Saturday, December 17, 2011

Guardian Abuse of WWII Veteran

Office of the Nevada Attorney General
555 E. Washington Avenue, Suite #3900
Las Vegas, NV 89101

December 3, 2011

Re: Jared E. Shafer, Professional Fiduciary Services of Nevada -Report of Guardian Abuse

Dear Catherine Cortez Masto,

I wish to request the State of Nevada file a series of criminal complaints against Jared E. Shafer of Professional Fiduciary Services of Nevada for several violations of Nevada NRS provisions. These include: NRS 160 Veterans Guardianship Uniform Act in violation of having over five wards, violation of NRS Chapter 199 Crimes against Public Justice for preventing my father from attending hearings, failure to terminate a guardianship when his ward moved out of the state, failure to provide my father an attorney as required by your state law, verbal assault by making threats, fraudulent double billing and more. There should also be an investigation of his attorney, Alan D. Freer, for malicious billing against my father. A copy of this letter is being posted on the nonprofit website, National Association to Stop Guardian Abuse. Please take the time to read the facts as stated in this complaint. I’m filing this document on behalf of my father, a widowed 92 yr old WW2 veteran of the U.S. Army and Air Force.

I have not attempted to contact you sooner because Mr. Shafer, former public guardian for Clark County, warned me that it wouldn’t do any good to write to you because your father was one of his best friends and he guaranteed you would take no action. However, after reading your website, I decided that in the best interest of my father I should contact you because I believe you are the only person in Nevada who can stop Mr. Shafer’s exploitation and abuse of my 92 year old widowed father.

My mother insisted she and father move to Nevada in 2002 after a lifetime in California. Because of the early death of my brother, mom, overcome by her grief, had my father deemed incompetent by a man who was not a licensed medical doctor, which resulted in her becoming dad’s guardian. The guardianship was strictly OVER HIS PERSON. Our family knew my father was competent and we have a total of 9 evaluations from doctors in Nevada and California as well as the Department of Veterans Affairs stating my father is legally competent. A Nevada M.D. stated in her 2007 report that in her opinion no guardianship was needed. Commissioner Norheim, Mr. Shafer and attorneys Elyse Tyrell and Alan Freer arbitrarily decided it would be to their advantage to ignore all of this documentation. Mr. Shafer refuses to accept any professional opinion unless it comes from a Nevada M.D. of his choice. Shafer has stated he controls what the doctors write and requested that I not obtain any more reports. In fact, I have a report from a California M.D. issued one month ago stating my father is fully competent. We have a very interesting situation, if my father is tested in California he is competent, but when he crosses the border into Nevada he is incompetent. As you can see this set of circumstances is very harmful to my father. How would you feel if someone you loved had to live with this horrible situation? My father lives and breathes this anxiety every day of his life. Mr. Shafer has told many victim families, “I write the reports and the doctors sign them. If these doctors want to work in this state they do what I tell them.” I will supply names and telephone numbers of others who can back up this statement.

Source:
Victims: L.O. Nevada/California Victim

Note: "L.O." is a NASGA Member

E-Filing Now Available for Nebraska Probate

Nebraska County Courts have added probate case filings to the list of case types available through the court's Internet-based filing system. Probate e-filing is now offered for existing cases in the areas of estates, guardianships, conservatorships, and trusts. Nebraska attorneys can submit their filings to any of the 93 county courts in the state via the Nebraska Judicial Branch's eFiling system. Probate case types join civil, criminal and juvenile case types, which are already a part of eFiling.

Confidential documents are protected throughout the filing process and when stored within the computer files, just as financial and personal information is now protected in other types of eFiled cases.

"We are very pleased to be adding Probate to our suite of electronic filing services," said State Court Administrator Janice Walker. "Our hope is that the trial courts' continuing advances in technology have made it easier for attorneys to conduct business and pass these benefits on to their clients."

Full Article and Source:
Probate Cases Join E-Filing in Nebraska

Friday, December 16, 2011

'The Adele Chris Act'

Read proposed legislation submitted by Marked for Destruction's author, John Caravella, to the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security at their request for a Model Law" to combat abusive guardianships: The Adele Chris Act


View the May 25, 2010 Subcommittee Hearing

Contact the Committee and voice your support

What Adele Fraulen might have thought to be nothing more than a meaningless bad dream one night in 1935 would actually come true. At age 79 she would find herself living a nightmare -- a struggle for her life, simply because she innocently trusted the wrong professionals to help with her portion of a Million Dollar inheritance; they would steal her very existence. Her neighbors, Chris and Patricia Zurillo, would realize that Adele's life was going terribly wrong and dedicate themselves to freeing her from captivity. “Marked For Destruction” is a rare book that exposes an ever-expanding crime against our elderly.

Source:
MarkedForDestruction.com


A Free Gift From Adele's Neighbors - Read 'Marked for Destruction' online

Aging in America: Future Challenges, Promise and Potential


View The Senate Special Committee on Aging's Forum: Aging in America, Future Challenges, Promise and Potential

See Also:
Senate Special Committee on Aging Holding Forum Today: 'Aging in America: Future Challenges, Promise and Potential'

Thursday, December 15, 2011

Former Public Guardian Sentenced for Illegally Purchasing Client's Property

A former official in the Madera County Public Guardian’s Office was sentenced today [11/14/11] to three years of probation for illegally purchasing property from a person who died while under the county’s care, the county District Attorney’s Office said.

Heather Young, 32, a former county deputy public guardian, had pleaded no contest to the charge in October. A DA’s Office investigation in 2009 led to a grand jury indictment against Young in April 2010.

Public guardian officials are not allowed to buy property from a client’s estate other than at a public sale, because the officials play a role in setting the property’s value.

Full Article and Source:
Ex-Madera County Official Sentenced for Buying Clients' Property

Charges Dropped Against MA Man Accused of Helping Father Commit Suicide

Charges against a Massachusetts man who was accused of helping his father, a prominent attorney and West Hartford resident, commit suicide were dropped [12/08/11]. Prosecutor Thomas Garcia told Judge Joan Alexander that he didn't want to continue to pursue the charges against Bruce Brodigan, 57, of Somerville, Mass. The judge approved the request.

"I feel my client is happy that it's over," said Hubert Santos, Brodigan's attorney.

In September 2010, Brodigan, allegedly helped his father, George, take his own life through an overdose of drugs and alcohol. George Brodigan, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease, died at home with a half-filled bottle of Mount Gay rum and a copy of Derek Humphry's "Final Exit," a guide to ending one's life, at his bedside.

According to police, Bruce Brodigan said his father wanted to take his own life before he became incapacitated. He told police that his father's condition had declined and that there was talk about whether he could remain at his home without additional care.

"He loves his father and just wanted to relieve him of his pain," Santos said Thursday [11/8].

It is illegal in Connecticut to assist in another's suicide, and Brodigan was charged in January with second-degree manslaughter, tampering with or fabricating evidence and providing a false statement.

Garcia said he decided to drop the charges after Judge David Gold, who was recently transferred to another Connecticut courtroom, told him he would not grant Brodigan a special form of probation, which would have allowed allow him to clear his record upon successful completion.

Full Article and Source:
Charges Dropped Thursday Against Man Accused Of Helping Father Commit Suicide

Ohio Attorney Loses W Va. License

As he did in his home state a year ago, an Ohio attorney has lost his license to practice law in West Virginia.

The state Supreme Court on Nov. 22 annulled the license of James R. Henry. The Court's action mirrored that of Ohio's High Court when it ordered Henry's permanent disbarment last December after an investigation found he mishandled the cases of eight former clients during a three-year period.

Records show in disbarring Henry, the Ohio Court said his failure to perform work on client's cases after he was paid a retainer was "tantamount to theft of the fee from the client."

'A pattern of neglect'
According to the Ohio Court's Dec. 22 order, Henry, a sole practitioner in Gallipolis, was charged with 25 violations of the Rules of Professional Conduct by its Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline. Though not specifically indentified, the order says Henry, among other things:

* Informed a father from Indianapolis in May 2008 four days too early about a hearing in Gallia Court of Common Pleas' Juvenile Division on his petition for sole residential parent and guardian of his son. The father had to later file a pro se motion for immediate or emergency change of custody when Henry missed the deadline to file a motion for a final hearing or agreed order.

* Failed to keep a man updated on the status of a potential lawsuit against his former employer. The man paid Henry a retainer of $2,500 in February 2007, and did not hear from him after September 2009 due to Henry's phone getting disconnected.

* Failed to return over $1,500 to a couple in July 2009 after they sent him certified letters saying they no longer wanted him to complete a trust for them. The letters were sent after repeated calls made to his office informed them his voice mailbox was full.

* Closed his office without giving a woman notice he failed to complete the estate settlement for her late husband's estate after paying him $500. Between the time she retained him in April 2009, and he closed his office that December, the woman made repeated calls to his office only to have them go unanswered or him tell her he'd be completing the work soon.

Full Article and Source:
Ohio Atty Loses WVa License

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Senate Special Committee on Aging Holding Forum Today: 'Aging in America: Future Challenges, Promise and Potential'

The Senate Special Committee on Aging is holding a forum Wednesday to commemorate the committee's 50th anniversary, titled: “Aging in America: Future Challenges, Promise and Potential.”

Convened by retiring Committee Chairman Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI), the forum will be held Wednesday from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. (E.T.). Featured panelists include Kathy Greenlee, assistant secretary for the Administration on Aging; Robyn Stone, Dr. P.H., executive director, LeadingAge Center for Applied Research; and Richard J. Hodes, M.D., director of the National Institute on Aging.

The forum will be held in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, in Washington, D.C.

Source:
Senate Special Committee on Aging to Host Forum on Aging

Nearly 2 Years After Devastating Head Injury, Snowboarder is Back

Instead of riding for Kevin, snowboarders can ride with Kevin again. Kevin Pearce's remarkable recovery will reach a major milestone next week when he gets back on snow for the first time in the two years since his life-threatening accident on the halfpipe.

"I'm kind of trippin' that we're finally here," Pearce said Thursday. Pearce suffered a traumatic brain injury in an accident during practice Dec. 31, 2009, that left him in a coma. His plight spawned the slogan "I Ride 4 Kevin," and ever since the accident, those stickers and patches have been plastered across snowboards and jackets on slopes across America.

Source:
Terri Schiavo Life and Hope Network