WI Attorney's License Suspended Due to Guardianship Case; James Grenisen to Undergo Psychological Evaluation

A La Crosse attorney won’t be allowed to practice law for three months under an order imposed Friday by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

James Grenisen must undergo a psychological evaluation before his license is reinstated.

The Office of Lawyer Regula-tion in December 2012 filed a complaint against Grenisen citing five counts of misconduct stemming from his representation of a 66-year-old woman in protective placement and guardianship.

During his representation, Grenisen took a $3,440 insurance payout owed to the woman and claimed it was a gift, had her sign an affidavit without permission of her guardian, and admitted that he has no experience in guardianship and protective placement, according to court records.

He also refused to comply with La Crosse County Circuit Judge Elliott Levine’s order not to contact the woman. Levine removed Grenisen as the woman’s attorney in 2011.

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A referee recommended his license be suspended after a hearing earlier this year.

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La Crosse attorney’s license suspended

Linda Kincaid's Advovacy Efforts Recognized by Berkeley

Linda Kincaid presented two posters at the 2013 American Public Health Association conference in Boston.  The posters focused on elder abuse by Public Guardians and private conservators.

She writes that she left her safety consultant career after her mother was taken from her home, isolated, and imprisoned by an abusive conservator. “Law enforcement, government agencies, and the court failed to protect the victim’s rights. The District Attorney said the situation was ‘nothing out of the ordinary.’  Many other families tell similar stories of loved ones taken from their homes, imprisoned and isolated, and estates rapidly depleted.”

Kincaid is now a full-time advocate for civil rights of the elderly and disabled.

Source:
Linda Kincaid, MPH'01

The Kidnapping of Richard Maass - Part Two

It has been almost three years since my grandfather, Richard Maass, passed away. I still have nightmares remembering how he suffered; how his body was wracked with pain and how he cried out for help. I will never understand why Anne Recht, the geriatric care manager and Mary Giordano, the guardian with Franchina and Giordano refused to allow him hospice and palliative care. But that is what guardianship is; it gives the rights of an individual away to a total stranger who is then allowed to steal their estate and their personal items, lock them up against their will and then refuse to allow them to die without pain and without dignity. Why? Does this feed their ego? Is it the thirst for power over another human being? Are their egos that big? Are they that desperate for money? I found out the answer the hard way. The answer is yes, all of the above is what drives them to do this, all of the sick reasons for abusing some of our most vulnerable members of society.

While I know I am not to blame for his suffering, I can’t seem to get past the fact that there was something I should have been able to do. When I speak with others whose loved ones were victims of these people, they tell me they feel the same way. They too suffer, wondering what they could have done to save their loved ones from the clutches of these two women and the late Judge Joel Asarch, the person who gave his stamp of approval and signed off on their actions.

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Part Two:  The Kidnapping of Richard Maass

See Also:
Richard Maass, NY Victim

ABC Action News I-Team: Al Katz Center Educates and Fights Against Abusive Professional Guardianships.

Last week, the I-Team was there when 99-year-old Willi Berchau was released from Florida's guardianship program after a three-year court battle.

The I-Team has learned that a local non-profit group has been established to assist other families in avoiding or getting out of court-ordered guardianship.

“It is vast and it is deep,” Beverly Newman said, when asked about how big of a problem was posed by Florida’s professional guardianship program.

“It is an industry with layers of individuals who are profiteering from elders,” she said.

Newman reached out to the I-Team after our investigation into Florida's professional guardianship program.

We've uncovered instances in which judges disregard written wishes of families, then gave control over their lives and finances to professional guardians.

Newman said the same thing happened to her.

“I walked into a land mine I did not imagine,” Newman said.

In 2009, Newman's father Al Katz became sick and was admitted to a Sarasota hospital.

Katz, a Holocaust survivor, was  a snowbird from Indiana.

Newman and her husband left Indianapolis and drove straight to Florida as soon as they heard Katz had become ill.

“We assumed, as his family and his caretakers for eight years, that we should be able to pick him up. No way,” said Newman.

Katz, instead, was appointed a professional guardian by the courts.

Records show the guardian sought and received a "no contact order" preventing Katz's family from taking him home.

“We had no ability to speak to him, visit him. So my father, of course, thought he was abandoned,” Newman said.

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Sarasota non-profit educates, fights against abusive professional guardianships

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NASGA - Al Katz, IN/FL Victim

NASGA - Debbie Woodward, FL Victim>/a>

NASGA - Marie Lubowski Winkelman, FL Victim

Holocaust Survivor Guardianized in Florida

On December 4th, a beautiful and brilliant 88-year-old Holocaust Survivor named Marie Winkelman was put into guardianship in the Sarasota, Florida Probate Court – without a hearing – based upon a mediation agreement. Marie is a recent resident of Bird Key who still lives independently and keeps her home in immaculate condition.

The mediation agreement was prepared by Federal Mediator Gary Larsen, which Marie did not see until after the mediation. Her fortune of many millions, which she earned through decades of hard work and prudent investments, is now in the hands of a company named Sabal Trust with which she has never had any contact. Through the mediated agreement, she is given a monthly allowance of her own money, despite the fact she has always spent her money judiciously.

The numerous attorneys involved in her case, including Barry Spivey, Christopher Likens, Kim Bald, Rebecca Proctor, and Thomas Shults, will collect hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Survivor's assets, even though she was denied her due process rights.

Source:
NASGA Marie Lubowski Winkelman, Florida Victim

The Forgotten Ones - Compassion for the Elderly

A pessimist, they say, sees a glass of water as being half empty; an optimist sees the same glass as half full. But a giving person sees a glass of water and starts looking for someone who might be thirsty. ~ G. Donald Gale

*Please volunteer to visit the lonely and forgotten elderly in your community.

 

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Facebook - The Forgotten Ones - Compassion for the Elderly

Where are They Now? The Fight over Terri Schiavo's Fate and Her Family

It was the question that bitterly divided the nation in the '90s: Should Terri Schiavo live or be allowed to die? In 2003, Oprah spoke with Terri's mother and siblings about Terri's health and their desire to continue her medical treatment. However, in 2005, Terri's husband, Michael Schiavo, won his legal battle to have her feeding tube removed. She died on March 31, 2005.

Now, find out how Terri's mother and brother are keeping her memory alive today.

Source and video:
Where are They Now?  The Fight Over Terri Schiavo's Fate and Her Family

Alleged "Mercy Kill" Gunman ID'd

A man was arrested Wednesday morning after allegedly carrying out the possible mercy killings of his ailing wife and invalid sister, police said.

The suspect, identified as Lance Holger Anderson, 60, of Santa Clarita, is suspected of shooting his wife at their Santa Clarita home and then shooting his sister, identified as Lisa Nave, 58, in the head as she lay invalid in her bed at a North Hills nursing home.

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Alleged "Mercy Kill" Gunman ID'd

Fired social worker accused of financially exploiting grandmother

A Moorhead, Minn. woman who managed her grandmother's bank account is accused of making thousands of dollars of purchases without permission.

Clay County prosecutors charged 28-year-old Alyse Penner with financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult.

Court documents say Penner used the money for restaurants, hotels, liquor, groceries and shopping. The victim told police that she believes Penner took about $20,000.

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Fired social worker accused of financially exploiting grandmother