PAPER PRISONS: Missouri woman fights to bring brother home from public guardianship system

Michelle Anaya is working to become the guardian of her brother, Jeffrey Fitzgearlds, who has been institutionalized for nearly 20 years under Missouri's public guardianship system.

by Matt Flener 

KANSAS CITY, Mo. —  Michelle Anaya is fighting to free her brother, Jeffrey Fitzgearlds, and bring him closer to home.

Anaya has spent years advocating for her brother, who has been under the state of Missouri's care as a ward of the state for nearly two decades.

"I've always been fighting for him, like even in school," Anaya said. "When he'd get teased, I'd fight the other kids."

Jeffrey is one of more than 11,000 people in Missouri living under the state's public guardianship system.

Jeffrey became a ward of the state after doctors recommended professional guardianship to his parents due to his mental illness and behavioral struggles. Now, Anaya is seeking to take over his care following the passing of their parents. She currently sees him during supervised visits at the Southeast Missouri Mental Health Center, located five hours away from Kansas City.

"My brother has been institutionalized for nearly 20 years," Anaya said. "I can literally see my life changing and evolving and growing. And his, it's stagnant. It's in a standstill."

Anaya has asked the court multiple times to allow her to assume guardianship from Alexa Summit, the Clay County public administrator, who oversees Jeffrey's care along with her deputies under judicial oversight. Summit's attorney, citing confidentiality, declined to comment on specific cases.

"While I appreciate the opportunity to respond, we must respect the confidentiality of the individuals whom the Public Administrator's office is tasked to serve as guardian and conservator for," said attorney Paemon Aramjoo, who represents the Clay County public administrator.

Anaya said it is often difficult to get answers from the Clay County public administrator's office regarding Jeffrey's care and her proposal to take over his guardianship. She has also spoken publicly, advocating for more oversight of the office.

She and other advocates lobbied Clay County's constitutional review committee earlier this year to push for more oversight of the Clay County public administrator's office, but ultimately, those changes did not happen.

Advocates across Missouri have echoed similar concerns, saying it is often challenging to get information from public administrators without going through the court system. KMBC 9 Investigates and the U.S. Department of Justice have highlighted issues within Missouri's public guardianship system, where thousands of wards live in nursing homes due to a lack of alternative placements.

KMBC is investigating ways to systemically improve the care of those under guardianship through a series of stories called Paper Prisons. The stories highlight people struggling to navigate a tangled system of legal paperwork, medical records and court orders. KMBC is also seeking answers, perspective and context from those in charge of keeping wards of the state in their care for their recommendations on how to improve the system. Often, those tasked with caring for wards of the state say they do not have enough resources or treatment facilities close to the person's home.

Public administrators have reported growing caseloads and have asked state lawmakers for increased funding and improved laws to better care for Missouri's most vulnerable residents.

Meanwhile, Anaya will keep fighting to bring her brother home.

"He needs natural connection. He needs family," Anaya said. "That's how people feel connected. That's how they have security."

If you know of someone going through struggles with Missouri's public guardianship system, or if you have a case to highlight that explores solutions for Missouri's public guardianship system that could teach lessons to others, please email investigates@kmbc.com.

Full Article & Source:
PAPER PRISONS: Missouri woman fights to bring brother home from public guardianship system

See Also:
Woman receives guardianship termination after sharing her story with KMBC 9 Investigates

Paper Prisons: Missouri woman seeking release from public guardianship

Missouri woman shares journey of restoration from public guardianship 

Judge questions former Sullivan County public guardian about multiple guardianship cases 

Judge: Missouri public guardian’s felony financial crime case can move forward

Missouri public guardian pleads not guilty to eight felony counts

Missouri elected guardian charged with 8 felonies for stealing from ward

Paper Prisons: Missouri woman details struggle to leave public guardianship after husband's death

Paper Prisons: Missouri man continues fight to free his mother from public guardianship 

Sullivan County elected official accused of stealing thousands from disabled person   

Woman receives guardianship termination after sharing her story with KMBC 9 Investigates

by Matt Flener

FARMINGTON, Mo. — Chiro Richey walked out of a nursing home on Tuesday with a laundry basket full of clothes under her right arm.

Nursing home staffers pushed a cart full of her belongings to load into her friend’s car.

After more than 10 years as a ward of the state of Missouri, Richey was finally free, her rights restored.

“I feel great,” she told KMBC 9 Investigates over the phone.

Five hours across the state, Buchanan County judge David Bolander had just approved her release, after months of delays in obtaining a psychiatric evaluation to determine if she was eligible for release from guardianship.

Richey will now live with a friend, seek surgery for a foot injury, and ultimately aim for college.

KMBC has followed Richey’s story in an ongoing investigation into Missouri’s public guardianship system called Paper Prisons, highlighting the difficulties of wards of the state and their families under Missouri’s system of public guardianship.

KMBC is investigating ways to systemically improve the care of those under guardianship by telling stories of people struggling to navigate a tangled system of legal paperwork, medical records, and court orders. KMBC is also seeking answers, perspective, and context from those in charge of keeping wards of the state in their care for their recommendations on how to improve the system.

Dozens of people like Richey have spoken with KMBC seeking help with their Missouri guardianship cases, as they push for better living conditions, access to care, and help from their guardians.

Buchanan County Public Administrator Brad Haggard advocated for Richey’s mental health evaluation and eventual release. Haggard said it took longer than needed for Richey to get seen. He has also advocated for improvements to bring more wards closer to their home.

“[The] system needs improved,” Haggard said. “That's really the bottom line. There's lots of areas of it that needs improved.”

Haggard wished Richey well and has advocated for her to receive help through a transitional state program.

"I think the system needs improved and, you know, I can do a little bit in my world here, but I think a message needs to be out there."

Richey believes it is important for anyone seeking help with guardianship to speak up.

“I believe that with me going out with my story and with you guys putting it out there for others, people can relate, or other people's family members might catch on and say, ‘Hey, you know, there's hope.”

Chiro Richey was one of more than an estimated 11,000 people in Missouri under public guardianship.

Read more about Chiro Richey’s story here.

If you know of someone going through struggles with Missouri’s public guardianship system, or if you have a case to highlight that exposes solutions for Missouri’s public guardianship system that could teach lessons to others, please email investigates@kmbc.com. 

Full Article & Source:
Woman receives guardianship termination after sharing her story with KMBC 9 Investigates 

See Also:
Paper Prisons: Missouri woman seeking release from public guardianship

Missouri woman shares journey of restoration from public guardianship 

Judge questions former Sullivan County public guardian about multiple guardianship cases 

Judge: Missouri public guardian’s felony financial crime case can move forward

Missouri public guardian pleads not guilty to eight felony counts

Missouri elected guardian charged with 8 felonies for stealing from ward

Paper Prisons: Missouri woman details struggle to leave public guardianship after husband's death

Paper Prisons: Missouri man continues fight to free his mother from public guardianship 

Sullivan County elected official accused of stealing thousands from disabled person   

Missouri teacher seeks guardianship for former student

Special education teacher Rita Richards is advocating for guardianship of her former student, Zack

by Matt Flener

CLAY COUNTY, Mo. —  Rita Richards showed up with a group of people to speak at a Clay County Commission business meeting last month.

The special education teacher had one mission: to ensure the county commission knew her concerns about her former student, Zack.

Zack became a ward of the state in 2014.

Richards invited him to her family get-togethers and holiday celebrations to stay in touch with him when he was put under public guardianship.

During that time, she started noticing concerns about his living conditions, hygiene, and safety.

His current guardian is Clay County Public Administrator Alexa Summit. Summit has held the office since 2021. Before then, two other public administrators oversaw Zack’s care.

A judge has reviewed Zack’s case multiple times and kept him under public guardianship through the Clay County Public Administrator’s office.

Richards told the county commission about her experience advocating for her former student.

"I was pushed out,” she said. “I was not allowed to visit anymore. They didn't want to hear my concerns.”

After Richards spoke to commissioners, KMBC 9 Investigates asked Summit to comment on Zack's case.

An attorney responded on Summit’s behalf.

"We do have to respect the confidentiality of the individuals that the public administrator's office is tasked to serve as guardian and conservator for,” said attorney Paemon Aramjoo. “We are therefore unable to provide comment on a specific case or the individuals involved."

PAPER PRISONS: Public guardianship in Missouri under investigation

Richards contacted KMBC 9 Investigates after seeing KMBC’s “Paper Prisons” investigation last year. The ongoing investigative series explores problems and solutions for Missouri’s public guardianship system, which serves as a societal backstop for people who struggle to find safe care with friends or family.

The work of Missouri’s public administrators, who act as public guardians, often goes unnoticed in probate courts, phone calls, and long trips to visit wards across the state. They are tasked with heavy caseloads in Missouri’s 114 counties and the City of St. Louis.

Often, those wards are placed into facilities hours from where they once called home.

In Clay County, a recent performance audit found the Public Administrator was responsible for 309 wards, as of 2023.

More than half of those live within the radius of Clay, Platte, Ray, Jackson, Cass, Lafayette, Pettis, Saline, Johnson, and Carroll counties, the audit found.

But at least 117 wards live in other counties across the state.

“It would be my preference to place all individuals in Clay County but due to the lack of resources, this cannot be accomplished,” the public administrator’s office told the Clay County Auditor. “We will continue to evaluate all wards to ensure they are in the most suitable and least restrictive environment. We will also continue to stay aware of resources in our community and advocate for quality care for each person.”

Public administrators are assigned caseloads from judges when hospitals, nursing homes, family, or friends recommend court-approved placement for individuals to keep them safe, fed, and housed.

But public guardianship has also come under fire in Missouri from the United States Department of Justice for unnecessarily institutionalizing people in nursing homes.

Judges give Missouri public administrators wide control of wards' lives when they believe family or friends can no longer care for them. They are required to file yearly reports with the court about care plans for their wards.

Clay County public guardianship oversight next steps

The county commission began appointing the public administrator after the 2020 general election changed it from an elected to appointed position. Circuit court judges now recommend a person for the role.

Richards told the commission she could serve as Zack's guardian, noting that she has not had response from Summit in years.

"I've sent 33 emails and I've had zero responses," she said.

Richards told the commission she found in court documents that Zack was stabbed by his roommate in 2025.

During the meeting, she also asked people concerned about public administrator guardianship om Clay County to stand in support. Dozens of people stood behind her.

"Zack's survival should not be the end of this story,” Richards also said from the podium. “It should be the beginning of accountability.”

After the meeting, she told KMBC she felt the commission listened to her concerns and hopes commission members will establish an independent review board to keep the public administrator's work in check.

If you know of someone going through struggles with Missouri’s public guardianship system, or if you have a case to highlight that exposes solutions for Missouri’s public guardianship system that could teach lessons to others, please email investigates@kmbc.com

Full Article & Source:
Missouri teacher seeks guardianship for former student 

See Also:
Missouri woman shares journey of restoration from public guardianship