Petition: Sen.Beavers, Rep. Gary Odom: Impeach Judge Randy Kennedy

Guardianship and conservatorship law is designed to “guard,” “conserve” and “protect” incompetent or disabled citizens, vulnerable elderly, and their estates.

Under Tennessee law, it is Judge Randy Kennedy’s duty alone, to decide whether or not a person is in need of a guardian or a conservator, and then to protect the vulnerable, elderly or disabled person. The law clearly states that the decisions Judge Kennedy makes should be in the best interest of the conserved person. Their best interest is NOT taken into consideration in his court and they are NOT protected!

• Judge Kennedy convenes emergency hearings without proper notice, in which people are conserved and their rights to due process and the law – federal and state - violated.
• Wards' assets are depleted, property, and belongings quickly sold before they have the chance to prove they are competent. These people should NOT have to prove they are competent!
• Court appointed guardians and lawyers in these cases profit greatly at the expense of the very people they are appointed to protect, also sanctioned by Judge Kennedy.
• Judge Kennedy improperly seals files from public view.

Mrs. Jewell Tinnon, Ginger Franklin, and Danny Tate are citizens who were conserved by petitions being filed without their knowledge, had their assets depleted and property sold, (a combined worth in excess of $2.5 million) - all signed off on by Judge Kennedy. Mrs. Tinnon even pleaded before Judge Kennedy not to sell all the things she had worked hard for. He ordered the sell anyway!

THIS COULD HAPPEN TO YOU!!!!

SIGN THE PETITION

Chief of Wayne County Probate Court Refuses to Take Judge Off Rosa Parks Case

The chief judge of Wayne County Probate Court refused Friday to remove one of his colleagues from presiding over the estate of Rosa Parks, the late civil rights icon.

Judge Milton Mack Jr. said attorney Steven Cohen of Farmington Hills failed to present any evidence to justify removing Judge Freddie Burton Jr. from the estate, which has been embroiled in controversy since Parks died in 2005.

"There has been no showing of personal bias," Mack said after a 30-minute hearing, adding that Cohen's decision to sue Burton and then demand his removal from the case amounted to "naked forum shopping."

Cohen has accused Burton of allowing Detroit probate lawyers John Chase Jr. and Melvin Jefferson Jr. to drain the estate with excessive and unnecessary legal fees. Cohen said Burton improperly dismissed his suit and then rejected Cohen's motion to disqualify himself.

Cohen represents Elaine Steele, Parks' longtime personal assistant, and the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self-Development, which the two women formed in the 1980s. Parks left the bulk of her estate to Steele and the institute.

"This case should be a warning to the people of Wayne County that the probate court judges do not believe their authority is limited in any manner," Cohen said after court, vowing to appeal the rulings of both judges. "If a judge can dismiss a case in which he is a defendant, then he can do anything."

Full Article and Source:
Chief of Wayne County Probate Court Refuses to Take Judge Off Rosa Parks Case

See Also:
Judge Fires Back in Rosa Parks Estate Dispute

Attorney Pleads Guilty to Financial Exploitation

The status of a Dixon attorney’s law license is uncertain after he pleaded guilty this week to bilking thousands of dollars from a now-deceased Dixon woman.

“When we’re dealing with allegations of conversion or theft from an elderly person, we always ask for a substantial penalty, like disbarment or a long suspension,” said Jim Grogan, deputy administrator and chief counsel of the Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission.

Al Henry Williams, 63, pleaded guilty Thursday in Lee County court to financial exploitation of a disabled person, a Class 4 felony, and was sentenced to 6 months of conditional discharge.

In exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors from the state attorney general’s office dropped the more serious charges of financial exploitation of an elderly person and theft of between $10,000 and $100,000.

He also was ordered to pay $15,992 in restitution to the estate of Dorothy Gaul, and $593 in court fees.

If Williams successfully completes the terms of his discharge and pays all fines and restitution, the case will be dismissed.

Full Article and Source:
Attorney Pleads Guilty to Financial Exploitation

Barb Montrond Reports: The Perils of Probate Court

Elder financial abuse has been around as long as older people have had money and property. Financial abuse, often accompanied by physical, psychological, and/or sexual abuse remains a sad reality for many older citizens. Until recently, one particularly disturbing type of elder abuse has managed to remain a “dirty little secret” within local and national probate courts: Guardian and or conservator/fiduciary abuse.

Guardian and/or conservator abuse occurs when perpetrators use the system to drain the estates of vulnerable people in order to enrich their own lives. These unscrupulous individuals shield themselves behind the walls of the probate court, under the thinly veiled guise of protecting the elderly. Thousands of aging and/or otherwise vulnerable citizens undergo a particularly dehumanizing process as they are systematically stripped of their civil and constitutional rights via the probate or similar court system.

These perpetrators have learned to use the system supposedly intended to protect vulnerable citizens to dehumanize and destroy them instead.

Full Article and Source:
The Perils of Probate Court

JP Morgan Chase Bank Manager and Her Husband Convicted of Scamming Elderly Man Out of $1.1 Mil

A JP Morgan Chase bank manager and her husband were convicted Thursday of scamming a 97-year-old man out of $1.1 million in life savings, according to the Santa Clara County District Attorney.

Prosecutors said that bank manager Christina Bray, 30, befriended the elderly banking client and pretended to manage his financial affairs. Instead, prosecutors said, Bray and her husband, Jimmy Bray, 39, of San Jose, spent the victim’s money on luxury cars and liposuction.

The couple pleaded guilty to several counts of felony elder theft.

Jimmy Bray was also convicted of being an ex-felon in possession of a firearm.

Christina Bray is set to be sentenced to an expected six years in prison and Jimmy Bray is expected to be sentenced to eight years in prison at a hearing scheduled for Sept. 4.

“Elderly people rely on bankers to carefully watch over their life savings," Deputy District Attorney Cherie Bourlard said in a statement. “The Brays criminally used this vulnerable gentleman as their ATM.”

Full Article and Source:
SJ Bank Manager, Husband Bilk Victim of $1.1 M

Hospital Orderly Accused of Stealing $250,000 From Elderly Relative

An orderly at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite faces charges of stealing approximately $250,000 from an elderly relative, virtually wiping out the 93-year-old's retirement income.

Sean Caldwell, 39, was arrested last Friday by Atlanta police and charged with financial identity theft and exploitation of the elderly. Investigators say he began writing checks to himself from the account of his wife's great uncle, Mager Leach, a retired railroad worker, last fall.

Leach is suffering from the onset of dementia, said Atlanta Police Sgt. Paul Cooper of the major fraud unit, and was unaware Caldwell was withdrawing such large amounts from his account.

"[Caldwell] really enhanced his lifestyle," Cooper said.

Full Article and Source:
Hospital Orderly Accused of Stealing $250,000 From Elderly Relative

'Lawless America - The Movie' and the Filming of the Gary and Sara Harvey Case

The Star Gazette’s Ray Finger was on hand during filming for “Lawless America — The Movie”, which took place Thursday, July 19, 2012 in Elmira, New York. The subjects of the Elmira segment were Gary & Sara Harvey and the government officials and their attorneys who have kept Gary Harvey isolated in a hospital room with little stimulation and extremely restricted visitation.

Finger reports:

Filmmaker and activist William Windsor is a man on a mission, and that mission brought him to Elmira on Thursday as he seeks to battle what he calls 14 categories of corruption.

“Our challenge is to educate and reach a million-plus people,” said Windsor, who started June 14 on a 143-day trip through all 50 states to work on “Lawless America – The Movie.”

Through the project, he is recording the stories of people who say they are victims of judicial and governmental corruption.

“The name ‘Lawless America’ was developed not to say our country is lawless or that we have a lot of lawless people,” he said.

“It’s to say that we have laws and they aren’t enforced, and we have people who are supposed to enforce the law and they don’t do the right thing, so they’re lawless. The judges change the law at a moment’s notice.”

Finger further reports:

Windsor called the Harveys’ situation a horrible story.

“He has no business having a guardian other than his loving wife,” he said.

“From my experience with the people I’ve filmed for guardian abuse, they go for the money. Guardians get put in place when you have family members that are ready, willing and able to do it and care for their loved ones,” he said.

Victims end up getting bled dry of their money, he said. “That’s a disgrace, and we have to try to expose it.”

Mr. Windsor has taken note of the Harvey story, (as well as the stories of numerous other victims), and he is taking the story out of the guarded territory and out into the public eye. No longer will it matter if the mainstream media ignores these stories, failing to give victims a voice. No longer will it matter who has turned (or is attempting to turn) a blind eye or only listened to half a story. Now the truth will be told and the victims will be heard.

Full Article and Source:
Lawless America - The Movie and the Filming of the Gary and Sara Harvey Case

See Also:
Lawless America Films Sara Harvey

Film Maker Stops in Elmira to Expose Injustices

LawlessAmerica.com

Corruption Filmmaker Gathers Testimony in Wilkes Barre, PA

A man who dubs himself a leading authority on judicial corruption came to a place some would argue is the epitome of judicial corruption to interview a woman who has been the face of corruption victims.

Bill Windsor, a 63-year-old Georgian who claims to have been the victim of a corrupt judge himself, brought his documentary film venture to a room in the Hampton Inn Friday, videotaping testimony by seven area people who claim they are victims of corrupt public officials.

The avuncular Windsor is on a 143-day tour of all 50 states taking such testimonies, with plans to edit it all into a movie titled “Lawless America.” At 5 p.m. Friday, with pizza boxes on the bed and a root beer bottle on the dresser, he sat down to record Sandy Fonzo.

Fonzo gained national fame following the February 2011, conviction of former Luzerne County Judge Mark Ciavarella in the so-called “kids for cash” scandal, a moniker he was flatly rejecting on the courthouse steps after the verdict when Fonzo screamed her contention that Ciavarella’s mishandling of her son’s case as a juvenile led to his suicide.

“I’ve heard unbelievable stories,” Windsor said, “Sandy’s – as tragic as it is – at least it focuses a light on corruption here.

“And it’s not just here, there is rampant dishonesty bred from power, greed and ego.”

Full Article and Source:
Corruption Filmmaker Gathers Local Testimony

See Also:
Filmmaker in Elmira NY Turns Camera on Corruption

LawlessAmerica.com

TN Conservator Charged With Raping Woman, Stealing From Couple

Eight years ago a Tennessee chancery court judge concluded a mentally disabled couple needed a court-appointed conservator because they couldn’t take care of their most basic needs.

Now the family friend given control over every aspect of their lives stands charged with rape by an authority figure, three counts of sexual battery and theft of more than $60,000.

Those charges were filed last month in a criminal case in Clay County Circuit Court against Walter Strong, 66, of Celina. Strong was released on bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Aug. 14. Asked if his client would be entering a not guilty plea, Strong’s attorney Jack Lowery said, “absolutely,” but declined further comment.

The charges come at a time when conservatorships are under increased scrutiny in Tennessee, prompting the General Assembly to pass a new law requiring increased disclosure by those seeking to place a person under the control of a conservator. A legislative panel is set to consider additional changes over the summer.

In a separate civil suit filed in U.S. District Court, Craig Fickling, the attorney for the couple, has charged that Strong treated the couple’s funds “as if they were his own,” embezzled just under $100,000 and coerced the woman into performing sexual intercourse.

The Tennessean does not name victims of sexual abuse.

Court records show that the couple were placed in the conservatorship on Aug. 19, 2004, by now-retired Judge Vernon Neal when Strong and a now-deceased sister of the woman filed a petition in Clay County Chancery Court. According to the suit, the wife was born with a mental disability and the husband suffered a traumatic brain injury in 1994.

Full Article and Source:
Conservator Charged with Raping Woman, Stealing From Couple