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Showing posts with label disabled man. Show all posts
Showing posts with label disabled man. Show all posts
Sunday, March 30, 2025
Monday, November 18, 2024
Charlotte County woman accused of abusing disabled boyfriend
By ABC7 Staff
CHARLOTTE COUNTY, Fla. (WWSB) - A Port Charlotte woman is in jail after deputies she assaulted a man who was under her care.
Deputies were called out to a home on Warren Avenue for reports of a domestic violence incident. Officials say De’yeanna Stultz provided a false name to deputies initially. Stultz was the primary caregiver for her boyfriend and she denied that anything had happened.
The victim had called deputies and provided a statement, identifying Stultz as his caretaker and girlfriend of 11 years. He told officals that De’yanna had been drinking and that she becomes aggressive when intoxicated.
The Probable Cause Affidavit states that De’yanna had thrown a Roku remote at the victim and struck him, The remote was in the floor, its batteries spilled out, next to the victim who couldn’t move.
Officers arrested Stultz, and say she resisted and refused to comply with directions. Stultz was charged with the abuse of a disabled adult, resisting without violence and providing a false name to LEO.
She is in the Charlotte County Jail.
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Charlotte County woman accused of abusing disabled boyfriend
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Return disabled man to care of his husband, attorneys implore appeals court
That husband was abusive, the other side argues, urging the court to affirm Ryan Morris' removal from their Riverside County home
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| Ryan Morris, right, and husband Sean Spicer, at their wedding in 2014., Spicer became Morris’ legal guardian. (Photo courtesy probate court file) |
By Teri Sforza
In the latest twist in a confounding legal case that pits two fundamental rights for the disabled squarely against one another, a man with the mental capacity of a first-grader is appealing a judge’s decision to strip his husband of legal guardianship and move the disabled man out of their Riverside County home.
In a brief filed with the California Fourth District Court of Appeal, attorneys for Ryan Morris are seeking to reverse the trial court ruling, arguing that his limited understanding of what it means to be married should never have been factored into the judge’s decision. The case presents a direct conflict between the hard-won right for the disabled to marry and have sex lives, just like everyone else, and their right to be protected from abuse and undue influence.
“There is a large body of case authority reflecting an extremely low level of mental capacity needed before making the decision to marry or execute a will,” says the brief, which seeks to return guardianship to Morris’ spouse, Sean Spicer. “Marriage arises out of a civil contract, but courts recognize this is a special kind of contract that does not require the same level of mental capacity of the parties as other kinds of contracts.”
The Riverside County judge — who removed Spicer, a man of regular intelligence, as legal conservator for Morris — made numerous errors of law and abused her discretion, Morris’ attorneys said. Morris’ mental capacity was not an issue properly before the court; Morris loves Spicer, wants Spicer as his legal guardian and wants to live with him; and the law “imposes a preference” for Morris’ desires, they argue in their appeal.
Attorneys for Morris’ identical twin brother, Ronald Moore of Orange County, tore into that logic in their response, filed in October.
“The trial court did not annul or set aside the marriage between Spicer and Morris, nor did the trial court modify any of the rights afforded to Morris,” they argued. “He still possesses the rights to consent or withhold consent to marriage and to control his social and sexual contacts. Hence, any claims to the contrary … are diversions from the monumental abuses inflicted on Morris by Spicer.”
Absent from Morris’ appeal was any mention of those abuses — including Spicer’s threats to send Morris back to his adoptive mother’s house, where he had been sexually abused as a child — when he misbehaved, Moore’s attorneys argued. Spicer also threatened to take off his wedding ring, end the marriage and send Morris away for emergency mental health treatment when Morris was difficult or violent. And Spicer punished Morris by restricting visits with his biological family, which desperately wanted to see him.
Spicer also continued to make their home in a Romoland trailer with his parents, despite violent episodes between Morris and Spicer’s mother, and between Morris and Spicer himself. The judge also cited an unsettling episode in which Spicer’s mother attempted to commit suicide by slitting her wrists in front of Morris.
Attorneys for twin Moore called Spicer’s behavior reprehensible. “What kind of person, let alone a spouse and conservator, would do and say such things to a young man that has the mental capacity of a young child in the range of 5 to 7 years old?” they wrote.
In the ruling that’s now contested, Riverside Superior Court Judge Sunshine Sykes said love may not be the best yardstick for decision-making. While she had no doubt that love existed between Morris and Spicer, “sometimes choices based upon love are not always choices made based upon best interest,” she wrote. “The lines between spouse and conservator have been blurred to such an extent that it is no longer in Ryan’s best interest to have Sean in the role of conservator. This is evidenced by numerous instances of abusive behavior.”
The judge appointed the Riverside public guardian as temporary conservator and moved Morris to a new home.
Constitutional violations
“The trial court’s order in this case impermissibly interfered with (Morris’) right to be married because the order required that he be removed from the home of his spouse,” says the appeal by Mark J. Andrew Flory of Brown White & Osborn.
“The court’s order also limited visitation between Ryan and his spouse to visits in a therapeutic setting only. The trial court’s order has the effect of interfering with (his) fundamental right to be married because the order forces Ryan and his spouse to live separately,” and that, they argue, violates both the United States and California constitutions.
“This Court should reverse the trial court’s order removing the limited conservator,” the appeal said.
Morris and identical twin Moore were taken into state custody shortly after birth due to their parents’ mental illness. Their grandmother fought for custody of both boys, but got only Moore, the healthy baby. Morris had so many special needs he was kept in foster care.
Morris’ foster mother adopted him over the biological family’s vehement objections, then cut off communication. The foster mother surrendered her license last year after the death of a 16-year-old at her facility.
Removed for cause
A legal response by Charles S. Krolikowski and Jason M. Caruso of Newmeyer & Dillion LLP says the appeals court should look with great skepticism on the “inaccurate factual and legal propositions” raised in the appeal.
“The trial court removed Spicer as conservator for cause,” they argued. “The trial court’s decision to remove a conservator is a matter of discretion … determined by the court on case-by-case basis.”
Spicer testified to mistreating and threatening Morris, they argued. And while Morris may say he wants Spicer as conservator now, Morris also has said he doesn’t want to be married or live with Spicer as well.
A video of Morris and Spicer’s wedding shows Morris didn’t understand he was at his own wedding, instead mistaking the ceremony for a baptism. But the judge didn’t annul the marriage because of Morris’ lack of capacity, and it didn’t modify his right to marry or spend time with anyone he wants, they said.
“There was a mountain of evidence to support the removal of Spicer,” they wrote. “This is not a close call. The decision of the trial court should be affirmed.”
Morris’ attorneys have until Dec. 14 to file their reply. The appeals court is expected to made a decision sometime next year.
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Thursday, November 26, 2020
Legally blind man kicked out of nursing home gets help from community
RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - It’s a new beginning for a legally blind man who was thrown out of a Richmond nursing home and onto the street with no place to go, and without proper medication.
You may remember Steven Brown when our team investigated allegations against a local nursing home in September. Brown’s story touched many of you and now, he’s getting a second chance in Florida and is grateful this Thanksgiving for everyone who helped.
His journey from heartbreak to healing began when word of his emergency status of being evicted from Bonview Rehabilitation and Healthcare, homeless, without a job and needing care, spread across the internet, prompting a Florida friend with the resources and resolve to get him on a plane and into care.
“The person was more than willing and knows my character gave an opportunity for me to continue with my job. Finding a place for sure and making better strides. The story that you guys reported - it was right on time,” Brown said.
Brown stopped by NBC12 on his way to the airport, accompanied by a helper his friend arranged. It was a quick visit to collect encouraging cards two strangers mailed to On Your Side Investigator Diane Walker for Steven with money inside.
“I can’t say I deserve it. Do I need help? Yes,” he said. His helper read from the cards that are both uplifting and praying for his strength. “That’s beautiful. I just don’t have the words in my vocabulary to describe how I feel. I don’t know if that was their last, I don’t know how hard they worked for it. I don’t know, but I do know they took the time to do this - which is a lot.”
Bonview maintains it’s not at liberty to discuss patients and says their staff is focused on keeping patients safe and protected during the pandemic. As much as he has suffered, Brown wants to be an advocate for nursing home residents. He wants consequences for inaction when facilities, and even government agencies, turn a blind eye to allegations of abuse and neglect.
“These facilities are needed. They are. But that doesn’t excuse you abusing someone that’s sick. Kicking them when they’re down. That’s disgusting,” Brown said.
From where Brown sits now, life is looking a lot better.
“Thank you. I definitely appreciate it, and it will be used the proper way like money is supposed to be used,” he said.
The
friend helping him says Brown will stay in Florida until he gets
stable. He is legally blind and diagnosed with major depressive
disorder, anxiety and rheumatoid arthritis. She says he is a special man
who doesn’t belong in this situation.
Full Article & Source:
Monday, October 19, 2020
Disabled man’s removal from husband into ‘temporary’ guardianship to drag on for nearly 2 years
Tug-of-war over what's best for Ryan Morris continued this week during a court hearing in Riverside Superior Court
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| Ryan Morris, right, and husband Sean Spicer, at their wedding in 2014., Spicer became Morris’ legal guardian. (Photo courtesy probate court file) |
By Teri Sforza
When a judge removed Ryan Morris from the care of his husband last year — concluding that Morris doesn’t have the mental capacity to understand what a marriage is and, thus, can’t consent to being married — the county stepped in as his temporary legal guardian and moved him to a new home.
It was supposed to mark a fresh, if difficult, reset. But Morris’ attorneys appealed that decision, and, a year-and-a-half later, Morris still lacks a permanent guardian. No resolution is expected before March, and the tug-of-war over what’s best for him continues.
Should the Riverside County Public Guardian’s Office’s temporary appointment become permanent? Should the Department of Developmental Services take over?
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| Identical twins play on the beach in San Clemente on Dec. 19, 2000. They were 6. Ronald Moore, right, holds brother Ryan. (Staff Photo / Eugene Garcia ) |
His adoptive mother and Riverside County are the subjects of a $25 million lawsuit filed by the parents of “Princess” Diane Ramirez, a disabled foster child who died in Morris’ care last year. Michelle Morris neglected to obtain emergency medical help for the girl in a timely manner, and her staff’s actions posed an immediate risk to the children placed in care at her home in Murrieta, according to an investigation by the California Department of Social Services. Michelle Morris surrendered her foster care license in the wake of Ramirez’s death.
All options are for naught, though, at least for now.
“As important and as complex as the case is, I don’t know that I can do much about it today,” said Riverside Superior Court Judge Thomas H. Cahraman during a virtual proceeding on Thursday, Oct. 15. “All those petitions have to await the Court of Appeal decision.”
Waiting
Ryan Morris, who has the intellectual ability of a young child, married Sean Spicer, a man of regular intelligence 18 years his senior, in a ceremony that the disabled man mistook for a baptism in his mom’s yard in 2014. His biological family feared he was the victim of sexual abuse and began fighting to oust Spicer as legal guardian in 2016. They won on May 17, 2019.
Morris’ court-appointed and county-funded attorneys quickly filed an appeal, saying the decision was a blow to the rights of the disabled everywhere. It was Morris’ idea to get married, not Spicer’s, they said. Morris understands what marriage is and is angry that his biological relatives are trying to separate him from the person he loves, they contend. They argue that the core of the appeal is Morris’ right as a disabled person to choose who he’s married to and who is his conservator.
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| Ronald Moore, left, and identical twin Ryan Morris embrace after seeing each for the first time in 13 years at a court hearing on Ryan’s conservatorship in July 2015. (Photo courtesy of Monica Mukai) |
It also raises questions about the importance of blood relations. Ryan Morris and his identical twin, Ronald Moore, were separated by the state when the two were toddlers, despite the vehement objections of their biological family. The nettlesome issues were probed in a three-part series by the Southern California News Group in 2017.
Morris did not attend the virtual proceedings Thursday, but Spicer did. He was not pleased to hear that the biological family wants the public guardian removed.
“I have not observed Ryan having any issues with his current placement or current conservator,” Spicer told the judge. “She has made decisions that I have not appreciated, but that’s the nature of her job. In the big picture, I believe the public guardian is doing a good job given the situation, and anyone who claims differently probably has ulterior motives.”
Morris’ biological aunt, Monica Mukai, told the judge that Morris is living in a restricted environment without adequate access to educational and speech therapy, despite his challenges. That’s a violation of his civil and constitutional rights, she argued in court paperwork that the judge hadn’t seen and asked her to refile.
Continued delays allow law firms to rack up fees at taxpayer expense and leave Morris in limbo, she said after the proceedings.
“A temporary conservatorship is supposed to be 30 to 60 days. This
will take it to nearly two years. It’s not an abuse of the law. It’s
lawlessness.”
Full Article & Source:
Thursday, October 1, 2020
Disabled man says Richmond nursing home threw him out
RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) - Steven Brown says medical professionals put his life in jeopardy when Bonview Rehabilitation and Healthcare in Richmond, threw him out on the street.
On Your Side Investigator Diane Walker continues her look into the allegations, including what Brown says happened to him last year.
Bonview isn’t commenting except to say it’s not at liberty to discuss patients and says they’re focused on keeping patients safe and protected during the pandemic.
Walker started investigating Bonview last year after several people called her about problems that they say they reported but couldn’t get anyone to take action. Walker has the findings of an unannounced Medicare-Medicaid investigation confirming some complaints Brown told her.
Resident #6 was in “immediate jeopardy,” wrote the state - discharged against his will, in an unsafe manner despite his pending appeal. Resident #6 is Steven Brown in the state’s October 16, 2019 inspection.
“When you go through something like this, it’s kind of horrific,” Brown said.
The legally blind Navy veteran, diagnosed with major depressive disorder, anxiety disorder, hypertension and rheumatoid arthritis, relies on a rollator to steady his steps and keep from falling says when Bonview evicted him, he lived the first day and a half homeless inside a Walmart.
“It was very shameful so you kind of try to blend in,” Brown said.
Walker sat down with Steven in his extended stay motel room last year after that eviction, but many months would pass before the state investigated what Steven says happened when John Bernadyn, the former Executive Director, was in charge.
“I was in the hallway. They walked up to me. He said, ‘Mr. Brown, today you have to get out. After discussing it with my team, you have to go right now,’” Brown said.
A group of seven he says confronted him aggressively, even the business office manager had words.
“She’s standing in the door of the room saying, ‘we don’t want you here... Why won’t you just leave’...She said, ‘I can guarantee you this tomorrow, I’m going to call the police. They will get you out of here,’” Brown said.
“And you left that day?" Walker asked.
“Yes. In the rain, pouring down,” Brown said.
“They didn’t care about where you were going? Did they make arrangements to send you someplace else?” Walker asked.
"No. No, Ma’am,” Brown said.
He filed complaints with Bonview, its owner Consulate Healthcare and the state telling their investigators the same accounts he told NBC12.
“Why did John [Bernadyn] put you out in the rain?” Walker asked.
“He targeted me because of things I would say. Things that were wrong,” Brown said.
Steven says he advocated for his dying roommate and always spoke up when he thought the nursing home was slipping. He says they grew tired of him complaining and evicted him on a made-up allegation that he was threatening to staff.
“I’m not a profane person. Because I’m 6′4”, 340 pounds, extremely dark. OK, I’m the boogie man," Brown said.
The unannounced Medicare-Medicaid investigation found that Steven was not a danger to anyone and his June 2019 discharge was a life-threatening violation. In the report, the Director of Nursing admits a person thrown out the way Steven was - could bottom out - could die.
According to the report, Steven left with a male friend and did not disclose where he was going. He was discharged with no glucometer, no physician’s evaluation, no reason for discharge, no staff signature and with 50 tablets of Lorazepam, a controlled narcotic. Also in the report, Steven called back asking for help with his medications. Employee P told Steven it was not her area and she did not document or follow up with anyone else at Bonview about his request for help.
The report states Bonview offered to readmit Steven four months after his eviction. He said no.
Bonview was also cited in the report for contacting Social Security and becoming the payee without Steven’s permission causing him to lose his apartment and belongings because he couldn’t access his own money. Bonview refunded him, but by then it was too late.
“They had taken control of my check. My Social Security. I didn’t even know they were getting that. They had changed me from physical therapy to long-term. I didn’t even know this,” Brown said.
While it’s impossible to undo what was done to Steven, he still worries about others. One former resident in particular.
“There was a man in there. He died. He died. I was in the building when it happened. The CNA’s got fired. They tied him to the bed because I guess they got tired of him falling or getting up. Tied this man to the bed...You don’t tie a dog to nothing. That dog has life. You are going to tie a human being to something? What’s going on in your mind?” Brown said.
Walker started digging through inspections during the time Steven was at Bonview and found the March 1, 2019 inspection. A nurse discovered Resident #1 restrained to his bed on Feb. 15 with sheets tied around his waist and to both side bed rails. The inspection says the nurse and former executive director reported it to the Board of Nursing and fired the two CNA’s who did it - one says not to harm him but because she couldn’t get work done when he wandered the halls.
Resident #1 was 75-year-old Clifford Wayne Amos, an Alzheimer’s patient who died six days after he was restrained. The report does not mention Amos' death but says after he was untied, he was “immediately assessed and no physical or psychological changes were noted.” Walker also found his family and spoke with two members who say they are saddened and hope it never happens to another family. They say Bonview told them he had been restrained but Amos' family thought another patient had tied him up - not two certified nursing assistants.
“It’s like you’re just concerned about one thing, which is the profit. You don’t care how many falls. You don’t care how many deaths. You don’t care how many situations that you contribute to...Based on my experience, it was deplorable. It was disgusting. What I’ve seen when family members are not around. What those people go through in there. It’s disgusting,” Brown said.
Steven is homeless. Walker spoke with him just a few days ago. That night he says he was sleeping in a friend’s car. The Navy veteran says he could not afford the hotel room long-term and shelters don’t take blind people.
Also,
the former executive director called Walker once after he no longer
worked for Bonview. The two agreed to meet but John Bernadyn did not
show up for that meeting. Again, Bonview and Consulate Healthcare have
declined to comment. There are state and federal laws that govern
discharge and restraining patients.
Full Article & Source:
Wednesday, October 17, 2018
Home aide accused of stealing from disabled man
OCEANSIDE - A woman who worked as a home aide is accused of stealing from the physically disabled man who she was hired to care for.
Police say Humadai Humadai, 59, of Oceanside, worked as a home aide to a man with Parkinson's disease. She lived with him at his home on Skillman Avenue.
Police say when they responded to the victim's house on Sunday, Humadai took off. She was arrested a short time later near the Green Acres Mall.
The victim's neighbor tells News 12 that she's seen many cars come and go from the house recently. She says she grew worried for her disabled neighbor.
"I was a little concerned that they could be taking advantage of him," she says.
According to police, Humadai had a prior warrant out for her arrest in another state. And posts on Facebook accuse her of being a con artist who took money from multiple people.
Humadai is now charged with endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person.
She was arraigned in Hempstead Monday, according to police.
News 12 tried speaking with the victim about what happened, but no one answered the door at the home.
Full Article & Source:
Home aide accused of stealing from disabled man
Saturday, December 9, 2017
Sheriff: Pair stole thousands from developmentally disabled man in Oregon City area
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| Jack Allen Dunn and Rosemarie Hildegard Henley |
Jack Allen Dunn, 43, and Rosemarie Hildegard Henley, 49, both of Redland, were arrested Nov. 20 on charges including criminal mistreatment and theft.
At the prompting of an attorney for the family trust of the 73-year-old victim, detectives began an investigation into financial irregularities relating to the suspects’ handling of the man’s income.
Adult Protective Services was also involved Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office investigation.
The 73-year-old man lives on a farm on Potter Road in the Oregon City area and he granted Dunn and Henley power of attorney to assume control of his finances, which included disability payments and social security benefits, in mid-2015.
Investigators said the suspects also began tending to the farm animals on the man’s 40-acre property.
Detectives determined Dunn and Henley spent tens of thousands of dollars of the man’s money on themselves.
Both suspects were booked into the Clackamas County Jail on charges of criminal mistreatment and theft. Dunn faces an additional charge of possession of an unlawful silencer.
Before Dunn and Henley were granted power of attorney, the man’s sister-in-law had been managing his finances since 2012.
In October 2016, the Clackamas County Circuit Court named a new limited guardian and conservator for the man. A court-appointed advocate has also been assigned to help maintain his independence.
Full Article & Source:
Sheriff: Pair stole thousands from developmentally disabled man in Oregon City area
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