupt officials supply the voter fraud organization with a list of undocumented workers living in Las Vegas who are likely candidates for committing voter fraud. The undocumented citizens appear on the RADAR because they committed some crime. These crimes include unpaid parking tickets, driving without a license and driving under the influence. The fact major political parties are opposed to voters providing identification during an election is further proof such a system exists. If voters had to provide identification during the act of voting, it would be difficult for undocumented citizens to commit voter fraud.

One undocumented citizen named Hector was convicted of three counts of driving under the influence. Hector claimed that a deputy DA working in the Las Vegas District Attorney’s office had his record wiped clean because he could get ten other undocumented citizens to vote in the 2016 election for certain candidates and propositions. Hector worked hard to perform this task because three convictions meant permanent loss of his driver’s license. Hector alleges his record was sanitized by the DA’s office. Another interesting fact concerns Clark County’s former public guardian, Jared E. Shafer. Mr. Shafer owned and operated the largest election billboard sign company in Las Vegas, which is known as Signs of Nevada. Mr. Shafer served as public guardian in Clark County from 1979 through 2003. Shafer’s connection with Clark County departments granted this private for hire guardian special access to undocumented citizens who were vulnerable for recruitment for voter fraud. Many Las Vegas and Clark County officials obtained votes along with special sign pricing from Jared Shafer’s company, which is known to locals as Signs of Nevada. In return for legal and political favors cooperative officials received free signage from Mr. Shafer to finance their election campaign. Articles about Shafer’s signs are found online. I will discuss at a later point in this article how the votes of undocumented citizens influenced elections in Nevada.

Court Activity in Voter Fraud
Courts ignored corrupt guardian activity until 2013. Cracks in this voter fraud system first appeared with the arrest and conviction of Patience M. Bristol. I personally worked on this case. Bristol removed over $2 million from the court designated ward accounts she was charged with protecting.

The District Attorney charged Bristol with 20 counts of exploitation. The system allowed Ms. Bristol to plead guilty to only one count of elder exploitation. The DA had videos of Patience Bristol pawning stolen jewelry, which the system chose to ignore. Unfortunately, at Bristol’s sentencing, four victims appeared before the court to testify. Bristol was quoted as saying “I didn’t pay enough to the right people.” The voter fraud system resulted in Bristol’s crimes being swept under the carpet. The bulk of the missing money went toward recruiting and controlling the votes of undocumented citizens. The reference links in this article will provide additional details. Major political parties in Nevada received the bulk of senior citizen missing funds, which were used for the voter fraud campaign. These funds went to boost the vote count for local politicians running for office in Clark County, Nevada. I was present when Patience Bristol’s former boss and private guardian, Jared E. Shafer, said, “Bristol knew the right people to pay. She didn’t give enough.”

Full Article & Source:
Guardian Corruption Finances Voter Fraud in the United States

Tonight on T.S. Radio: Bill Scheidler

Join us as Bill Scheidler talks about his efforts to hold the Washington state BAR Assoc. and the judiciary accountable for the corruption which is rampant in that system. Bill has filed a RICO lawsuit exposing the corruption at all levels, and the protection racket that keeps it running! the ‘RICO lawsuit’ and “RICO statement” with exhibits can be found at this site.

Bill will discuss these topics:

1) At the core of our rotten government you find a lawyer,

2) At the core of the legal establishment are the Bar associations,

3) This entity — the Bar Associations — has become a “shadow government” unaccountable to the people, and

4) The Bar Associates, then become judges … who are also unaccountable …. in this way “judges and lawyers” have become our “judicial branch” and we citizens are their play-toys.

4:00 pm PST … 5:00 pm MST … 6:00 pm CST … 7:00 pm EST

LISTEN to the show live or listen to the archive later

Tonight on T.S. Radio: Marcia Southwick Reports on International Guardianship Convention

Marcia Southwick joins us to report on the convention held last week covering guardianship.  Attendees came from various perspectives and countries.

The convention was sponsored by the BAR Association and the National Guardianship Association, among many other "stakeholders".  Both groups, whose activities are diametrically opposed to their stated purposes, had intended the convention to be a huge marketing campaign.

Attending with the intentions of highlighting the real state of guardianship for profit, was Marcia Southwick and Elaine Renoire from NASGA.  Many other advocates and activists, many of whom have been directly impacted by predatory, court facilitated guardianships, were also in attendance.

5:00 pm PST … 6:00 pm MST … 7:00 pm CST … 8:00 pm EST

LISTEN LIVE or listen to the archive later

See Also:
Boomers Against Elder Abuse on Facebook

"Checklist for Family Survivors"

 A practical resource for dealing with family matters upon death, this first-of-its-kind publication from the American Bar Association and AARP - the nation 's leading associations in the law and the advancement of issues that matter most to people 50+ and their families - helps answer the myriad of questions surrounding what needs to be done following a loved one 's passing.

This must-have book guides you through the steps to wrap up the personal and financial affairs of the loved one who died. Although the ABA/AARP Checklist for Family Survivors: A Guide to Practical and Legal Matters When Someone You Love Dies does not provide legal advice, it does include legal reasons, implications and complications that cover a variety of questions loved ones face upon death. In each chapter, you' ll find convenient checklists to help guide you through the difficult time.

Chapter topics include:
*Applying for survivors benefits
*Checking on insurance benefits
*Sorting through the stuff
*Getting ready for probate
*Taking care of yourself
And more!

Available through the ABA

Tonight on T.S. Radio: Guardianship Abuse, The Stalking of the Elderly by Professional Predators

Join us tonight as we discuss various laws that are surfacing in several states that address the targeting and exploitation of elderly individuals who have sizeable assets.  This exploitation is NOT done by family members or friends. It is perpetrated by professionals who operate under the protection of the BAR Association and facilitated by probate court judges. In less than 5% of the cases of exloitation is the involvement of family members.  95% of the time on average, it is by professional strangers to the victim and family.

As billions are stolen annually by predatory guardians and immoral attorney's, our legislative representatives feign ignorance of the theft and exploitation.  In a few cases, there appears to be some movement towards ending the exploitation.....at least by family members.  The professional predators appear to be untouchable.

We will take call-ins after the first 1/2 hour.  Calls must be limited to the discussion at hand.

5:00 pm PST … 6:00 pm MST … 7:00 pm CST … 8:00 pm EST

LISTEN LIVE or listen to the archive later

Tonight on T.S. Radio: Guardianship Abuse - New Laws Coming to Protect the Predators

Marcia Southwick joins us this evening to discuss new laws being promoted in several states claiming to reform predatory guardianships, perpetrated by professional predators operating through and with the probate courts.

As an example: SB 634 from Florida, sponsored by Senator Brandes appears on the surface to deal with the failure to submit timely audits of the victims estate. A careful reading of the opening paragraph, lines 1-32 makes clear that this new statute would apply only to NON-Professionals....in other words, family members or anyone not working in a professional capacity in guardianship.

Anyone not working under protection of the probate court, the BAR Association, The National Guardianship Association or any other association that operates as a protection racket for professional predators.

This should be a revealing discussion on what is intentionally omitted from bills, what is written to appear as a major change when in fact it is nothing more than a furtherance of protection for those gaming the system while targeting families and friends.

We will take calls in the second hour. 5:00 pm PST … 6:00 pm MST … 7:00 pm CST … 8:00 pm EST

LISTEN LIVE to the show or listen to the archive later

Federal Judge Jails Estate Lawyer Joseph Caramadre as Flight Risk

A Rhode Island estate planning lawyer's effort to revoke his guilty plea in a controversial $30 million elder insurance fraud case was a "bizarre" and unjustified "hatchet job" on Joseph Caramadre's former counsel, a federal judge said.

U.S. District Judge William Smith not only nixed Caramadre's bid for a new trial but agreed with prosecutors in the Providence case that he should immediately be jailed as a flight risk, pending his sentencing in July, report the Associated Press and the Providence Journal.

"It was amazing to watch a defendant perjure himself saying he perjured himself the first time," the judge said.

Caramadre and an employee were charged with defrauding dying individuals into allowing insurance investments to be made in their names.

They pleaded guilty to wire fraud and conspiracy shortly after their trial began in November.

Source:
Federal Judge Jails Estate Lawyer as Flight Risk, Nixes 'Bizzare' Effort to Revoke Plea

See Also:
Death Takes a Policy:  How a Lawyer Exploited the Fine Print and Found Himself Facing Federal Charges

2012 State Adult Guardianship Legislative Update

The ABA Commission on Law and Aging has completed the  2012 State Adult Guardianship Legislative Update.  Click  through to read about the 29 adult guardianship measures enacted during the year.

Source:
American Bar Association

READ: State Adult Guadianship Legislation:  Directions of Reform - 2012

Effort to Curb Abuse by Legal Guardians Advances in Senate

The Senate Judiciary Committee backed a measure designed to help state courts improve their handling of adult guardianship cases in an effort to prevent exploitation of seniors and the disabled.

The amended bill (S 1744) would authorize grants for the courts to update their practices on guardians overseeing adults who are unable to manage property and accounts, as well as conservators tasked with managing adults’ estates.

The Judiciary panel approved the measure in a 15-3 vote, with Republicans Jeff Sessions of Alabama, Tom Coburn of Oklahoma and Mike Lee of Utah opposing it.

“I know every state has incidences of people getting ripped off millions of dollars when their loved one is supposed to be under the care of a guardian,” said Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar , the bill’s sponsor. “Most guardians do amazing work, good work, but . . . [some] are causing a lot of harm.”

Klobuchar is the chairwoman of the Judiciary panel’s Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts, which held a hearing last year to examine court-appointed guardians for seniors and the disabled.

“It is a moral imperative that we take action,” Klobuchar said at the Sept. 22 hearing, citing a Government Accountability Office report on wrongdoing by guardians.

The 2010 report identified hundreds of allegations of physical abuse, neglect and financial exploitation by guardians. In 20 selected cases, the GAO found “guardians stole or otherwise improperly obtained $5.4 million in assets from 158 incapacitated victims, many of whom were seniors” and in some instances “also physically neglected and abused their victims.”

The report also revealed instances in which courts failed to adequately screen potential guardians or oversee guardians once they were appointed.

Under Klobuchar’s bill, the Health and Human Services Department could award grants to state courts to be used for assessing how they appoint and monitor guardians and conservators, as well as for making any needed changes to their practices. Recipient courts would be directed to work with their state’s aging and adult protective service agencies.

The bill also would require HHS to give the State Justice Institute (SJI) an opportunity to weigh in on how the grants are awarded, and HHS may also consult with the Justice Department.

Established in 1984, the SJI is a nonprofit corporation governed by an 11-member board composed of state court judges, members of the public and a state court administrator. It is tasked with promoting greater coordination between state and federal courts.

The bill would include no new funding. Rather it would tap into existing grant funds. It has the backing of groups such as the AARP, the American Bar Association, The National Center for State Courts and The National Guardianship Association, Klobuchar said Thursday.

Full Article and Source:
New Effort to Curb Abuse by Legal Guardians Advances in Senate

See Also:
Guardian Accountabilty and Senior Protection Act Passes Senate Today

Budget Cuts on Judicial Investigations

Georgia’s system for protecting its residents from rogue judges is in peril.

To balance this year’s budget, the General Assembly significantly cut public money for programs that administer judicial discipline and judicial training for the state’s 1,700 judges.

The cuts are impeding investigations of judges accused of corruption and limiting training for those who sit on the bench, including the hundreds of Georgia judges who are not attorneys.

Only after receiving a strongly worded letter last week from state Supreme Court Chief Justice Leah Ward Sears did the General Assembly decide against a Senate plan to wipe out virtually all state money for training judges.

The Judicial Qualifications Commission, which investigates complaints and punishes errant judges, is already one of the most slimly staffed in the nation. Commission members say they are now so short of money that they have halted some investigations.

Robert Ingram, a commission member "Right now, we have got judges who have serious charges against them that we can’t investigate."

Full Article and Source:
Policing of judges gets less funding

ABA Seeking Stories About Multi-State Guardianships

The American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging (ABA Commission) is looking for stories about how multi-state guardianship problems affect the lives of vulnerable individuals and their families, especially stories involving elder or adult abuse.

Adult guardianships often involve more than one state, raising complex jurisdictional issues. For example, many older people own property in different states. Family members may be scattered across the country. Frail, at-risk individuals may need to be moved for medical or financial reasons. Thus, judges, guardians, and lawyers frequently are faced with questions about which state should have initial jurisdiction, how to transfer a guardianship to another state, and whether a guardianship in one state will be recognized in another.

Such jurisdictional issues can take up vast amounts of time for courts and lawyers and can cause cumbersome delays and financial burdens for family members. Jurisdictional tangles can bar timely medical treatment for incapacitated individuals and can exacerbate family conflict. Moreover, lack of clear jurisdictional guideposts can facilitate “granny snatching” and other abusive actions.

To address these challenging problems, the Uniform Law Commission in 2007 approved the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act (UAGPPJA). The UAGPPJA seeks to clarify jurisdiction and provide a procedural road map for addressing dilemmas where more than one state is involved. The UAGPPJA cannot work as intended -- providing jurisdictional uniformity and reducing conflict -- unless all or most states adopt it.

Your stories about how multi-state guardianship problems affect the lives of vulnerable individuals and their families can make a real difference!

HOW YOU CAN HELP:
(1) Send your stories to the ABA Commission at:
guardianshipjurisdiction@staff.abanet.org

(2) Indicate whether the ABA Commission staff may share your name and contact information with the Uniform Law Commission staff. They may contact you regarding legislative advocacy within your state. ABA staff will not share this information without permission; we don’t want to discourage anyone from sending stories.

The ABA Commission’s Joint Campaign for Uniform Guardianship Jurisdiction is funded by the ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law; the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel Foundation; and the Uniform Law Foundation. For more information about the UAGPPJA and the Joint Campaign, visit:www.abanet.org/aging/guardianshipjurisdiction

Source:

ABA.org - aging - guardianship jurisdiction - story solicitation

See also:
Description of ABA Commission on Law and Aging Joint Campaign for Uniform Guardianship Jurisdiction

Uniform Power of Attorney Act

The misuse of powers of attorney to exploit the elderly appears to be on the rise, but a new AARP report says that states can improve protections for older people by adopting a model law that addresses this type of abuse.

For most people, the power of attorney (POA) is the most important estate planning instrument -- even more useful than a will. But while a POA avoids the costly and time-consuming process of having a court appoint a guardian or conservator, it also confers a great deal of authority on the agent. This is why advocates for the elderly often call the POA a "license to steal."

Increasingly, it seems, dishonest agents have been taking advantage of this license. AARP says that adult protective services and criminal justice professionals are reporting "an explosion" of financial exploitation cases of this type against the elderly.

In 2006, the Uniform Law Commissioners, which draft and propose model laws for states, approved the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (UPOAA) to offer states a set of provisions that will protect people who executive POAs and discourage abuse. The UPOAA includes stringent requirements for agents to exercise certain powers and provisions making malfeasant agents liable for damages, attorney's fees and costs.

New Mexico and Idaho -- have enacted the UPOAA and 12 states are considering adopting it in 2009. AARP's study of current state POA statutes found that "a large majority of state laws lack most of the UPOAA's protections for individuals creating powers of attorney."

The AARP report,“Power of Attorney Abuse: What States Can Do About It,” compiled by the American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging under contract to AARP, offers advocates tips for enacting the UPOAA provisions and includes a list of stakeholders who may want to collaborate in the study and recommendation process.

Source:
AARP Report Says States Have Power to Curb Power of Attorney Abuse

See also:
Power of attorney can victimize elderly - Agents can write checks, sell seniors' property

Guardianship Legislation

According to a State Adult Guardianship Legislation report, about 13 states passed a total of 16 adult guardianship bills last year.

The report includes - Connecticut bolstering procedures for appointment and appeal. Washington, Arkansas and Nevada creating or strengthening a public guardianship program.

Other states in the report include Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Illinois, Idaho, Kentucky, Minnesota, Rhode Island and Virginia.

Legislation at a glance:

California's Omnibus Act was also mentioned in the report. "In 2006, in response to a series of reports on the state’s adult guardianship system (called “conservatorship” in California), the legislature passed an Omnibus Act, which was “a landmark package of bills to overhaul California’s troubled conservatorship system. That legislation [was] designed to remedy alarming deficiencies in California’s conservatorship system that had led to the abuses of California’s elderly and most vulnerable” (Bill Summary, Legislative Analysis, Leora Gershenzon). While the Act was moving through the legislature, the Chief Justice appointed a Probate Conservatorship Task Force to make recommendations for reform. The Task Force released recommendations, several of which were included in AB 1727, which also makes a number of technical and other clarifying amendments to last year’s Act."

After the good news of California's much needed reform, it was reported that Schwarzenegger vetoed the funding. "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Friday signed into law a $145 billion budget for FY 2007-2008, but not before using his line-item veto power to cut $700 million, including $17.377 million that would have implemented conservatorship reforms approved by lawmakers last year."

Source: Schwarzenegger Vetoes Conservatorship Reform Funding

The Los Angeles Times reported: "When yacht owners are preferred over the aged and homeless, the bottom line is we've sunk too low."

Source: Schwarzenegger's bad budget cuts

In reality, it is not clear how any of the new legislation will help victims of guardianship and conservatorship abuse. NASGA believes that much more is needed.

Reports from the Commission on Law and Aging, American Bar Association:
State Adult Guardianship Legislation: Directions of Reform - 2007
State Adult Guardianship Legislation: Directions of Reform 2006