PARIS — A former elected Monroe County official was sentenced
Wednesday to 10 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections after
pleading guilty to charges including financial exploitation of a
disabled person, felony stealing, and filing false documents.
Senior Judge Rick Roberts sentenced Jessica A. Chase, 49, of Paris,
under Section 559.115 of the Missouri Revised Statutes, according to the
Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Chase served as Monroe County’s elected public administrator from
Jan. 1, 2021, through Feb. 7, 2023. In that role, she was appointed
legal guardian and conservator for disabled residents under the county’s
care. Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney Nicole Volkert alleged that
during her time in office, Chase stole money from the custodial accounts
of disabled people she was responsible for protecting.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office opened an investigation after a
criminal complaint was filed by one of Chase’s wards. Sheriff Joe
Colston said the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and
Crime Control and the Missouri Attorney General’s Office assisted in the
investigation. A separate federal civil investigation by the Social
Security Administration remains pending.
An insurance policy covering the Monroe County Office of Public
Administrator previously paid a settlement to victims to cover the
amounts taken from their accounts.
As part of Wednesday’s sentencing, Roberts also ordered Chase to pay
$12,000 in restitution to cover legal costs incurred by Monroe County.
“Jessica Chase violated her oath of office,” Volkert said. “She stole money from the most vulnerable people in our community.”
SCOTLAND COUNTY — The former Monroe County public administrator
accused of stealing from elderly and disabled residents accepted a plea
deal Wednesday.
Online court records say Jessica A. Chase pleaded
guilty to one count each of filing false documents, stealing $750 or
more and financial exploitation of an elder or disabled person.
Chase was sentenced to serve a total of 10 years in the Missouri
Department of Corrections and to pay $12,000 in restitution to the
Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office. The case was moved from Monroe County
on a change of venue to Scotland County.
A warrant was issued Thursday for a Jefferson City woman accused of
financially exploiting a nursing home resident, according to court
documents.
Amy Shoup is charged with financial exploitation of an
elderly or disabled person and misappropriation of funds of an elderly
nursing home resident.
She allegedly spent $52,494.91 of the
victim's money between Aug. 26, 2024, and June 1 while the victim was
living in a nursing home, according to a probable cause statement.
Shoup
held durable power of attorney over the victim and was in charge of
paying for the victim's nursing home bills, according to the statement.
The nursing home the victim lived in was sold in November 2025. Shoup
owed the old company $67,000 and the new one $16,000, according to the
statement.
Only sporadic attempts have been made to pay those balances, according to court documents.
The
victim said Shoup was not permitted to use their money for anything
except for their care. The victim has not seen their debit card nor
identification card since they were admitted into the home, according to
the probable cause statement.
Shoup admitted to investigators
that she had not paid the nursing home bills despite paying her own
bills with the victims' funds, according to the probable cause
statemnet.
Shoup has a $50,000 surety bond and a warrant out for her arrest.
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.
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.
WARRENTON, Mo. – A Warren County woman faces felony charges after
investigators say she exploited an elderly person out of tens of
thousands of dollars while serving as the victim’s power of attorney.
Special investigators with the Missouri Department of Health and
Senior Services allege that Johnnie M. Barry used the victim’s funds for
her own personal benefit between July 2022 and August 2025.
According to a probable cause statement, Barry deposited 25
unauthorized checks from the victim’s bank accounts into her personal
Chase Bank account, totaling $4,726. Investigators said she used an
additional $17,211.18 from the victim’s accounts to pay her own
expenses, bringing the total alleged loss to $21,937.18.
In addition, Barry failed to pay the victim’s mortgage, credit card
bills, and homeowners’ association dues, placing the victim at risk of
foreclosure, investigators said. She’s also accused of submitting
mortgage modification documents in March 2026 after her power of
attorney had been revoked and signed documents on the victim’s behalf
without authorization.
The victim told investigators they did not sign the checks and could not do so following multiple strokes.
The Warren County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Barry with
financial exploitation of an elderly/disabled person and forgery. Barry
remains jailed without bond. She has a confined docket hearing scheduled
for Tuesday, June 2.
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Missouri
ST. LOUIS – A man from St. Louis has been accused of stealing $735,137 from a retired St. Louis teacher.
Michael N. Jones, 40, was indicted April 29 with eight counts of wire fraud. He pleaded not guilty Monday.
The
indictment says Jones was named as the victim’s power of attorney in
March of 2023, and began stealing from her that same month. He made over
$12,000 in purchases using her checking account and used her credit
card for OnlyFans purchases, the indictment says. The victim was
admitted to an assisted living facility on April 25, 2023. Jones put the
proceeds of the sale of her home and two certificates of deposit into
her checking account, and used that account to buy four properties in
St. Louis, one in Hillsboro and two in East St. Louis, the indictment
says. He also transferred $20,000 to his personal bank account and
$140,000 to his Cash App account, using the Cash App money for food,
trips, life coaching and OnlyFans, the indictment says.
From April
2024 to November 2024, Jones made only one payment to her assisted
living facility and the victim was evicted owing $38,535, the indictment
says. In November of 2024, Jones moved her into another facility but
failed to pay costs that grew to $52,502 a year later, it says.
Charges
set forth in an indictment are merely accusations and do not constitute
proof of guilt. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and
until proven guilty.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 or both.
The
U.S. Secret Service, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior
Services and the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector
General investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jolene Taaffe is
prosecuting the case.
Contact
Robert Patrick, Public Affairs Officer, robert.patrick@usdoj.gov.
After
his mother’s alleged abuse, a Missouri senator advances a bill to
toughen elder‑abuse penalties and require liability insurance for
long‑term care homes.
by Emily Skidmore, Missouri News Network
Sen.
Adam Schnelting, R-St. Charles, said he found signs of neglect with his
mom when she was left alone for eight to nine hours with no help, and
she expressed fear of the staff at the facility she was staying at in
Missouri.
Schnelting
saw bruises on his mom’s face from what he believed were the result of
someone at the long-term care facility punching her. His mom passed away
shortly after sustaining the injuries, which included blood clots.
Despite
numerous interactions between police and administrators of the
facility, no person was charged with the abuse and Schnelting and his
family never found justice.
Schnelting introduced a bill this session to address elder abuse in Missouri.
Senate
Bill 910 seeks to increase transparency and accountability in long-term
care facilities in Missouri through three main aspects: liability
insurance requirements, icons on state department websites and
increasing the severity of elder abuse charges.
Since
Missouri does not currently require facilities to carry liability
insurance, the bill would require that all facilities across Missouri
have a minimum of $1 million in liability insurance.
The
bill also increases penalties for elder abuse cases, making abuse or
neglect by a caregiver in a long-term facility a Class E felony, which
can lead to imprisonment for up to four years or one year in jail. Elder
abuse is currently a Class A misdemeanor.
The
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services would also be
required, under the bill, to display a symbol on its website identifying
facilities with abuse or neglect cases, bringing a federal system to
the state level.
Schnelting’s
bill had a committee hearing in March after the bill sat in committee
for months. This was the first piece of legislation that Schnelting
submitted for the session in December.
The
bill moved out of committee in early April, but with the general
session coming to a close this week, no other progress has been made.
This is the third year Schnelting has introduced this sort of legislation.
“If
we don’t rectify those shortcomings, we’re going to be failing our
older generations,” Schnelting said regarding elder abuse in Missouri.
In
November, Schnelting joined Lt. Gov. David Wasinger on a statewide tour
that brought together community members to talk about elder abuse and
possible solutions in a series of forums.
Wasinger
and Schnelting shared with communities across Missouri their personal
connections to elder abuse as both of their mothers dealt with neglect
and abuse while staying in a facility. Schnelting also sought feedback
on the solutions he planned on bringing to this year’s session.
“We
have a very serious problem,” Schnelting said during the November forum
in Columbia. “It’s very, very important that we get a handle on this.”
Wasinger,
who was elected in 2024, serves as the official senior advocate for
elder Missourians. He joined Schnelting in the forum to tell his own
story and hear from other residents on how to decrease elder abuse in
the state.
“We
heard story after story about these issues, and it’s heartbreaking,”
Wasinger said. “It (can) touch every family and socioeconomic class.”
Wasinger’s
mother went into a senior living facility because of medical issues.
She was unable to move properly because of fluid in her legs and was
left unattended for periods of time, he said. Wasinger and his family
voiced their concerns to administrators of the facility and moved his
mom out and into an independent living place. Wasinger points to
inadequate staffing as one of the main reasons for this neglect.
“She didn’t receive the care that she deserved, and it was really, frankly, a very sad situation,” he said.
In
Wasinger’s current position, he has worked with legislators like
Schnelting to bring awareness to issues affecting seniors in Missouri.
His drive for reforming these issues stems from his own mother’s story.
“I
had heard stories about it, but when I saw it personally with my mother
… you’re angry. You’re sad, it’s just a range of emotions,” Wasinger
said.
Wasinger
said that his office is consistently receiving calls from constituents
about senior related issues. He is working on getting a senior advocate
for his office to specifically help monitor problems and concerns
related to seniors.
“It resonates with every family,” Wasinger said.
Missouri is ranked 38th overall in the country for long-term care services and support, according to a 2023 report from AARP.
The
report also ranked Missouri as 47th for safety and quality in
facilities. Additionally, turnover for registered nursing staff in
facilities is at 50.2%, according to quarterly data released from
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Tim
Blattel, an assisted living facility worker of 44 years and CEO of Twin
Oaks Estate, said he opposes Schnelting’s proposed legislation because
of the possible impact it will have on family-owned facilities in
Missouri.
“It’s
going to raise the cost even higher, and that’s why we are seeing a
record number of small operators getting out of health care,” Blattel
said.
Blattel
agrees there is an issue with elder abuse in the state but emphasizes
there is a way to protect seniors and facilities at the same time.
“I would love to see a peer review and assistance program where we work together to help support each other more,” Blattel said.
Long-term
care facilities in Missouri receive funding from federal and state
programs. The Older American Act and Social Security Act allows for
federal funding to be allocated to senior services like long-term care
facilities. The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
distributes these amounts to facilities across the state.
However,
Blattel said there is a shortage in funding for nursing homes that
creates inadequate staffing issues in many smaller long-term care
facilities. He expressed concern about how much more nursing facilities
would have to pay toward insurance and maintenance under Schnelting’s
proposed legislation.
“We need to incentivize and work together to get funding in these rural areas,” Blattel said.
Schnelting
said that he recognizes the additional cost that insurance would be for
facilities but emphasizes that it is necessary for providing a layer of
accountability and transparency at long-term care facilities.
“At
the end of the day, it ensures that when a facility harms a patient,
those costs are not absorbed by the taxpayers of that facility for that
negligence,” Schnelting said.
Julie
Peetz, executive director of Missouri Association of Area Agencies on
Aging, an advocacy organization for seniors in Missouri, supported
Schnelting’s claims that there needs to be transparency and
accountability within the home where abuse occurs, but noted the
possible dangers of overregulation of nursing facilities.
“We want to target the bad actors, but not penalize quality providers,” Peetz said.
Despite
the lack of action on his bill this year, Schnelting said he plans to
bring this legislation back to the Capitol for a fourth time next
January.
St. Andrew’s Resources for Seniors System has agreed to settle a
class action lawsuit that alleged the senior and elder care services
provider failed to protect the sensitive information of its current and
former employees and patients from a February 2024 data breach.
The St. Andrew’s class action settlement received preliminary approval
from the court on January 21, 2026 and covers all living individuals in
the United States who received notice, including notice of this
settlement, informing them that their private information may have been
impacted by the February 2024 data breach.
Court
documents estimate that the private information of approximately 12,304
living individuals was potentially impacted by the breach.
The court-approved website for the St. Andrew’s data breach settlement can be found at StAndrewsDataSettlement.com.
According to the website, St. Andrew’s settlement class members who file a timely, valid claim form have multiple options for reimbursement.
Class members who submit with their claim form documented proof of out-of-pocket losses stemming from the data breach are eligible to receive a one-time cash payment of up to $5,000.
The
settlement agreement states that class members must submit
documentation prepared by a third party to receive reimbursement for
out-of-pocket losses but may not receive compensation for expenses that
have already been reimbursed by another source, including the credit
monitoring and identity theft protection offered by St. Andrew’s as part
of the data breach notice.
Class members may also receive reimbursement for up to four hours of lost time spent responding to the data breach, at a rate of $20 per hour, subject to the $5,000 out-of-pocket losses cap.
In lieu of these benefits, St. Andrew’s settlement class members may instead file a claim form with no proof or explanation required to receive a one-time alternative cash payment of $50.
Class
members may receive their payout via check or credit monitoring, the
agreement notes, and all checks must be cashed within 90 days of
issuance before expiration.
In addition to any monetary
benefits, all St. Andrew’s settlement class members may also file a
claim to receive an enrollment code for two free years of CyEx Medical Shield Complete, which includes one-bureau credit monitoring, per the agreement.
To file a St. Andrew’s data breach claim form online, class members can head to this page and log in using the unique ID and PIN found on their received copy of the settlement notice. Alternatively, class members may download a PDF of the claim form from the site to print, fill out and return by mail to the settlement administrator.
All St. Andrew’s settlement claim forms must be submitted online or by mail by May 21, 2026.
Finally,
St. Andrew’s has agreed to make certain changes to its information
security practices; all enhancements will be funded separately from
other settlement benefits, court documents state.
The court will determine whether to grant final approval to
the St. Andrew’s data breach settlement following a hearing on June 8,
2026. Compensation will begin to be distributed to class members only
after final approval has been granted and any appeals are resolved.
The St. Andrew’s class action lawsuit alleged that the Missouri-based elder care organization failed to implement reasonable cybersecurity measures to protect the patient and employee information stored on its systems, which led to a data breach starting on or around February 8, 2024. According to the settlement site, private information
that may have been compromised during the breach includes current and
former patient and employee names, addresses, Social Security numbers,
driver’s license and state identification numbers, passport numbers,
military identification numbers, financial account information, payment
card information, health insurance information and medical information.
Supporters
of the bill said it could help families get compensation and closure —
and hold facilities accountable — for abuse or neglect of older
Missourians. Opponents said insurance requirements could push small
providers out of business
By: Steph Quinn
Republican Sen. Adam Schnelting of St. Charles describes his bill targeting nursing home abuse and neglect as a "way to foster a culture of life in our state." He sponsored similar bills in 2024 and 2025, but this is the first year the legislation has gotten a hearing (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent).
The first warning sign that all was not well with Miranda Malone’s mom was that she had lost a lot of weight.
It was June 2020, and Malone, of St.
Charles County, hadn’t been able to visit the nursing home where her mom
was receiving care for Parkinson’s disease since the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic. Malone told The Independent she discussed upping her
mom’s protein intake with the nurses, but her mom only got thinner and
developed a bedsore.
Three months later Malone got a
worried call from a nurse who wasn’t part of her mom’s usual care team.
Her mom had been screaming in pain, and her bedsore, the nurse said, was
“the most extreme she’d ever seen.”
By the time Malone got her mom to an
appointment with a specialist, her infection had gotten so bad that “you
could see her spine.” When she was checked into an ER that November,
she was severely malnourished. An MRI showed the infection had spread to
her bones.
Given the choice between a feeding tube and hospice care, Malone’s mom chose hospice care. She died on Dec. 4, 2020.
“The only answer that I have
gotten…is, ‘During COVID, we were short-staffed,” Malone said. “That’s
not good enough for me. I’m sorry. That’s just not good enough.”
Missouri lawmakers are considering
legislation aiming to increase accountability and transparency around
elder abuse and neglect in long-term care facilities. A Senate committee
debated the bill last week.
Sponsored by Republican state Sen. Adam Schnelting of St. Charles, the legislation
would increase penalties for abuse or neglect of an elderly person and
require long-term care facilities to maintain liability insurance
policies worth at least $1 million.
Schnelting, who sponsored similar proposals in 2024 and 2025, said the bill would help families get closure and compensation for abuse and neglect of loved ones.
“When someone gets hurt or their
loved one gets hurt, facilities shouldn’t be able to say, ‘Well, you’re
out of luck. I don’t have any insurance,” Schnelting said.
Schnelting recalled being “enraged”
as he struggled “trying to get answers [and] trying to find resolution”
after his mother died in a facility.
She was getting rehabilitative care
after a stroke, Schnelting said, and suffered head injuries in the
facility. She had a second stroke and died after going into a vegetative
state.
“It looked like someone had punched her multiple times in the face,” Schnelting said.
Nursing home residents in Missouri receive the fewest daily hours of care by licensed nurses in the U.S. — only 1.14 hours per day — according to data released by the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid last month. They received an average of 3.37 hours of nursing care daily in March 2025. In 2023, AARP ranked Missouri’s long-term care facilities 47th for safety and quality and 38th overall. U.S. News and World Report ranks Missouri 50th in nursing home quality.
Schnelting’s bill would also require
the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services to display a symbol
on its website identifying facilities with abuse or neglect findings
substantiated by the department, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
or law enforcement. In addition to displaying the symbol, the department
would have to provide a summary of the incident for three years after
the most recent confirmed finding.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid already marks nursing homes with recent abuse citations with an icon.
Dr. Jana Opperman-Bendt,who
switched careers to establish a small long-term care facility, said
this provision would help families searching for a safe place for their
loved ones, “when they are already overwhelmed and vulnerable
themselves.”
Jay Hardenbrook, advocacy director
for AARP Missouri, said the bill would enable families to find reliable
information about facilities when they are no longer able to care for
loved ones themselves.
“Being able to have transparency to
look directly at what has happened in facilities and make an informed
decision is so vitally important to the caregivers of our state,”
Hardenbrook said.
The bill would also make abuse or
neglect by a caregiver in a long-term care facility a class E felony.
Elder abuse or neglect is currently a class A misdemeanor for anyone.
Opponents of the bill argued that the liability insurance requirement could drive small and rural facilities out of business.
Nikki Strong, representing the
Missouri Health Care Association, a nonprofit that represents long-term
care facilities, said mandating liability insurance would cause premiums
to “skyrocket.”
Tim Blattel, legislative chair for
the Missouri Assisted Living Association and CEO of Twin Oaks Senior
Living in Wentzville, said the insurance requirement would hurt
family-owned operators and asked to work with Schnelting to compromise
on the bill.
Blattel said his annual insurance
premium increased from $73,000 to $230,000 in one year because St. Louis
has been deemed a “litigious area.”
Brandon Koch, executive director of
the Missouri Insurance Coalition, said that if the bill set the minimum
threshold for liability insurance too high, “it could impact
affordability and availability.”
But Opperman-Bendt said she was
“appalled” when she learned that long-term care facilities are not
required to carry liability insurance.
“Should something go wrong with any
of these individuals that I care for, I want my families to have
protection, and I want to be held accountable for what has taken place,”
she said.
Malone underlined the importance for families of getting closure and answers about what happened to their loved ones.
“This
bill will help families,” she said, “because when you try to go and
fight to get accountability and get transparency, there are walls
there.”
JEFFERSON CITY — The Senate General
Laws Committee heard a bill Wednesday that would mandate long-term care
facilities to carry at least $1 million in liability insurance.
Senate Bill 910’s
sponsor, Sen. Adam Schnelting, R-St. Louis, said he believes requiring
care facilities to have liability insurance would help guarantee
financial reimbursement to victims of abuse or neglect.
The
bill would also increase penalties for abuse or neglect in facilities
and require public warning be noted on the Missouri Department of Health
and Senior Services’ website for poor care at a facility.
Long-term
care providers like nursing homes and assisted living facilities are
not required to carry liability insurance for cases of elder abuse.
Schnelting
said facilities could instead hold a reserve of $1 million in an
account as long as it is separate from their operational fund.
Schnelting
and Lt. Gov. David Wasinger heard stories from Missouri residents
during their 2025 “Protect our Seniors” tour regarding cases of elder
abuse.
“When someone
gets hurt or their loved one gets hurt, facilities shouldn’t be able to
just say ‘Well, you’re out of luck, I don’t have the insurance,’”
Schnelting said.
Schnelting
and other supporters compared the bill to owning a car, where having
car insurance is about protecting others and establishing
responsibility.
“I was
appalled to find out that these owners are not regulated or required to
carry insurance,” said Jane Opperman, an occupational therapist who
discovered the lack of regulation after starting her own senior care
facility. “We are taking care of a very vulnerable population here, and
we owe the families that respect and that accountability,” she said.
Nikki Strong, representing the
Missouri Healthcare Association, is concerned that “good” long-term care
providers could struggle to continue providing care.
“The
unfortunate reality of Senate Bill 910 is that the unintended
consequences of this bill ... will most likely force facilities out of
business,” Strong said.
Other
opponents said that adding higher costs could be destructive to rural
providers, which already struggle with lower patient counts.
The
bill would require the Missouri DHSS website to mark long-term care
facilities with an icon if they have previously committed abuse or
neglect. Medicare’s website already uses a similar icon system to flag
abuse.
Oppermann said
she supports icons as a method of transparency because families looking
for long-term care providers already struggle to choose the right care
facility.
“When they
are already overwhelmed and vulnerable, just a little icon would make a
significant impact on their searches,” Oppermann said.
The
bill would make elder abuse by a care provider a class E felony, up
from a class A misdemeanor. The DHSS would also have to report cases of
neglect to the House, Senate and the lieutenant governor.
Similar legislation requiring care providers to have liability insurance failed to pass in the General Assembly in 2009.
Former Sullivan County public administrator Joan Brummitt answered for her oversight as guardian
by Matt Flener
MILAN, Mo. — A former
Sullivan County elected public official faced pointed questions from a
judge on Tuesday for how she handled the estates of 13 people whom she
oversaw as guardian or conservator.
The judge ordered former
longtime Sullivan County Public Administrator Joan Brummitt to appear
before him on Tuesday — in one case asking why she did not transfer more
than $400,000 from a ward’s estate to the new public administrator in
the county after Brummitt resigned from office.
Sullivan County Associate Circuit Judge Adam Warren on Tuesday, after
hearing an explanation from Brummitt’s attorney, gave Brummitt more
time to transfer ownership of that specific ward’s bank and brokerage
accounts to the new county public administrator before holding her in
contempt.
In 12 other probate cases of former wards, Warren cited
Brummitt for failing to file various reports. Brummitt cleared most of
those cases by filing the reports in the court record and before Warren
on Tuesday.
Brummitt declined to comment to KMBC 9 News about the cases.
Brummitt’s court appearance marks the latest questions from a judge.
In a separate criminal case, she is facing four felony counts of
financial exploitation of an older/disabled person and four felony
counts of stealing $750 or more.
She has pleaded not guilty.
Brummitt, in her role as Sullivan County Public Administrator, had the responsibility to care for wards of the state.
Public
administrators are elected in Missouri to take care of financial and
medical decisions for elderly or mentally ill patients when a judge
decides family or friends can no longer care for them.
Court documents in Brummitt's criminal case
Previous
court documents allege Brummitt moved money last October from an
elderly ward’s bank account to her personal bank account on four
separate occasions.
A Missouri State Highway Patrol investigator
said on Oct. 14, 2025, Brummitt used her personal cell phone and online
banking app to send money from the ward’s account through three separate
transactions, totaling $999, $1,900 and $1,980.
She made another online $999 transfer on Oct. 16, the MSHP investigator said in court documents.
The total amount came to $5,878.
Brummitt
is charged with four felony counts of financial exploitation of an
older/disabled person and four felony counts of stealing $750 or more.
A
Missouri State Highway Patrol investigator testified last month that
Brummitt admitted to the highway patrol that she moved money from the
ward’s account to hers.
The investigator told the court that Brummitt admitted to highway patrol investigators that hackers told her to move the money.
Brummitt’s criminal attorney, Mark Williams, has previously told KMBC 9 News that Brummitt is innocent until proven guilty.
In
a series called "Paper Prisons," KMBC 9 News is investigating ways to
systemically improve the care of those under guardianship by
highlighting stories of people struggling to navigate a tangled system
of legal paperwork, medical records and court orders.
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
Mackenzie Garton, a former ward of the state in Missouri, shares her story of independence after more than 13 years under public guardianship.
by Matt Flener
MARSHFIELD, Mo. — Mackenzie
Garton used a small applicator at her dining room table last month,
picking up tiny pieces of diamond art to create a picture of a wolf.
The do-it-yourself craft project — a mix between cross-stitch and paint
by numbers — takes perseverance and determination.
Garton recently started the hobby to help her patience and mental health after years of guardianship in Missouri.
“I gotta get them on the end of this pencil,” she said, as she picked up a magnifying glass to see.
Asked
if she could have done a similar project a few years ago while a ward
of the state in group homes, she said, “No probably not. I didn’t take
the time.”
Garton, who lives in a small apartment in Marshfield,
Missouri, has gained several skills since living independently for the
past couple of years.
"Sometimes it wasn't easy," Garton said.
"Just because I have a mental illness, and just because I was on
guardianship, doesn't mean I was evil, or I wasn't a human being."
Garton attends a day program. She has counseling, medicine and a support team. She still needs help with her finances.
But
Boggs believed Garton could manage life on her own, away from group
homes. She encouraged Garton to seek a medical opinion in 2023, leading
to a judge’s decision to restore her right to live independently.
"I
give praise to Danielle a lot. I really do. She has been there for me
through all of it," Garton said. "I would say my years of guardianship
was awesome, really."
Restoration and risks under public guardianship
Garton
is one of tens of thousands of people who have interacted with
Missouri's public guardianship system since the turn of the 20th
century.
People like Garton in Missouri are often referred to
public administrators, elected or appointed officials, to act as
court-appointed guardians when a judge decides family or friends can no
longer care for them.
Garton contacted KMBC 9 Investigates after
Boggs told her about KMBC’s investigation called Paper Prisons. KMBC is
exploring 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.
"I see it is something much different than a Paper Prison,” Boggs
said. “I see it as someone needs help and there's a resource connector
put into place to help connect them to those resources."
Boggs let
Garton speak for herself to respect her privacy but did speak to KMBC
about her work as public administrator. She has around 100 people in
her caseload and is the former president of the Missouri Association of Public Administrators.
"When
people realize we're all interconnected and we all need to rely on
different people at different times to help us with different things in
our lives, that's what makes restoration so beautiful," Boggs said.
Public administrators ask for help to take care of wards better
Still, Boggs believes Missouri's public guardians and wards need more help from state lawmakers.
A 2024 U.S. Department of Justice report
highlighted how Missouri "unnecessarily institutionalizes" people
inside nursing homes. Boggs said those facilities are often the only
places available to send people who need highly specialized help.
“It's
something that public administrators have said for a long time,” she
said. “We don't have anything else. The state does not provide any
high-level structured setting for people to have oversight, counseling,
medication management.”
Boggs believes the state needs to add
capacity for highly structured behavioral health settings with
Department of Mental Health involvement and counseling.
She also
emphasized those facilities must not solely focus on medication
management but life skills training, counseling and things that can help
them reintegrate once they get to a lower level of care.
“But in the meantime, there's nowhere else for these individuals to be placed in our current system,” she said.
Boggs also spoke to KMBC last year
as part of a leadership group with the Missouri Association of Public
Administrators. She emphasized more education is needed about the role
of guardians and said issues within Missouri’s public guardianship
system should not be attributed solely to public administrators.
Private guardians, multiple state agencies and courts all have a role to play, they said.
Meanwhile,
KMBC has fielded calls, letters and emails from multiple wards of the
state across Missouri asking to share their stories about being trapped
in that system. KMBC continues to investigate their claims, seeking
accountability and insight from public officials, judges and attorneys
in charge of their care.
Garton, meanwhile, is grateful for her time in guardianship,
believing it was important for her to set her life on the right path.
“It
wasn't all easy,” she said. “That's what I had to do is take
responsibility and, and own up to my own actions, and take care of
things for myself.”
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.
Chiro Richey released a YouTube video last year pleading for help with guardianship
by Matt Flener
FARMINGTON, Mo. — Inside
a wing of a nursing home in Farmington, Missouri, Chiro Richey has
answered the facility’s phone multiple times over the past six months.
She cannot leave without permission from her court-appointed guardian.
"This
is nothing like prison," she said in one of her phone conversations
with KMBC 9 Investigates. "This is way worse than prison."
Richey is not under a criminal sentence.
She lives in the Farmington care facility as part of her public guardian’s care plan for her life.
"We go outside to smoke break, and that's about it," she said.
Buchanan
County Public Administrator Brad Haggard, Richey’s guardian, told KMBC
he could not speak about Richey’s case due to privacy concerns. But
Haggard invited KMBC to learn more about the work he and five other
staff members inside his office do every day.
Haggard, court records indicate, has also agreed for Richey to seek
an independent psychological evaluation that could determine if she
could be released from public guardianship.
Missouri public administrators like Haggard are mostly elected,
sometimes appointed, to serve as court-approved public guardians when
people cannot care for themselves or lack family support.
The
phone rings an average of 70 times a day in his office. More than half
of the callers are wards under his care with questions. Others are
medical providers, attorneys or people seeking his consent for
something. To keep up, he just got approval from the county commission
for two more staff members in his office.
As a former nursing home
administrator and state-level leader for the Missouri Veterans
Commission Homes program, Haggard said it catches his attention when he
hears one of his clients feels like they are in prison.
"Because we certainly don't want that," he said. "We don't want anyone to feel like that."
Paper Prisons: Public guardianship in Missouri under investigation
Chiro Richey is one of more than an estimated 11,000 people in Missouri under public guardianship.
Richey spoke to KMBC 9 News for an ongoing investigation 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.
"I’m locked up and trapped in a system that is not fair," Richey said on the phone with KMBC.
In 2016, Richey became a ward of the state of Missouri. She had a drug problem, she said.
"I asked the judge to take my rights away, so that I could get clean," she said in a YouTube video released last year. "Well, after I got clean, they would not let me go."
Every
year since 2017, a judge has reviewed a year-end status report from her
public guardian about her living conditions and her finances. Richey
appeared before Buchanan County Judge David Bolander in September of
last year. She thanked him for reviewing her case.
Bolander
ordered an independent psychological evaluation for Richey to help him
review her request for restoration. But the evaluation has faced
multiple delays since then.
Bolander, in court paperwork, has
indicated the evaluation will now take place in early March, and he will
review Richey’s case again on March 25.
Richey said she has taken classes, seen doctors, written letters to the court, but remains under the state’s care.
"It puts you in a place of loneliness," she said.
Public administrators face challenges with clients across the state
Brad Haggard must travel five and a half hours across the state if he wants to visit Richey.
Haggard has become a road warrior since taking office in January of 2025.
He
has 297 clients. About half of the people in that caseload are in 34
different nursing homes across the state. A Missouri map hangs in his
office with push pins for every Missouri town with a client, reaching
all the way down to Missouri’s southwest bootheel. Buchanan County is
in the northwest corner of the state.
Proximity is a common challenge for Missouri guardians and their wards.
People
like Richey are spread out in facilities, group homes or other living
arrangements across the state’s 114 counties and the city of St. Louis
due to few resources close to home.
"We'd be able to be more engaged with people if our clients were close to us," Haggard said.
Often, the safest and quickest option for food, medical care and shelter for public guardians is Missouri’s 486 skilled nursing facilities.
However, in 2024, the United States Department of Justice found that Missouri "unnecessarily institutionalizes"
too many people with mental health disabilities in skilled nursing
homes, improperly relying on guardianship. The report said Missouri
used "guardianship as a pipeline" to nursing homes across the state.
A 2020 report from the Missouri Association of Public Administrators mentioned several opportunities for improvement, saying a "lack of state funding and coordination leaves Missouri with a fragmented public guardianship system."
The
report highlighted how public administrators often do not have enough
resources, "while navigating complex systems to provide care for their
wards — while also facing increased pressure from the state and
stakeholders to ensure all wards are placed in their least-restrictive
alternatives."
Haggard said it is always his goal to get people to
the least restrictive setting or placement. Proximity is important in
that conversation, he said. Haggard would tell lawmakers that Missouri
needs more available housing placement and community resources for
wards.
"Particularly closer to you," he said. "So, you could be more involved in them," he said.
Still, Haggard said he and his staff work nonstop trying to communicate with his clients or caregivers every day.
Chiro Richey’s next steps
Meanwhile, Chiro Richey waits for her next steps.
She wants to move back to St. Joseph, find a job and reconnect with family.
Until then, she remains in the skilled nursing facility in Farmington.
Richey wanted her story to be public so it might help her and others get out of guardianship.
"Just get the word out," she said. "There's people like us that are stuck in these places that need to be released."
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.
The felony cases opened in Baxter County on 22-year-old Caide Curry who
formerly lived in the Clarkridge area have been dismissed by the state
after a guardianship was established for him in Missouri by his father,
according to Missouri Case Net.
Curry was facing charges in Baxter County stemming from incidents
that took place on April 5 and April 20 last year, including residential
burglary, two counts of breaking or entering, two counts of theft of
property and voyeurism.
While in jail in Baxter County, Curry picked up charges of 2nd degree
escape and impairing the operations of a vital public facility. Those
charges were filed after he tried to fight his way out of the Baxter
County Detention Center April 20th last year.
His defense attorney Ben Burnett filed petitions for mental
examinations to determine if Curry was fit to proceed and understands
the criminal nature of his acts. Orders for those exams were issued
April 24.
In the guardianship paperwork filed in the Missouri court, it was
noted that Curry had been diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorder
with auditory, visual and sensory hallucinations.
He was also reported to have exhibited what was described as “generalized anxiety disorder.”
INITIAL EVENT
According to the probable cause affidavit, three calls were made to
911 in a 21-minute span on April 5 to report thefts in the Clarkridge
area.
One of the victims reported he was holding a suspect who was later identified as Curry.
Curry had been released from jail on April 4 just before midnight in
an unrelated case and was transported to his home along County Road 36
in the Clarkridge area by family members.
At some point after being returned home, and unbeknownst to his
family, Curry took a number of items from their residence and left on
foot.
Curry was reported to be living with his grandparents. His
grandfather told investigators that Curry did not mental acuity to
“understand that it is wrong to take other people’s belongings.”
The grandfather said he did not want to press charges related to
items taken from his home. According to the probable cause affidavit,
the property was all returned.
Curry is reported to have told investigators that he “did not take this stuff to get in trouble.”
A non-family victim reported his ATV missing along with a gun from his
truck. When Curry was found, he was wearing the man’s red riding boots.
Another 911 caller reported she had run a male off at gunpoint after
catching him looking into her window. She reported she watched Curry
leave her property and walk down Baxter County Road 479 in the direction
of State Highway 201 North.
Curry is also accused of breaking into a house and an unoccupied
camper trailer. There was nothing reported stolen from the camper. The
victim said the camper was used only for recreational purposes and was
left unlocked.
JAIL FIGHT AND FLIGHT
On April 20, members of the jail staff were feeding the inmates
breakfast. When an inmate receives the meal the electronic
identification bracelet is scanned and a record is made of the activity.
When the jailers reached the isolation cell where Curry was being
held, they had to open the door to scan the identification bracelet.
After the door was opened, Curry is reported to have attempted to
“pry his way out of the cell.” The jailers attempted to get Curry back
in his cell but he managed to squeeze past them and fled down the
corridor and into an area under the dispatch tower.
He then fled into the booking area and attempted to vault over the
counter. Jailers and other sheriff’s office personnel were eventually
able to regain control of the inmate.
Curry was placed in a restraint chair while his cell was cleaned.
