The Kansas Senate has passed a bill that would expand the state’s Silver Alert system.
Traditionally used whenever senior citizens go missing, Senate Bill
371 is designed to expand the alert system to include missing people
ages 18 or older with intellectual disabilities. The bill passed
unanimously, including a yes vote from 17th District Senator Jeff
Longbine of Emporia, and now goes to the Kansas House for discussion.
Separately, the Senate overwhelmingly passed House Bill 2562,
creating the Protect Vulnerable Adults from Financial Exploitation Act.
This will mandate a broker-dealer or financial investment adviser to
report confirmed or attempted exploitation. It would also give
broker-dealers or investment advisers the authority to delay
transactions or disbursements whenever financial exploitation is
expected. Longbine was in the 38-2 majority after the bill passed the
House unanimously.
FAIRMONT, W.Va. – Detectives with the Marion County
Sheriff’s Department have charged two people with stealing more than
$17,000 from a disabled, elderly person.
The complaint originated from Adult Protective Services on March 8
about potentially fraudulent charges shown on an elderly victim’s bank
statement.
Detectives were told that Amy Owens, 27, of Fairmont, had the
victim’s card and had no permission to use it, but there were
transactions from November 2023 to February 2024 that totaled $5,827.50.
During that period, Owens allegedly told the victim the card had been
frozen due to fraudulent activity and the account could not be
accessed.
While reviewing bank statements from the victim, detectives learned
there were several CashApp transactions made to Wesley Burton, 31, of
Fairmont. Deputies said the victim cannot move without assistance, and
Owens is not listed as the caregiver.
Detectives determined the transactions from September 2023 through the end of February 2024 totaled $17,947.41.
Owens and Burton have been charged with financial exploitation of the elderly.
Both are being held in the North Central Regional Jail.
UPPER SANDUSKY — The Ohio District 5 Area Agency
on Aging and Wyandot County Department of Job and Family Services Adult
Protective Services (APS) have collaborated to host a community event
aimed at combating elder abuse, scams and exploitation. It will take
place 10 a.m.-noon April 22 at Trinity Evangelical Church, 108 Malabar
Drive, Upper Sandusky.
The effort brings
together experts, community organizations and citizens to address
critical issues affecting older adults and also will highlight resources
to enhance healthy aging while staying safe.
It
will include a panel discussion with experts from Adult Protective
Services, the Area Agency on Aging and other specialized professionals
will engage in a panel discussion. They will share insights, strategies
and best practices to safeguard older adults from abuse and financial
exploitation.
The event will include a resource fair featuring
community organizations committed to supporting the well-being and
health of older adults. Attendees can connect with representatives
from Wyandot County Department of Job and Family Services, other
organizations from Wyandot County and the Area Agency on Aging.
A light brunch will be provided, encouraging networking and community building. Giveaways will be provided.
Researchers point to an advocacy program in Maine that works with Adult
Protective Services as one solution to preventing exploitation.
A new study found that almost 40 percent of elder mistreatment cases began with self-neglect. Photo by Jeremy Poland/iStock.
A few years ago, Adult Protective Services put Polly Madson Cox in
touch with an older woman who was neglecting herself. She lived alone,
struggled to meet her basic needs and was on the verge of eviction.
Madson
Cox, who was an advocate with the Elder Abuse Institute of Maine,
worked with the woman to try and find a way to stay in her apartment.
During that time, the woman invited someone to live with her. Madson Cox
soon learned this person was exploiting her, controlling her
medications, ability to leave the house and her finances.
A
recent study found this is a common problem. An analysis of Maine APS
investigations published online last month by the Journal of the
American Geriatrics Society found that older adults who neglect
themselves often experience other mistreatment at the same time and are
at risk of further abuse.
Addressing cases of self-neglect may
prevent later abuse, said the study’s lead author, Dr. Stuart Lewis, an
associate professor at Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine.
Advocates
in Maine said the study findings reinforce the work of a program that
was piloted in 2019 under the Elder Abuse Institute of Maine.
“Self-neglect
is a huge unmet need in elder mistreatment,” Lewis said. “It has been,
historically, a very difficult circumstance to intervene in ways that
provide benefit to the person.”
Despite Madson Cox’s efforts, her
client was eventually evicted. She worked with the woman as she moved
to a hospital, then later into an assisted living facility. She was
evicted with only the clothes on her back, so Madson Cox helped her get
more clothing and regain access to her finances.
“I think we are
incredibly instrumental and a special program,” Madson Cox said. “To
meet all those needs, to be able to be involved with her all those
months. In that case she was in three different counties across the
state of Maine — and I was the sole constant for her.”
Self-neglect,
which makes up half of APS investigations nationally, occurs when
someone no longer has the capacity for self-care.
Often this
means failing to eat appropriately, care for their home, maintain good
hygiene or manage their financial affairs, according to the 2021 Adult Maltreatment Report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Madson
Cox said some indicators of self-neglect could be unsafe housing, such
as holes in the roof, rotted floorboards or an infestation; unpaid
bills, disabled utilities or banking concerns; concerns about hygiene;
and lack of access to medical care or trouble managing their
medications.
Patricia
Kimball, the study co-author and executive director of the Elder Abuse
Institute of Maine, said it’s difficult to address self-neglect because
clients often don’t see themselves as victims. Even the term
“self-neglect” is stigmatizing, she said, because it blames the person
for their situation when there may be factors out of their control.
To
examine how self-neglect relates to other forms of mistreatment,
researchers analyzed nearly 18,000 Maine APS investigations from July
2017 to October 2021, looking at cases in which the first substantiated
allegation was self-neglect.
The study found that about half of
the individuals who were first reported for self-neglect also
experienced other mistreatment at the same time. And almost 40 percent
of elder mistreatment cases began with self-neglect.
The study
found that the time period between a report of self-neglect and another
allegation is often less than a year, ranging from 215 to 388 days, much
shorter than what was published in a previous study, Lewis said.
“What’s
important about it is (self-neglect) often occurs at the same time as
other forms of abuse; that it’s a risk factor for later abuse; and that
by treating it, you may potentially prevent other abuse later on,” Lewis
said.
Self-neglect shares risk factors with other elder
mistreatment, such as physical disability, social isolation, cognitive
impairment and lack of social support, according to the study.
The
study was conducted using Maine APS cases collected during a pilot
program of the RISE model. This model — “Repair harm; Inspire change;
Support connections; Empower choice” — is a new national approach
designed to address elder abuse in a way that reduces harm while
respecting the individual’s autonomy. Advocates refrain from pressuring
clients to make certain decisions about their lifestyle and only provide
the support the client seeks, Madson Cox said.
“We respect that
clients have the right to make their own decisions and we understand
that clients have that right even when their choices might make us or
other people uncomfortable, or might make choices that are in opposition
to those people around them,” Madson Cox said.
The
study found that about half of the individuals who were first reported
for self-neglect also experienced other mistreatment at the same time.
And almost 40 percent of elder mistreatment cases began with
self-neglect. Photo by kitzcorner/iStock
Maine’s
RISE pilot project, called Elder Service Connections, started in 2019
by pairing advocates from the Elder Abuse Institute of Maine with APS
caseworkers to work on investigations in Aroostook and Cumberland
counties.
The advocates were trained in motivational
interviewing and supported decision-making, and were able to stay with
clients long after APS might be required to close a case. Madson Cox
said the time they work with clients can vary greatly, but is usually
less than a year.
Data shows the RISE approach works: Clients are
significantly less likely to end up back in the APS system after
working with a RISE advocate.
To date, the program has received
752 referrals. It expanded in 2021 to include the entire state, and
there are currently eight advocates. The budget Gov. Janet Mills signed
last year dedicated $800,000 annually to the program.
Madson
Cox, who worked as a RISE advocate for about a year and a half and now
oversees the program, said she has seen the findings of the self-neglect
study mirrored in her work.
She mentioned the case of a woman in
her 70s who was reported for self-neglect because her furnace wasn’t
working. The woman had no hot water, struggled to get her snow plowed
and was heating her home by using the oven and space heaters. She was
paying an exorbitant electric bill, had trouble bathing without hot
water and couldn’t get out of her home to access health care.
Advocates
spent months working with her, and Madson Cox said as they got to know
the client, she disclosed that a community member was financially
exploiting her by charging an excessive price for snow removal, and a
family member was being verbally abusive and stealing her medication.
The advocates were able to fix the furnace, help with the utility bill,
secure a new snow removal service and get her medication delivered
directly.
“We have the luxury of being able to work with people
for a much greater amount of time,” Madson Cox said. “Some of the
(conditions) were known as the client became comfortable with us and
began trusting us to disclose.”
The RISE system can also work with others in the client’s orbit, including someone who may be exploiting them, Kimball said.
This
approach recognizes that often what the older adult wants more than
anything is help for a loved one who may be struggling — with addiction,
for instance — even if they are the ones exploiting them.
“Often
in maltreatment and abuse situations, our clients want the alleged
harmer to get help,” Madson Cox said. “They’re not in a place to make
choices to sever the relationship or be estranged.”
This
article was written with the support of a journalism fellowship from
The Gerontological Society of America, The Journalists Network on
Generations and The Silver Century Foundation.
A man was charged late Wednesday in Cole County with financially exploiting his elderly father.
Michael Kliethermes was charged with financially exploiting an
elderly person and misappropriating funds for a nursing home. A warrant
was issued for his arrest on Thursday and a $25,000 bond was set.
His wife, Holly Kliethermes, was charged early Wednesday
with financially exploiting an elderly person. Court records show that a
warrant was served Thursday and she posted a $25,000 bond. An
arraignment in her case is set for 9 a.m. April 26 at the Cole County
Circuit Court.
Court documents say the couple took $72,903.59 and didn’t pay for the victim’s nursing home care.
On Oct. 18, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
received a referral alleging financial exploitation, claiming that
Michael Kliethermes was not paying for his father’s care at Stonebridge
Senior Living.
The probable cause statement says that Michael Kliethermes obtained
the power of attorney on Nov. 4, 2021, and the couple started using the
account on Nov. 8, 2021, by paying for a bank Visa card and expenses
charged to it.
On Nov. 15, 2023, law enforcement interviewed Michael Kliethermes,
who allegedly admitted to cashing his father’s tax return checks, but
claimed he used it to by his father “goodies,” according to court
documents.
Kliethermes claimed he was aware of a $50,000 balance due to the
nursing him, the probable cause statement says. When law enforcement
told him that $72,000 was taken from his father’s account, Kliethermes
blamed his wife, the statement says.
Ralph Cowart and Meghan McCullough(Candler County Sheriff's Office)
By WTOC Staff
CANDLER COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Some charges in a case of elder neglect in Candler County have been dismissed.
The co-owner and executive director of Southern Manor were arrested last August.
The
Candler County Clerk of Court confirming to WTOC today two charges have
been dropped against Ralph Cowart and Meghan McCullough.
They
are still charged with exploitation and intimidation of disabled
adults, elder person and residents, along with failure to report a case
of abuse of disabled adult.
They were originally also facing neglect and reckless conduct charges, but again, those have been dropped.
My wife had a cousin, “Bob,” who was married and had no children. He
told her that he and his wife, “Mary,” had made new wills, prepared by
an attorney, and that he had made sure that if he died first, Mary would
state that my wife would inherit part of their estate.
Here is
what happened: Bob’s estate, which was worth several million dollars,
passed to Mary after he died. We thought everything was in order so that
when Mary passed away, part of her and Bob’s estate would go to my
wife. That didn’t happen.
Mary was in her nineties when Bob passed
away. She moved into an assisted-living facility, leaving her house
vacant. My wife and Mary, who was then 93 years old, had frequent
telephone conversations about her health and welfare.
She was pressured to change her will
One
day, out of the blue, Mary called my wife and stated that the facility
she was living in was pressuring her to change her will and to leave all
of her estate to the facility’s trust fund, leaving nothing to her or
her late husband’s families.
She asked my wife what she thought
she should do. My wife told her that Bob wouldn’t approve of her
changing her will, as he had stated that he wanted their estate to go to
their distant family members. Later, we called the facility she was
living in to inquire about her welfare.
We were told Mary died two
months ago. We asked why her family wasn’t notified and were told we
would have to talk to her attorney. When we contacted the attorney, we
were told that the attorney had attempted to call family members, but
none of the numbers worked.
Nursing home received her millions
Mary
had the correct phone number for my wife. We asked what was going to
happen to Mary’s estate, and the attorney stated she had been granted
power of attorney for Mary and had helped her write a new will that left
everything to the facility’s trust fund.
We believe Mary was
under duress when she changed her will and feel sure there was criminal
intent in the way things happened. We contacted the police department in
the town where Mary died and filed an elder-abuse case, which the
district attorney wouldn’t take.
Unfortunately, Mary’s house had
been sold a month before she passed away. We believe that the trust fund
and attorney worked together to steal the estate, leaving nothing to
family members, and that it’s probably not the first time this has
played out involving these people.
Feeling Duped in Texas
“One reason people act so brazenly is because they are betting on your
lack of knowledge about the legal system.” - MarketWatch illustration
Dear Duped,
The red flag was the phone call from Mary,
alerting your wife to the fact that the management of the facility
wanted her to change her will. In an ideal world, you would have called a
lawyer then. In an even more ideal world, Bob would have set up a trust
before he died.
It’s easy to believe that people who own and run a
nursing home or assisted-living facility will respect their duty of
care over their clients and patients. They benefit from a halo effect,
perhaps because we believe kind, honorable people choose this work as a
vocation.
But there are, of course, many bad actors in this industry. Just one example: This nursing home in New York
illegally diverted millions of dollars of Medicare and Medicaid funds
and covered up reports of sexual assault while its residents lived in
squalid and unsafe conditions.
It seems inconceivable that an
attorney would cooperate in such a scheme and risk losing their license,
unless they too were somehow benefiting. One reason people act so
brazenly is because they are betting on your lack of knowledge about the
legal system.
Hire an elder-care attorney
Texas
law does allow you to challenge a will that was made under duress or
undue influence, particularly in a case such as this, where the person
with power of attorney and the beneficiary represent the nursing-home
facility upon which your cousin’s wife was entirely dependent.
At
first glance, you have a very strong case, and you should not allow your
experience with the district attorney’s office to deter you. Another
thing bad actors are counting on: In Texas, after a will has been
probated, there is a two-year statute of limitations to contest it.
“If
you believe that there are grounds to contest a will, it’s crucial to
act quickly and seek the guidance of an experienced attorney,” says the law firm Texas Probate Litigation. “But contesting or defending a will in Texas is not for the faint of heart. It’s a complex process.”
You’re
already feeling helpless and have a statute of limitations hanging over
your head. Challenging a will is time-consuming, stressful and
sometimes expensive, and you will need to collect paperwork, bank
records, a copy of the will and circumstantial evidence.
Talk to
an elder-care attorney and explain your case. Some will take your case
without a retainer if they believe they have a good chance of winning.
The Texas Legal Services Center, the Volunteer Legal Services Free Legal
Clinics and others offer services for eligible individuals.
The
good news: Your wife is classified as an “interested person,” typically
an heir or beneficiary, and as such has the right to contest this will.
Don’t allow the brazen actions of this facility or their attorney to
deter you. A nursing home “trust fund”? That is immediately suspicious.
Depressingly, rates of elder abuse are high in institutions such as nursing homes and long-term care facilities, according to this report
by the World Health Organization. “Abuse of older people is predicted
to increase as many countries are experiencing rapidly aging
populations,” it says.
Mary was isolated in this nursing home and, rather than being a safe place, she was taken advantage of. Texas, like other states, has a hotline you can call if you suspect an elderly relative is being abused, physically, emotionally, verbally, sexually or financially.
Questions to prove undue influence
“Demonstrating the presence of undue influence may involve a variety of factors,” according to the Johnson Firm,
a law firm based in Texas. “For instance, did the person leave a
bequest that seems unnaturally generous to someone in a position of
influence?” Yes.
“Was a beneficiary a fiduciary or trusted advisor
to the deceased?” Yes. “Were the expected beneficiaries entirely cut
out of the estate?” Yes. “Was the testator in a compromised position or
weakened mental capacity of any kind, making them susceptible to
influence?” Yes.
“Disputing the validity of a will based upon
undue influence begins by filing a lawsuit,” the firm adds. ”The case
will typically be assigned to a Texas probate Judge depending upon the
county in which the case arises. Will disputes may be heard by a Judge
or jury in some instances.”
As you say, if they did it once, they
will probably do it again, and they have probably done it in the past.
Elderly patients’ estates should not be treated like ATMs by caregivers.
There are a lot of good, honest and decent people in this industry, but
Mary’s experience gives them a bad name.
Police
Chief Rodrick Armalin led his team into a residential area where they
discovered a quartet of seniors toiling in conditions described as
inhumane.
The raid revealed that two of the elderly required urgent medical attention.
"It is utterly unacceptable that anyone would prey on our senior citizens, exploiting them for profit," said Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris, clearly outraged by the neglect laid bare.
To
swiftly combat such neglect, local law enforcement ensures to regularly
remove at-risk seniors from these hazardous settings and pursue charges
against those responsible.
In what has now become a series of these interventions, the Lancaster
Police Department has made it abundantly clear that they are not about
to turn a blind eye to elder exploitation.
These illegal
facilities not only skip out on the necessary greasing of bureaucratic
wheels but frequently flirt with outright fraud.
Thursday's operation concluded with the property being red-tagged and the seniors being placed in safer environments.
Chief Armalin has praised the city's collective spirit in tackling this moral crisis, iterating,
"This operation is another example of what we can achieve when we come
together as a community and as law enforcement." With Mayor Parris
vowing an unbroken resolve to protect Lancaster's elderly, the message
rings loud and clear: the town's seniors are to be treated with
dignity—or else.
The local officials continue to urge any individuals with knowledge
of such illegal operations to step forward in the protection of their
seniors.
Lancaster, renowned for its innovation and diversity, is taking a
stand to ensure it remains a community where each resident, regardless
of age, is accorded the care and respect they deserve. More information
can be found by contacting the Lancaster Police Department, or by
visiting their website.
BURLINGTON, N.C. — A Triad woman turned herself in and is facing charges, according to deputies with the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office.
On May 18, 2023, the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Unit began an investigation into elder abuse and fraud.
The victim’s family members told detectives that the victim’s daughter,
identified as Marilyn Ingram, was using the victim’s money for personal
gain, and was taking advantage of the victim’s power of attorney.
During the investigation, detectives obtained probable cause to
charge Ingram with felony exploitation of an elder adult. Warrants were
obtained on Tuesday, and on Thursday, Ingram turned herself in at the
sheriff’s office.
She was charged with one count of felony
exploitation of a disabled of elder adult through a position of trust or
business relationship and one count of felony obtain property by false
pretense.
