Clinton Township guardianship company disputes Attorney General's intervention in probate case

By Jameson Cook
 
A Clinton Township guardianship and conservatorship company accuses the state Attorney General of being "over-zealous" in trying to intervene in a high-profile Macomb County Probate Court case involving the company.

Caring Hearts Inc., represented by attorney Edward Nahhat, earlier this month filed a response to Attorney General Dana Nessel’s request to intervene in a review of the case involving wards Robert Mitchell and Barbara Delbridge, who were under the guardianship of Caring Hearts Inc.

Nessel questions Judge Kathryn George’s appointment of Caring Hearts, its expenditures and its decision to hire Executive Care to perform care-taking services for the couple who were living in Utica. Both companies are owned by Catherine Kirk, whose husband, Robert, is a partner in a law firm that represented Caring Hearts.

Nahhat also accuses Nessel’s office of making “overbroad” accusations in a politically-motivated effort in seeking to enter the case.

“The Attorney General’s objections … are overbroad, unsubstantiated by detail and inequitable,” Nahhat wrote. “It appears the Attorney General has misapplied this statute (one of the applicable laws) as well, in order to political scapegoat Catherine Kirk, Robert Kirk, and their respective services.

“Clearly, Caring Hearts Michigan In. and its contracted in-home health care provider (Executive Care) and its contracted law firm (Kirk, Huth, Lange and Badalamenti) provided valuable services to the benefit of the wards over a significant period of time, and was appointed by the court (Judge Kathryn George) without petitioning itself to be appointed for these individuals.”

Nahhat wrote that Judge George was aware of the relationship between Caring Hearts and Executive Care when she made the appointment.

The Attorney General Office says the appointment violated law.

Caring Hearts charged more than $250,000 for about six months of care.

Assistant Attorney General Michael Moody alleges the relationship between the companies makes the transactions involving the funds “voidable" in court documents.

The law in question says, the “Court shall not appoint as guard an agency, public or private, that financially benefits from directly providing housing, medical, mental health or social services to the legally incapacitated individual.”

Moody wrote, “The intention behind this provision is to prevent conflicts of interest.”

But Nahhat responds the Attorney General has “misapplied” the law because Caring Hearts or Executive Care have not provided any of those services.

“The Attorney General, in an over-zealous pleading, repeats general but inaccurate slanders about Caring Hearts Inc.,” Nahhat says. “The fact is that Caring Hearts Inc. never engaged in any behavior prohibited (by law).”

Nahhat also vehemently denies accusations of a conflict of interest due to the arrangement between the Kirks, accusing the Attorney General of a “wildly exaggerated interpretation” of the law “for political purposes.”

Nahhat notes Mitchell and Delbridge received something of value from the Caring Hearts and Executive Care.

He says that typical cases that violate the law involve a guardianship company hiring a family member to manage a ward’s investments.

“Nothing has been hidden in the work provided, and Catherine Kirk never involved her spouse in ‘investment or management transactions,’” he says.

A hearing in the case is set for Jan. 10 in front of circuit court Judge James Biernat Jr., who as chief judge is substituting for George in Probate Court.

Caring Hearts was first appointed as guardian and conservator for Mitchell and Delbridge, who are both over 70, over family members in November 2018.

In May, Mitchell’s daughter, Marcie, and other family members complained their visits were limited and that caregivers installed a 6-foot fence around the property near Hall Road and Van Dyke Avenue that blocked the vision of family members who resided next door. The said the couple were virtual prisoners in their home.

They also raised questions about the guardian and conservator company's spending from the couple's more than $2.5 million in assets.

Caring Hearts and Executive Services in early June withdrew from serving as guardian and conservator.

Biernat granted Marcie Mitchell guardianship and conservatorship over her father, Robert, and Anita Little gained guardianship and conservatorship over her sister, Delbridge. The conservatorships were named pending the posting of bonds.

Moody in the early-September intervention request says George violated the law by making the appointment.

Full Article & Source: 
Clinton Township guardianship company disputes Attorney General's intervention in probate case

Watchdog: In Short Hearing, Fierle Given Guardianship Over Patient

By Greg Angel

ORLANDO, Fla. — In less than three minutes, Steven Stryker was stripped of all legal authority to make decisions for himself.

• Steven Stryker died in May because Do Not Resuscitate order was filed
• Rebecca Fierle accused of filing DNR without Stryker's permission
• Fierle under investigation for actions as a guardian on other cases as well
• CHART: Senior Care in Question: The Rebecca Fierle Case Explained

Newly-obtained court audio from September 2018 shows when now-embattled professional guardian Rebecca Fierle was given full authority over Stryker, 75, of Brevard County, in a court hearing that at times included laughter. Stryker hadn't even met Fierle yet.

The hearing's audio is a stark contrast from the sharply-worded petition issued by Ninth Circuit Judge Janet Thorpe, this summer. She was the same judge who presided over that September 2018 hearing. It is not clear what records Thorpe may have reviewed before granting guardianship.

The petition began to reveal what many had tried for years to show: Florida’s guardianship system is in crisis.

State investigators blame Stryker’s death on Fierle, saying she ordered his feeding tube capped, and because Fierle placed a Do Not Resuscitate order against Stryker’s wishes, doctors could not provide lifesaving support.

Stryker’s death sparked multiple ongoing criminal investigations, as well as Fierle’s resignation from hundreds of guardianship cases statewide, and growing scrutiny on the system.

"We had no time to prepare"

“Steve was very capable of making his own decisions,” said Linda Lanier, a close friend of Steven Stryker’s for nearly a decade.

In 2014, Stryker appointed Lanier his durable power of attorney and health care surrogate.

“That only ever came up because of medical issues,” Lanier said. “Steve was having a lot of issues with his esophagus.”

In June 2018 Stryker was Baker Acted to AdventHealth in Orlando, which Lanier said he then self-admitted for treatment.

“All of a sudden a sudden within a week of that treatment, I’m getting phone calls from Florida Hospital saying he’s got to go, he’s ready for discharge, but we can’t find a place for him unless there’s a guardian in place,” Lanier said.

Perplexed as to why a guardian was necessary, Lanier said the ultimate plan was for Stryker to live with her and her husband at their Brevard County home while Stryker received additional treatment at the VA Center.

It was on August 29, 2018 that Lanier says she was suddenly served with a notice of a hearing set for the following week: September 5, 2018.

“We had absolutely no time to prepare, Steven’s daughter Kimberly who lives in Virginia, and I were going nuts,” Lanier said.

The September 5, 2018 hearing was in response to AdventHealth’s petition to the court asking specifically for Rebecca Fierle to be appointed as Steven Stryker’s guardian.

A Spectrum News investigation found AdventHealth had made multiple petitions previously seeking Fierle be appointed guardian for various patients. In multiple cases seeking Fierle appointments, AdventHealth relied on attorney Philip Wallace as outside counsel.

Stryker’s family disputes AdventHealth’s claims in their petition that family could not be reached, and Steven Stryker was unable to make his own health care decisions.

“The decision was made for Rebecca to be assigned. She never contacted me, she never reached out, never asked for any information from me,” Steven’s daughter Kimberly told Spectrum News in July.

With days until the September 5, 2018 hearing, Lanier said she begged AdventHealth’s attorney Philip Wallace and Stryker’s court-appointed attorney Lori Loftis to delay the hearing.

“Both of them told me, quote unquote, Judge Thorpe would not allow this to happen,” Lanier said.

What Happened at the Hearing

Audio reveals those attending the September 5, 2018 hearing included Rebecca Fierle, AdventHealth representatives Philip Wallace and Melixa Carbonell, as well as Lori Loftis, Stryker’s then court-appointed attorney, who waived Steven Stryker’s right to appear at the hearing.

Wallace, Loftis, and Fierle are all heard identifying themselves at the beginning of the recording.

The hearing is supposed to set the status of Stryker’s temporary guardianship, but that quickly changes after Judge Thorpe announces she has possession of three reports from members of the court’s examining committee.

Judge Thorpe: “Ok, one, two, three…we’ve got three reports already in.”
Unknown: (Chuckling)
Attorney Wallace: “Yes ma’am.”
Judge Thorpe: “So much for emergency.”
Attorney Wallace: “Right” (chuckle)
Judge Thorpe: “We’ve got the final list later this month.”
Attorney Wallace: “Is the 26th, I believe.”
Judge Thorpe: “Well not anymore.”
(Collective laughter)
Unknown: “It’s right now. First and final.”
Judge Thorpe: “We just changed that. Alright. The recommendation of the three examining committee members, are they in consensus?”
Attorney Wallace: “They are your honor.”

The audio transcript shows in full how the decision was made at that point to give Fierle permanent control over Stryker’s affairs, assets, and life.

“To hear it now, to hear the voices and the laughing, it’s horrifying,” Lanier said.
The audio continues:

Judge Thorpe (to attorney Loftis): “You’ve seen the client?”
Attorney Loftis: “Yes”
Judge Thorpe: Are you (interrupted)
Attorney Loftis: “I’m in agreement your honor. There was a friend out there that was serving, we’re not sure if POA (interrupted)”
Attorney Wallace: “There is a reported Power of Attorney, signed in February. We don’t believe he had capacity to execute it. I’ve been in close contact. I spoke with her for a long time yesterday, she’s in agreement with having a professional guardian appointed.”
Attorney Loftis: “She conveyed that to me as well.”

This is a notion that Lanier fiercely denies, saying she was never in an agreement for a permanent guardian to be appointed to oversee Stryker.

“Philip Wallace left me a voicemail the day of the hearing saying 'I told the judge quote unquote your wishes, or your position', he didn’t tell the position,” Lanier said. “My position was he [Stryker] needs to go to the VA.”

Lanier is adamant that Stryker’s court-appointed attorney, Lori Loftis, acted against his wishes by not allowing him to appear in court.

“Steve wanted to go to the hearing, he was ready," Lanier said. "And the hospital said no.”

Spectrum News made multiple efforts to seek comment from attorneys Philip Wallace and Lori Loftis, but messages were not returned.

A spokesperson for the Ninth Judicial Circuit, on behalf of Judge Thorpe, told Spectrum News, “…hearings vary in length depending on their scope, purpose, and many other factors. The Court cannot comment further while there is an ongoing court case and law enforcement investigation.”

The Need for Oversight

Stryker’s case has put much attention on the state’s guardianship program and what critics say are large voids of oversight.

Lanier points to the September 5 hearing’s audio transcript as evidence.

“Not too truthful, you know, I want to give the judge at least the benefit of the doubt, a little bit. She can only go by who comes in front of her bench,” Lanier said. “You’re counting on these individuals to bring you the right information, but how much due diligence are these judges doing, to make sure all of this is correct?”

Judge Thorpe first called out Fierle ahead of a July 11, 2019 emergency hearing. Judge Thorpe wrote in a petition that there was sufficient evidence to see Fierle’s “abuse of power” and a series of “conflicts of interest”.

Judge Thorpe ordered reporters to leave that July 11 hearing at the request of attorneys, and sealed the proceeding. However, a transcript of the hearing put into focus a series of actions that Judge Thorpe said Fierle took without court knowledge.

The hearing also raised questions about the judge’s oversight of local guardians when the July 11 hearing revealed the number of cases Fierle was assigned.

“She had 97,” Thorpe said according to the July 11, 2019 hearing transcript. “We overloaded her. We overloaded her. So it probably won’t be a situation if she comes back in to take a look at it.”

A judge can appoint a guardian to oversee the welfare of an individual, extending the legal right to make decisions on behalf of the person’s affairs, health care, and finances, with control of various bank accounts and other assets.

Judge Thorpe also revealed that same day that she found Fierle had not been bonded and insured since 2013, so should have been disqualified as a guardian in the past six years.

Additionally, Fierle had employees working for her at her Geriatric Management company, without reporting those employees to the state and ensuring they were going through required criminal and financial background checks.

On September 13, 2019, Judge Thorpe also filed an order permanently removing Rebecca Fierle from any appointment in Orange County as a professional guardian, based on the findings of a second investigation by the Orange County Comptroller’s Office, which again raised questions about Fierle’s handling of financial assets of her wards.

“At no time during this Judge’s tenure in the Probate Division for Orange County did Ms. Fierle bring an issue dealing with a “Do Not Resuscitate Order” to the Court’s attention, much less in the specific case which brought this issue to light,” Judge Thorpe wrote in the September 13, 2019 order. “This appears to be a direct violation of the Administrative Code and her duty to ensure a Ward’s best interests are paramount. This Court finds probable cause that Ms. Fierle violated the Florida Administrative Code and her general duty to perform in a Ward’s best interests.”

Judge Thorpe wrote in the above order that Fierle failed to disclose her financial relationship with AdventHealth.

A September 2019 investigation by the Orange County Comptroller’s Office found Fierle charged AdventHealth at least $3.7 million for services; invoices Advent Health paid to Fierle without court approval nor knowledge.

Florida Administrative code states: “A professional guardian is specifically prohibited from soliciting or accepting incentives from service providers.”

“It is clear from the AdventHealth documents and the Comptroller’s Report that Ms. Fierle substantially benefited from her association with the facility, a service provider,” Judge Thorpe wrote in her September 13, 2019 order. “This Court finds probable cause that Ms. Fierle had a fiduciary duty to, at the very least, disclose her relationship with AdventHealth to the Court and the monies she was receiving prior to her appointment as guardian of any wards coming from AdventHealth. This information would have been extremely helpful to the Court in ensuring there was no conflict of interest in Ms. Fierle acting as either a temporary or permanent guardian of AdventHealth’s patients.”

“We were very troubled to see that there were duplicated bills sent to the hospital and to the court, and I think that is wrong,” Orange County Comptroller Phil Diamond told Spectrum News on September 12, after his office released their latest report.

A spokesman for AdventHealth responded to the Comptroller’s Report by saying they too were unaware of Fierle’s non-disclosure.

“We are both surprised and dismayed with the Orange County Comptroller’s findings that a professional guardian withheld information from the court and improperly billed the hospital and the court for resources to care for the most vulnerable in our community,” AdventHealth spokesman Bryan Malenius said. “The report from the Orange County Comptroller’s Office clearly highlights the importance of the state taking action. We are committed to lending our voice to reforming the guardianship system because it is core to our mission to ensure those who need this kind of help are cared for and protected.”

Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Office of Florida Attorney General both have ongoing criminal investigations open, focused on Fierle.

• RELATED: Agents find human cremated remains in raid on Fierle’s office

Private Investigator Angela Woodhull told Spectrum News she tried to alert state and federal investigators years ago to Fierle’s alleged fraud and wrongdoing, to no avail.

Groups like Americans Against Abusive Probate Guardianship say Florida’s guardianship program has been fractured for years, like other states. They say much of the blame should be on judges who appoint guardianship with little actual oversight.

AAPG is hosting a community Town Hall on the issue of guardianships. The rescheduled town hall will be held November 4 from 3:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Marriott Orlando Airport Lakeside, located at 7499 August National Drive in Orlando. The town hall will begin with a screening of the documentary “The Guardians” followed by a Q & A session.

Full Article & Source:
Watchdog: In Short Hearing, Fierle Given Guardianship Over Patient

On Eldercare, The Math Is Unforgiving

by  Elizabeth Bauer

$21.

$21 per hour times 44 hours per week times 52 weeks per year = $48,048.

$21 per hour times 24 hours per day times 365 days per year = $183,960. (Note: see below for clarification.)

That's the cost, at median, for homemaker-type elder care services in the case of an individual requiring daytime care (e.g., when the primary caregiver, a child or spouse, is at work) or full-time care in shifts, courtesy the Genworth Cost of Care Survey.

The median private-room nursing home cost? $100,375.

Of course, the cost varies by region. In my own neck of the woods, the Chicago metro area, the rates are $24/$52,912/$210,240/$112,238. In Mississippi, the hourly cost is only $17, in rural Louisiana, $14. On the other hand, in San Jose, the median rate rises to $30. And in Maine, featured in a recent Washington Post article on the subject, the rate is $27.

Mind you, this is not the salary that these workers earn — this is the rate families pay to an agency, whose costs include, in addition to the salaries of the workers, all of the associated taxes, benefits where applicable, the overall management of the agency, regulation/compliance costs, and the like. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median wage for a home health aide (not reflecting any benefits) is $11.16. Among the less-expensive regions, in Mississippi, it's $10.53 and in rural northeast Louisiana, it's $8.72. For comparison, in Chicago, it's $11.20, in San Jose it's $14.61, and in Maine it's $11.98.

All of this adds up: for the year 2017, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services reported that Americans spent $9 billion on out of pocket home healthcare from home health agencies, and $44 billion on nursing homes and other "care communities," out of a total of $263 billion in total expenditure (of this, a further $27 billion was private health insurance and the remainder Medicare, Medicaid, or other government programs). In addition, Medicaid reported spending a further $111 billion on Long-Term Services and Supports for the elderly (2016 data), Medicare $80 billion, other public entities $23 billion, private insurance and other private payers $52 billion, and individuals paid $57 billion out-of-pocket, for a total of $366 billion. It all adds up to $109 billion out-of-pocket and $629 billion in total. This does not appear to include under-the-table care (that is, families hiring an aide directly, who may or may not have legal authorization to work, and skipping the various employment taxes), and it does not include the economic value of family caregiving, which the AARP has calculated as $470 billion, based on 40 million caregivers providing an average of 18 hours of care per week, at an average hypothetical wage of $12.51.

(Why does the economic value of unpaid work matter in a discussion of numbers? Don't we all have an obligation to provide care for our parents/spouses in need, in the same manner as, however much we worry about the cost of care for children during their parents' work hours, we don't expect the state to be responsible for, or have much concern for, the time parents expend changing diapers during nonwork hours? For some families, there is a real economic cost as a child or spouse must quit work or reduce their hours in order to provide the care; besides this, various of the Democratic presidential candidates are promising that their new healthcare plans will also include generous provision of long-term care for all, and any cost estimates of such programs must surely take into account costs due to families currently taking on the work themselves, seeking out paid caregivers if someone else begins to pay.)

Oh, and why am I referencing Maine? Because of an article in the Washington Post earlier this month, describing the labor shortage in that state, in which, with wages constrained by state budgets and family budgets, families are struggling to find care for their elders in that oldest-in-the-nation state — finding both that home care workers' wages are unaffordable (the Post cites a rate of $50 per hour for private help, which appears questionable as it's double the Genworth rate cited above) and that nursing home staff shortages result in nursing home bed shortages, as about a dozen nursing homes in Maine have closed their doors in recent years. To what extent the workers are simply not available at any cost, with Maine unappealing to immigrants and American labor-force drop-outs alike, versus the wage hikes on which the Post reports being inadequate to bring in fresh workers due to budget constraints, is not made clear.

What's more, the reflexive answer of "more immigration" is not necessarily an easy fix. While it's true that many immigrants, legal and illegal, have found work in elder care, personal care workers need to be able to communicate with the individuals they are caring for, and care for individuals with specialized medical needs requires specialized training. In addition, again, Maine has not proven itself to be attractive to immigrants. Should the state seek a guest-worker program similar to that used in agriculture, where its workers are tied to specific employers? We accept, more or less, the idea of migrant workers coming to live temporarily to harvest a field; it's much harder to be comfortable with the idea of mom and dad's caregivers coming and going no differently than an au pair, and we would certainly look askance at a nursing home or home health agency with such high turnover.

As it is, in terms of individual caregivers, a 2015 book, The Age of Dignity; Preparing for the Elder Boom in a Changing America, by Ai-Jen Poo, explains that two-thirds of domestic workers (the statistics include nannies and housecleaners) are foreign born, half are here illegally, and their illegal status results in below-minimum wage pay, uncompensated overtime, and other unfair practices. Poo advocates for a guest worker program as well, but, again, regardless of who's doing the work, it costs money.

What's more, the campaigns to raise the minimum wage state-by-state or nationwide will raise costs further. It won't be as simple as, for instance, Illinois' $11.19 increasing to $15, when its minimum wage hike is fully phased in, as employers will need to offer wages that are sufficiently higher than "minimum wage jobs" to attract workers. And, beyond that, regardless of whether we solve the labor shortage by means of importing elder care workers directly, increasing overall rates of low-skill immigration, boosting birth rates for the next generation of elderly, and regardless of whether wages rise due to supply and demand or mandated pay boosts, we'll inevitably have to find our way to paying more for care services. Whether the money comes from families' additional out-of-pocket spending, or state and federal programs, it still affects the health of our economy and the well-being of Americans.

And, finally, it should go without saying that solving the present-day problems of individuals affected by the burden by eldercare is only the start, as we are in the midst of a skyrocketing old age dependency ratio, which was a stable 20 retirees per 100 workers throughout the 1990s and 2000s, and is now in the middle of a rise to a new level of 35 to 100 at pretty much exactly at that point at which the Trust Fund is exhausted. (See my "Who's Afraid Of The Big, Bad Old Age Dependency Ratio?" from a year ago.)

What are the solutions? Only three. Find ways to reduce cost/labor — that's what the Japanese are doing with their research into robotics for elder care purposes. Find ways to reduce the need for caregiving by improving older Americans' health (hence, the massive expansion in money targeted at research for dementia prevention and treatment). Or, absent progress on either of these fronts, a solution that isn't really much of a solution at all: find ways to make do with less, in other areas of government spending.

Update/clarification: multiplying the average caregiver rate by the number of hours in the day gives the most dramatic number but is not entirely correct for extensive caregiving, and, in particular, for overnight care, which can vary based on needs (in particular, the degree to which the overnight hours require direct care), and might range from $100 to $300 per day, according to SeniorLiving.org.

Full Article & Source:
On Eldercare, The Math Is Unforgiving

Conservative commentator admits to stealing mom’s Social Security

Karyn Turk

Instead of using $17,300 in government checks to pay for the care of her mother who was ravaged by dementia, Karyn Turk used the money for herself, a federal attorney said.

WEST PALM BEACH — Fresh from hosting a fund-raiser for the legal defense of Republican operative Roger Stone, conservative media commentator Karyn Turk on Friday admitted she stole her 83-year-old mother’s Social Security checks.

Looking relaxed and unperturbed, Karyn Turk pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to a single charge of Social Security fraud. Turk, who was crowned Mrs. Florida 2016 and touts her involvement in charities, faces a maximum one-year jail term and possible $100,000 fine when she is sentenced on Dec. 13.

Because the charge is a misdemeanor, the 47-year-old Highland Beach woman who uses social media and her radio and television shows to defend all things Republican would not lose her ability to vote - a right she described as “very important to me.”

Instead of using $17,300 in government checks to pay for the care of her mother who was ravaged by dementia, Turk used the money for herself, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Adrienne Rabinowitz.

Turk didn’t dispute the prosecutor’s description of her crime. While she and her attorney, Guy Fronstin, declined comment as they left the courthouse, both said additional information would surface that would explain her actions.

The criminal charges stemmed from an ugly fight in probate court that began when she didn’t pay for her mother’s expenses at the American Finnish Nursing Home in Lake Worth, records show.

Suspecting Turk was using her mother’s Social Security checks to bankroll her upscale lifestyle, the administrator of the home in July 2018 asked Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Janis Brustares Keyser to appoint a guardian to represent Turk’s mother, a retired school teacher who was born in Austria.

The court-appointed guardian confirmed nursing home administrator Daniel Benson’s suspicions.


In court papers, guardian Amy Nicol accused Turk of using her mother’s Social Security checks to promote her dream of appearing on “The Real Housewives of Palm Beach” and to garner publicity.

As evidence, Nicol’s attorney Brian O’Connell accused Turk and her husband of renting large homes in Wellington, where they then lived, and buying tables at equestrian events that they could ill-afford.

Their financial stretch was compounded because Turk’s husband, Boynton Beach lawyer Evan Turk, is supporting his children from his first marriage, O’Connell claimed. Court records show Evan Turk has to pay nearly $2,000 a month in child support. In October, he was $32,500 in arrears, records show.

O’Connell claims Turk took her mother’s money so she and her husband could live beyond their means.

“Karyn took the Social Security monies ... and improperly diverted such monies and used same for her and/or her families benefit ... including, but not limited to, supporting her lifestyle,” O’Connell wrote.

In response, Evan Turk challenged O’Connell, saying he offered no proof to back up the claims. Further, he said, the information O’Connell was seeking was protected by attorney-client privilege because he represented his wife in the proceedings.

Turk’s mother died in July. Since then, the legal battle has intensified.

Earlier this month, Turk filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the nursing home.

Nicol and O’Connell on Wednesday challenged Turk’s appointment as the administrator of her mother’s estate. In their challenge, they said her role conflicts with the terms of the bond she posted to get out of jail after being arrested in August.

As part of her bond package, Turk was ordered to “avoid all contact with victims or witnesses to the crimes charged except through counsel,” O’Connell wrote. “Karyn has an unavoidable conflict serving as personal representative.”

The ongoing litigation and Turk’s appearance before U.S. Magistrate Bruce Reinhart caps a busy year for the woman who trumpets herself on social media as “a constant source of information regarding business, technology, politics and the modern woman.”

This week alone, she has been feted at the Boca Raton Resort as a Best Buddies Champion of the Year for raising money and awareness about the group that mentors teens with disabilities.

And, on Thursday, less than 14 hours before her court appearance, she and her husband were at the Bull Bar in Delray Beach, hosting the fund-raiser for Stone, who lives in Fort Lauderdale.

It is one of several the couple has held to help Stone, whom they describe as their “patriotic friend.” The events are designed to help Stone build a legal war chest to defend himself on charges of lying to Congress and obstructing the House Intelligence Committee’s Russia probe.

In the meantime, Turk also has served as a spokeswoman for Cindy Yang, a Wellington woman who was accused of peddling Chinese influence in Republican circles. Yang’s habit of taking selfies with Trump and her alleged ties to the Chinese Communist Party of China made national news when she also was identified as the former owner of a Jupiter day spa where New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft was caught in a prostitution sting.

Turk’s position as spokeswoman for Yang came as her husband signed on as Yang’s lawyer. In May, he sued the Miami Herald for defamation in connection with its coverage of Yang’s activities. The newspaper has defended its reporting.

The controversy swirling around Turk’s handling of her mother’s money hasn’t curbed her devotion to social media.

In a tweet and Facebook post on Wednesday, she referred to her mother to promote a charity fund-raiser for Alzheimer’s research.

“My mom is no longer with us but this video is a great reminder of why finding a cure for Alzheimer’s and dementia is so important for all of us,” she wrote.

Full Article & Source:
Conservative commentator admits to stealing mom’s Social Security

Family of man on life support says he's not brain-dead, hospital says otherwise

PHOENIX - A Phoenix family is fighting for their son's life. They say he's not brain-dead, but the doctors at HonorHealth say otherwise. Today, the family held a protest outside of the hospital with the hope of getting more answers.

26-year-old Ruben Vati was brought to HonorHealth on Sept. 11. The family says he was conscious then, but a few days later, the hospital declared him brain-dead. They just want more time before permanent actions are taken.

Picketers gathered outside HonorHealth John C. Lincoln Medical Center on Wednesday, holding signs. They're friends and family of Ruben.

"He's still living and they want to get his organs, and I don't think it's right," said Daniel Vati, Ruben's brother.

Ruben was admitted for a drug overdose, according to the hospital. Days later, the family says he was declared brain-dead.

"They declared him brain-dead, but we know he's not," said Stela Vati, Ruben's mother. "Because when you talk to him, he's tearing [up]."

Ruben is listed as an organ donor, so the Donor Network of America was ready to claim his organ, but his family said he had second thoughts about options to be a donor.

"I said, 'Why don't you give him a chance, let him breathe first if he doesn't breathe on his own then,'" Stela said.

A judge has issued a temporary restraining order against the Donor Network of American and the hospital from removing Ruben's organs.

HonorHealth issued the following statement:

HonorHealth is required to abide by the court order. The order states HonorHealth is to allow a board-certified neurologist to perform an exam on the patient. HonorHealth granted emergency temporary privileges to a board-certified neurologist identified by the family. As of now, that neurologist has not come to the facility to examine the patient.

The Donor Network of America is suing the family to take possession of Ruben's organs. Because of confidentiality concerns, they cannot comment any futher.

Full Article & Source:
Family of man on life support says he's not brain-dead, hospital says otherwise

86-year-old woman assaulted at nursing home, son says

LIVINGSTON, New Jersey -- State officials and police are trying to figure out how an 86-year-old nursing home patient in New Jersey ended up with severe injuries to her face.

The patient's son, Benny Gomez, says his mom was assaulted and posted a picture of his bruised and injured mother on social media, which has been shared nearly 9,000 times.

"What does she mean to me? Everything, " Gomez said.

Eyewitness News met the heartbroken, shaken and angry son with his attorneys, days after his mother was rushed to the hospital from the Westfield Center Nursing Care facility in Westfield.

"She has double fractures in her face," he said. "Her nose is broken. She has stitches."

Westfield Center released a statement saying in part that it has a zero tolerance policy on abuse, and that it contacted the Department of Health and the authorities. It says Mrs. Gross fell and that the information being circulated is grossly inaccurate.

The statement also said that "while the photos are difficult to see, no resident was struck, hit or abused."

"No matter what the cause, no resident of a nursing facility should ever be made to suffer," Gomez' attorney Marilyn Barbosa said.

Gomez said that this wasn't the first time his mother ended up with bruises.

"She tells me that the aids were rough with her and that they hit her," he said.

Gomez said he placed his mother in the facility after breaking her hip and becoming totally disabled. She also has slight dementia.

"You go to the hospital and you see your mother in this condition is just unexplainable," he said.

The Department of Health and Westfield police are investigating, so no charges have been filed. Gomez's mother has not been returned to the facility.

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86-year-old woman assaulted at nursing home, son says

Ohio judge allows Forlorn husband to litigate racketeering lawsuit

OHIO - Judge Sherrie Miday is allowing a racketeering lawsuit to proceed in a claim involving a retired surgeon’s 85 year old wife who was guardianized and is currently a ward of the state in Ohio.

Dr. Mehdi Saghafi, 88, sued a construction company, 8 lawyers, a CPA and a court appointed guardian in January 2019, alleging that he had been forced to divorce his wife Fourough Bakhtiar Saghafi so that $8 million in marital assets could be transferred and liquidated, according to a press release.

“The court finds that plaintiff’s complaint states facts demonstrating viable claims for relief on all of plaintiff’s claims and that this court has subject matter jurisdiction to adjudicate the claims,” wrote Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Civil Judge Miday in her Aug. 20 decision. “As such, the court finds that dismissal of plaintiffs’ complaint is not proper and movants are not entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”

Defendants, represented by the Tucker Ellis law firm, had moved the court to dismiss on Aug. 2.

“The court finds that it is premature to convert the motions to dismiss to motions for summary judgment,” stated Judge Miday in her ruling.

A ward of any state in America is typically a senior citizen experiencing cognitive decline or a younger adult with physical or developmental disabilities. However, once appointed a guardian by a probate Judge, a ward is subject, against their will, to the liquidation of their assets, sedation by physician-prescribed psychotropic drugs, the denial of choice of food, marital status, health insurance, medical care and visits with friends and family members.

“This case involves much more than allegations against the fiduciary of an estate,” stated Judge Miday last week. “Plaintiff’s complaint includes allegations that occurred prior to the guardianship being established and includes allegations that the defendants were involved in a larger scale scheme against the plaintiffs and/or Mrs. Saghafi.”

The ruling comes at a time when adult guardianship programs nationwide are under fire with allegations of neglect, abuse and financial exploitation. As reported in the Southeast Texas Record last week, U.S. Representatives Darren Soto, Charlie Crist and Gus Bilirakis of Florida as well as Debbie Dingell of Michigan re-introduced HR 4174 on Aug. 7 to enact protections from the risks of abuse and neglect under guardianship.

“This legal form of kidnapping is happening in communities across the country, in many cases with little or no recourse available, and recently in Florida directly resulting in a death,” said Congressman Crist in a joint statement posted online.

Problems reported in Dr. Saghafi’s lawsuit include allegations that despite the recommendation of a court-appointed officer, a convicted felon was appointed the guardian of Mrs. Saghafi and that marital assets were used to employ a criminal defense attorney.

“Jaleh Presutto was removed as guardian for criminal activity three times and was reappointed despite pleading guilty to multiple charges of forgery and theft for defrauding the Amhurst school system last year," said Dr. Saghafi's attorney Charles Longo. "By law, Mrs. Saghafi's funds are only supposed to be used for the care and needs of Mrs. Saghafi not legal fees but Mrs. Saghafi's funds were used to finance her personal attorney, Neil Spike, $270,000.00, most of which was paid when Presutto had been removed as guardian."

In addition to Presutto, Defendants named in Dr. Saghafi’s complaint include Custom Contractor C. Francis Builders, Accountant Stephen Sartchev, Guardian of the Estate Zachary Simonoff, Attorney Eric Zagrans, Attorney Rachelle Kuzwick Zidar, Attorney James Reddy, Attorney Lisa Hahn, Attorney Joyce E. Barrett, Attorney Stephen Wolf and Phillip Presutto, Jr.


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Ohio judge allows Forlorn husband to litigate racketeering lawsuit

Mankato woman charged with grifting $36K from vulnerable adults

MANKATO — A Mankato woman was charged with felony theft, financial exploitation and credit card fraud after she allegedly stole more than $36,000 from two vulnerable adults.

Roberta Kaye Johnson, 68, is accused of spending thousands of dollars through the victims’ Discover Card account starting in August 2018 to feed a gambling habit, according to court complaint in Blue Earth County District Court.

In addition, Johnson allegedly took almost $22,000 out of a bank account in the victims’ name to cover the credit card debt with slightly more than $15,000 left to pay on the card.

Mankato police received a tip in July from Blue Earth County staff who were concerned the victims were being financially exploited. Staff had contacted Discover Card’s legal team and reviewed the victims’ financial statements, where they found the increasing credit card debt.

The victims told police they paid their own bills with the help of Johnson’s spouse and didn’t use the card. Police visited Johnson and her spouse in August, where Johnson told police she had used the card to cover gambling debts and intended to pay the debt back, court records said.

Police later found Johnson had allegedly used one of the victims’ bank accounts to cover the credit card debt. Detectives found Johnson had deposited $150 into the bank account in April and had paid $525 toward the credit card.

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Mankato woman charged with grifting $36K from vulnerable adults

Florida guardian watchdog asks Legislature for $6.5 million to nearly double its budget

Richard Prudom, secretary of the state Department of Elder Affairs, left, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. (Courtesy photo)

The agency that oversees Florida’s guardians is asking the Legislature to nearly double its budget for next year — an increase of roughly $6.5 million — in part to fund more investigations and to track guardianship cases.

The Florida Office of Public and Professional Guardians budget request, released Tuesday, follows a meeting the previous day between Florida Department of Elder Affairs Secretary Richard Prudom, legislative leaders, judges, guardianship trade groups and attorneys.

At that meeting, some lawmakers said more money for the guardianship office was not necessarily the answer.

Although reporters were not permitted to attend the meeting, participants said they discussed changes in the guardianship system, following a series of investigations into the conduct of Orlando guardian Rebecca Fierle. Prudom said the additional funds will cover an expected increase in investigations and administrative costs to handle the workload.

“Of the 550 professional guardians, I would say 99 percent do a fantastic job,” Prudom said. "However, just one egregious act is too many, and I think that’s something we, the state, need to look at. When professional guardians operate, we need to make sure they abide by the standards of practice.”

Investigators have said Fierle was responsible for more than 400 wards — people deemed by a judge to be incapable of making decisions about their health care or finances — and routinely filed “do not resuscitate” orders without court oversight. Fierle’s practices came under scrutiny after a ward of hers died at a Tampa hospital, where staff were unable to attempt life-saving measures due to a DNR order the ward did not want.

Tuesday’s budget request will be considered by lawmakers during the legislative session early next year. If approved, it would bump the overall spending for the state guardianship office from a little over $7 million this year to just shy of $13.5 million next year.

But Dr. Sam Sugar, a leading critic of Florida’s guardianship system, claimed the increase would merely throw good money after bad.

“The Office of Public and Professional Guardians is a failed experiment that should be killed,” said Sugar, a South Florida internal medicine specialist who founded the nonprofit Americans Against Abusive Probate Guardianship.

“No amount of budget increase is going to change the fact that that office has no likelihood of ever doing its job correctly,” he said. “It’s in the wrong department.”

Sugar has argued for guardianship oversight to be in the hands of the state’s Department of Business and Professional Regulation, which licenses a wide range of practitioners, from architects to cosmetologists to talent agents.

“The Department of Elder Affairs [which oversees the Office of Public and Professional Guardians] is really good at doing social-service kinds of things like Meals on Wheels, but really terrible at things like this,” Sugar said. “The result is people die. And countless more lose their life savings, and countless more end up warehoused, over-medicated and neglected.”

State Sen. Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples, who had suggested after Monday’s meeting that there were other ways to reduce the risk for abuse besides spending more money, did not respond Tuesday to a request for comment.

Much of the requested increase — about $5.5 million — would be used to boost funds for the 17 public guardian programs throughout the state that serve vulnerable elderly or mentally disabled residents who are poor.

But it also includes about $455,000 in recurring funds for investigative services to examine complaints against professional guardians, who are appointed to represent people who have money and property. Professionals are paid out of the wards’ assets — either from their bank accounts or by cashing in their investments and selling off their property — while public guardians are paid by the state.

Publicity over the problems with Fierle, who has since resigned from her cases, is expected to spur an increase in the number of complaints that warrant investigation — from 48 last year to 75 this year to a projected 94 next year. And because the complaints are becoming more detailed, with more allegations of misconduct by the guardians, the cost of each investigation is also increasing, from an average of nearly $5,300 apiece last year to more than $6,300 this year.

Another $500,000 would go to monitor the professional guardians through an as-yet-undeveloped “tool,” which an agency spokeswoman said could be a software system or additional personnel.

Typically, judges appoint guardians to individual cases, but there is currently no statewide database of which guardians are handling which cases. That makes it difficult for judges in one circuit to know whether a guardian is already charged with handling dozens of cases in another circuit — making it easier for unscrupulous guardians to take advantage of their wards.

“Much of this can be mitigated by the development, implementation and operation of a professional guardian monitoring tool that can ... prevent abuse, neglect and exploitation,” the request said.

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Florida guardian watchdog asks Legislature for $6.5 million to nearly double its budget