The aged care royal commission brought a nation to tears blowing the whistle on elder abuse.
Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Aged care royal commission on elder abuse| 7NEWS
Monday, September 23, 2024
‘RHOC’ Star Vicki Gunvalson Pleads With Judge to Toss Financial Elder Abuse Lawsuit Against Her
By Ryan Naumann
Real Housewives of Orange County star Vicki Gunvalson demanded the lawsuit accusing her of financial elder abuse be thrown out of court, In Touch can exclusively reveal.
According to court documents obtained by In Touch, Vicki, 62, and her insurance company Coto Insurance and Financial Services denied all allegations of wrongdoing in the case brought by Diane Field.
In her filing, Vicki’s lawyer argued, “[Diane] knew, or in the exercise of ordinary care should have known, of the risk and hazards involved in the undertaking in which they engaged, but nevertheless and with full knowledge of these things, did fully and voluntarily consent to assume the risks and hazards involved in the undertaking.”
Vicki’s attorney also said the claims are barred because Diane failed to use “due diligence.”
The RHOC star also said that Diane was “careless and negligent with respects to the matters alleged in the” lawsuit. Vicki asked the court to throw out the entire lawsuit and not award Diane a dime.
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| Michael Tullberg / Getty |
As In Touch first reported, Diane, 74, claimed she met Vicki in 2019. She said Vicki and Vicki’s partner Ali convinced her to hire them to help manage her finances and take out a life insurance policy.
Diane said her 85-year-old husband George was injured in a bike accident in 2002. She was responsible for managing her estate worth around $6 million.
“[Vicki] was very convincing, and Diane felt that she could trust her,” the suit explained.
In December 2022, Diane said that she told Vicki and Ali that she had concerns about the investment recommendations over the years.
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| Jesse Grant / Getty |
She explained “that she felt uninformed by them and that the annuities and life insurance policy they convinced her to open did not seem to be the best investments for her, as they tie up large sums of money for a long time that she may never be able to use, for maybe longer than she will live or will be too old to enjoy.”
Diane accused the duo of financial elder abuse.
She demanded unspecified damages.
At the time the lawsuit was filed, the reality star’s legal team told us, “Victoria Gunvalson is a well-respected insurance broker with more than 34 years of experience. She has helped more than 7000 clients. She vehemently denies each and every allegation set forth against her by Diane Field in this lawsuit.”
They added, “Ms. Gunvalson followed the direction of her client, Diane Field, in placing the insurance products Ms. Field requested regarding the annuities and the life insurance policy. Ms. Gunvalson did not engage in any conduct that could be considered financial elder abuse, breach of fiduciary duty, or fraud.”
“Victoria Gunvalson remains committed to the highest standards of integrity and transparency,” they continued. “Needless to say, we are outraged by the false allegations being made against her. We will vigorously defend her good name and reputation in this lawsuit.”
Full Article & Source:
‘RHOC’ Star Vicki Gunvalson Pleads With Judge to Toss Financial Elder Abuse Lawsuit Against Her
Sadness Turns To Joy As Patient Gets Special Visit After Weeks In Hospital
It was the perfect medicine ❤️ 🐶
Late last month, when 73-year-old Valdir Zabel was admitted to a hospital in Brazil for pneumonia, it was to be a difficult time in more ways than one.
Not only would Zabel have to undergo more than two weeks of treatment in the ICU, it meant that he’d be without the warm company of his dog, Preta. Zabel had adopted her years earlier after finding her abandoned outside his home.
The weeks spent apart were hard on Preta, too.
“As it was a long time, the two of them missed each other a lot,” Zabel’s daughter, Lisi, told news outlet ND Mais. “My father talked about her all the time, and the dog was also very sad and stopped eating.”
Staff at Gaspar Hospital, where Zabel was undergoing treatment, could tell that he was under emotional distress, as well. To ensure a full recovery, they knew he needed a different kind of “medicine” than what they had to offer.
So, working with Zabel’s family, the hospital arranged for Preta to make a surprise visit — and with that, both their hearts began to heal.
Here’s footage of that emotional reunion:
In an instant, Zabel and Preta’s sadness turned to joy.
Shortly after that special visit, Zabel’s health made a turn for the better. Just four days later he was released from the ICU.
This isn’t the first time a visit from a beloved pet has proven to have healing qualities for their owners in the hospital. That special dose of love only a dog can deliver may truly be among the best of medicines.
Full Article & Source:
Sadness Turns To Joy As Patient Gets Special Visit After Weeks In Hospital
Sunday, September 22, 2024
Wendy Williams’ Guardian Files Amended Lawsuit Claiming Talk Host Received “Paltry $82,000” For Lifetime Docuseries
By Ted Johnson
The guardian for Wendy Williams has filed an amended lawsuit against A+E Networks and eOne over the Lifetime documentary reality project Where Is Wendy Williams? that aired in February, claiming that the TV personality was exploited in her participation and paid just $82,000 for the project.
The guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, also claimed that Williams’ signature on her contract with eOne to produce the series “does not appear to be genuine” and there is “no evidence” that she signed the agreement on January 25, 2023.
Williams, the lawsuit stated, “was incapacitated and unable to consent at the time the Contract or its amendments were executed, even if she had signed it (which she did not).”
Her representatives disclosed earlier this year that she has been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia. Williams had participated in the documentary and served as executive producer.
Read the amended Wendy Williams lawsuit.
The amended lawsuit, filed Monday in New York Supreme Court, follows an unsuccessful effort by Morrissey to halt the airing of the documentary this year. She had sought a court order to stop the project, arguing in February that the project was a “blatant exploitation of a vulnerable woman with a serious medical condition,” and that the talk host had lacked mental capacity to enter a contract to do the show.
A New York judge initially granted the order to prevent the airing of Where Is Wendy Williams?, but that was quickly reversed on appeal.
A spokesperson for A+E Networks and Lifetime said that they don’t comment on lawsuits.
A+E attorneys had argued earlier this year that the series reflected Williams’ “own journey through the guardianship process.” The attorney contended that “only after seeing the Documentary’s trailer and realizing her role in [Wendy Williams ] life may be criticized did Ms. Morrissey enlist the courts to unconstitutionally silence that criticism.”
Morrissey has enlisted Roberta Kaplan and her law firm to represent her in the amended complaint. They are seeking a court declaration that Williams’ contract is null and void, unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, disgorgement of proceeds from the documentary project and an injunction prohibiting additional airings of it, among other things.
“The profits from the Program should go to Wendy Williams, who will need significant funding to provide for proper medical care and supervision for the rest of her life,” the lawsuit stated.
In the new complaint, Morrissey claims that “by willfully taking advantage of a severely impaired, incapacitated person, Defendants have made millions on W.W.H.’s back, while W.W.H. has received a paltry $82,000.”
Morrissey’s attorneys cite early reports of Williams’ “increasingly erratic behavior,” and noted that her “difficulties were often captured on camera” as host of a daily talk show.
“As early as 2021, press reports attributed these changes to early-onset dementia,” the lawsuit stated. “These reports were widely circulated on social media, in the press, and on entertainment talk shows.”
Her show was canceled in 2022 after it became clear that she would not be able to return, according to the suit. Williams was diagnosed in May 2023 with frontotemporal lobe dementia and primary progressive aphasia, the suit stated. But stories had leaked a year earlier that a court had established a guardianship for her.
The lawsuit also cited the influence of David Selby, who represented Williams as her new manager. According to Morrissey’s claim, when the Lifetime documentary series went into production, Selby told her that he would have “full creative control” and that the project would show her in a positive light.
The lawsuit claimed that the contract for Williams’ participation was signed after the project started production, “while she was clearly disheveled, not mentally present, and confused.”
“No person who witnessed [Williams] in these circumstances could possibly have believed that she was capable of consenting either to an agreement to film, or to the filming itself,” the lawsuit stated. The lawsuit alleged that her signature on the contract “bears a printed, not cursive signature purporting to be the signature of [Wendy Williams], but looks nothing like W.W.H.’s signature.”
Morrissey did not see the contract until months later, according to the suit.
“Indeed, none of the Defendants ever gained the Guardian’s consent for [\Williams’] participation in the film, and there was no way W.W.H. could have consented, as she was incapacitated prior to and during filming,” the lawsuit stated.
People first reported on the new complaint.
Full Article & Source:
Wendy Williams’ Guardian Files Amended Lawsuit Claiming Talk Host Received “Paltry $82,000” For Lifetime Docuseries
See Also:
Wendy Williams
Casey Holds Aging Committee Hearing on Protecting Older Adults Who Are Targeted by Frauds and Scams
September 19, 2024
At hearing, Casey released annual Aging Committee Fraud Book
Hearing featured testimony from PA scam victim, law enforcement about how to prevent scams and support victims
Casey touted his report on how 2017 Republican tax law penalized scam victims
Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, held an Aging Committee hearing entitled “Fighting Fraud: How Scammers Are Stealing from Older Adults.” The hearing highlighted the psychological and economic impacts that frauds and scams have older adults, who are disproportionately targeted by fraudsters.
During the hearing, Casey unveiled the Aging Committee’s annual Fraud Book, which provides seniors with an overview of the most prevalent scams to help them identify and avoid being victimized. The Fraud Book also contains resources for scam victims. In addition to the Fraud Book, Casey touted his report on the 2017 Republican tax law, called “Scammed Then Taxed,” which details how the law’s repeal of the theft loss deduction has imposed significant taxes on many scam victims.
“At today’s hearing, we heard tragic stories from scam victims and law enforcement about how fraudsters are getting more sophisticated and aggressive with their scams and throwing the lives of older adults into chaos,” said Chairman Casey. “We must do everything we can to educate older adults about the threats they face from frauds and scams. We must also do more to provide resources for those who have been victimized by scams, including those who have been forced to pay taxes on money they’ve lost due to changes in the 2017 Republican tax law.”
Chairman Casey invited Susan Whittaker, an Administrative Assistant at Lehigh County Aging and Adult Services in Allentown, PA, to testify at the hearing about her late husband’s experience as a scam victim. Susan testified, “This scam was devastating and had a devasting effect on Bill—both financially and emotionally. Because we lost $20,000, and Bill had a lot of chronic health conditions, Bill began to ration his medications. We just couldn’t afford them anymore… He also lost his sense of self-worth. I was really sad to see this very intelligent and past business owner, become so afraid to read emails and use a phone. It was a huge setback for him, and I think contributed to his worsening health conditions...he stopped living.”
Source:
Casey Holds Aging Committee Hearing on Protecting Older Adults Who Are Targeted by Frauds and Scams
Containers for Change helps retiree cash in a million empties for animal rescue charity
By Jasmine Hines and Adam Stephen
Selwyn Nutley with his beloved rescue dog Mindy. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
In short:
The 82-year-old from Emerald has alone raised more than $100,000 by collecting and cashing in recyclable cans and bottles.
Containers for Change chief executive Natalie Roach says "Nuts" is one of the state's top recyclers.
What's next?
Mr Nutley says he will continue recycling up to 6,000 containers a week until he gets old.
Selwyn "Nuts" Nutley is affectionately known as the "patron of pets" in his small rural town.
With his custom-designed collections ute he has recycled more than a million cans and bottles to raise funds for his local pet rescue group.
The 82-year-old retiree from Emerald, in Queensland's Central Highlands, has single-handedly raised more than $100,000.
"I have plenty of spare time," Mr Nutley says.
"I drive around in my ute, which has got a tailgate lifter on it, and I collect from pubs, clubs and houses all around Emerald.
"A lot of people even throw them over my front fence."
The octogenarian recycles up to 6,000 containers a week, thanks to a retrofitted ute that allows him to easily lift and transport 12 full wheelie bins.
Rescue dog Mindy is one of four of Mr Nutley's spoilt pooches. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
Mr Nutley started his fundraising efforts after adopting his first rescue dog in 2014 and soon his brood expanded.
He now has four small dogs: Mindy, Lindy, Rover and Buddy.
"I love all dogs, big, small. They all just seem to come to me," he says.
He fundraises through Queensland's Containers for Change scheme, which refunds 10 cents for each eligible drink container.
Mr Nutley retrofitted his ute to make it easier to recycle more containers. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
'He could outrun me'
Susan Consedine, treasurer of CQ Pet Rescue, met Mr Nutley 10 years ago when he offered to help after adopting his first dog.
"He just took that ball and ran with it. We just got out of Selwyn's way," she says.
Mr Nutley began fundraising for the rescue group after adopting his own dogs. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
He began by attending markets, washing dogs and even driving animals more than 800 kilometres to Brisbane, where there is a greater pool of rescue groups and foster carers.
"Selwyn would, in his younger years of his late 70s, load the animals up with me at three in the morning and he would drive them there and then back," Ms Consedine says.
"[He's] an absolute powerhouse. He could outrun me and I'm a fairly active person."
Ms Consedine says without Mr Nutley the rescue service would have shut during the COVID-19 pandemic when the charity's main fundraising avenue was events.
"The only fundraising scheme that we had was Selwyn and the recycling program … he basically kept us going for two years," she says.
"If we had collapsed … there would have been an untold number of animals that would have been euthanased that did not need to be."
Mr Nutley collects about 6,000 containers a week for his local animal rescue group. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
Containers for Change chief executive Natalie Roach says "Nuts" is one of the state's top recyclers.
"He's spending an average 45 hours a week collecting and recycling containers, so that's more than the average full-time job in terms of hours," she said.
Mr Nutley also collects plastic bottle top lids which his local rotary sends away to make prosthetic limbs. (ABC News: Jasmine Hines)
Ms Roach says since the scheme launched in 2018, 8.8 billion containers have been recycled.
Asked what's next, Mr Nutley says he will continue recycling up to 6,000 containers a week until he gets "old".
CQ Pet Rescue covers 52,000 square kilometres in the Central Highlands and only takes animals on a council list to be put down.
Full Article & Source:
Containers for Change helps retiree cash in a million empties for animal rescue charity
Saturday, September 21, 2024
“A Real Overhaul Is Long Overdue”: Lawmaker Calls On State Leaders to Reform New York’s Beleaguered Guardianship System
A new bill asks Gov. Kathy Hochul and state legislators to overhaul New York’s broken guardianship system. It cites a ProPublica investigation that found the elderly and infirm living in dire conditions while under court-mandated oversight.
The chair of the New York City Council’s Committee on Aging is calling on Gov. Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders to overhaul the state’s beleaguered guardianship system in response to a ProPublica investigation that found elderly and infirm New Yorkers living in dire conditions while under court-mandated oversight.
City Councilmember Crystal Hudson introduced a resolution last week intended to force Albany to take up the cause of those whom judges have deemed incapable of managing their own affairs — a constituency without powerful lobbyists or political influence whose needs have long been ignored by state legislators.
“Too many people have been failed by this system, and a real overhaul is long overdue,” said Hudson, a Democrat. “We need a system that instills confidence — one that guarantees people in need of guardianships a dignified existence.”
More than 28,000 people statewide are currently under the care of court-appointed guardians, and nearly 60% of them live in New York City.
Hudson’s bill, which calls for an annual infusion of state funding to serve poor New Yorkers in the system, will be the subject of public hearings later this fall.
The proposal cites a series of stories this year by ProPublica that revealed how thousands of residents who have no family or friends to look after them are ill-served by many of the nonprofits and private attorneys that judges appoint to oversee their well-being. In the guardianship industry, this group of wards is known as “the unbefriended.”
The news organization found that there are too few guardians available to serve the people who need them and even fewer overseers, called examiners, to review the guardians’ work. A dearth of court staff and judges has compounded the problem. ProPublica found that annual assessments of guardians’ care can take years to complete, and even then the court oversight mostly focuses on financial paperwork, with officials rarely visiting wards in person.
The lack of scrutiny and long delays can result in unchecked neglect, as well as financial exploitation of New York’s most vulnerable people. A woman featured in ProPublica’s reporting lived for years in a home that had no heat and was infested by bedbugs and rats — conditions her legally appointed guardian did not rectify and her examiner did not question. Another man’s guardian spent more than half of her ward’s life savings for care provided by her own private business — a flagrant conflict of interest that a judge permitted for years.
Hudson’s resolution would pressure state legislative leaders and the governor to bolster the system by allocating state money to pay for more guardians. The current system is largely unfunded. So judges often ask lawyers to take on cases pro bono or assign nonprofits, which take monthly fees directly from their wards’ accounts. For a small group of people in need, county social service departments pick up the tab, though judges say the groups they contract with to provide those services are overburdened and understaffed.
To fix the problem, the legislation suggests a plan developed by Guardianship Access New York, a coalition of nonprofit providers. It calls for a “significant and permanent statewide investment in nonprofit guardianship services” of $15 million annually. That’s similar to what happens in Florida, which publicly funds 16 nonprofits that serve thousands of eligible wards. In GANY’s proposal, the funding would go to vetted groups that would then serve 1,500 New Yorkers each year to “ensure access to an ethical, reliable, and effective guardian.”
Kimberly George, a leader of GANY who also runs Project Guardianship, a nonprofit group that serves as guardian to about 160 New York City wards, said in an interview that the proposal “wouldn’t fix the whole system, but it’s a big piece of it.”
“If judges have reliable good guardians to go to, maybe they won’t have to appoint ones that they know are questionable or aren’t sure about,” she said.
Judges, for example, have long relied on a guardianship company featured by ProPublica even as it failed to meet the needs of more than a dozen wards. In one case, it collected monthly fees from an elderly man even after he left the country — and also after he died. The group, which serves hundreds of poor New Yorkers, continues to receive appointments. The company has declined to answer questions about specific clients but previously told ProPublica that it was accountable to the court and that its work was scrutinized by examiners, who are empowered to raise any issues.
The city resolution comes as the state court system crafts its own guardianship proposals in advance of next year’s legislative session, which begins in January.
According to an internal proposal obtained by ProPublica, an advisory committee of judges and lawyers has recommended that the state’s top judicial leaders and court administrators ask Albany to create a “fully funded statewide entity” to serve as a public guardian. Such a government entity, the committee estimates, would cost $72 million to staff and would serve the “unbefriended” in each county — a population the proposal estimates represents about 20% of all wards statewide.
The committee also recommended that the courts seek to increase compensation for court examiners, as well as court evaluators, who assess the needs and capacities of people before a judge imposes guardianship. That money would come from funding that is now reserved for lawyers who represent the indigent in criminal cases, not from wards’ own funds.
A court spokesperson said the state’s top judicial leaders “have made clear to our partners in other branches of government that we support the creation of a statewide public guardianship program as a key component of an overhaul of the system.”
Spokesperson Al Baker added: “We are proud to be advocating for additional funding to cover the costs of guardianships, particularly to assist those who are the most economically constrained.”
State lawmakers last seriously addressed the court-appointed guardianship system 30 years ago, when they passed the state’s main guardianship statute, Article 81 of the Mental Hygiene Law. This year during budget negotiations, lawmakers secured just $1 million to fund a statewide helpline, despite a request to provide $5 million to combat some of the bigger problems detailed in ProPublica’s reporting. Spokespeople for the Senate majority leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and Assembly speaker, Carl Heastie, didn’t respond to requests for comment on Hudson’s resolution.
Neither did the office of Hochul, whose support will be essential to any guardianship reform. The Democrat, who took office three years ago, has proposed a plan to confront the needs of the state’s aging population, which mentions guardianship, among other measures, though it spells out few details.
Advocates hope Hochul will be receptive to an overhaul, given her record on a related issue. In July 2022, she signed into law a bill that provides an alternative to guardianship for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, permitting them, not a guardian, to make decisions about their own lives.
At the bill signing, according to a transcript, she acknowledged the power of government to better the circumstances of the vulnerable.
New York, she said, had “a
well-intended Legislature and a governor who wanted to make sure if
there’s any issue that comes to our attention where a wrong needs to be
righted, we will take the pen and do just that. And that is what today
is about.”
Full Article & Source:
“A Real Overhaul Is Long Overdue”: Lawmaker Calls On State Leaders to Reform New York’s Beleaguered Guardianship System
Friday, September 20, 2024
Wendy Williams’ Guardian Sues Lifetime Over Exploitative Documentary
The former talk show host’s guardian alleges that she was "viciously and shamelessly exploited" in the documentary.
By Oumou Fofana
Wendy Williams' guardian has taken legal action against several parties and entities involved in Lifetime’s controversial documentary “Where is Wendy Williams?” which dives into the talk show host’s life under guardianship.
According to PEOPLE, Sabrina Morrissey filed a complaint against A&E Television Network, Lifetime Entertainment Services, EOne Productions, Creature Films, and executive producer Mark Ford in the New York Supreme Court on Monday (Sept. 16), accusing them of exploiting the talk show star. Morrissey tried to stop the documentary from airing before it premiered on Feb. 24 and 25 but was unsuccessful.
“As is patently obvious from the very first few minutes of the Program itself, W.W.H. was highly vulnerable and clearly incapable of consenting to being filmed, much less humiliated and exploited," the 75-page complaint read. "When the Guardian discovered that Defendants’ true intentions were to portray W.W.H. in a highly demeaning and embarrassing manner, she immediately sought to protect and to preserve her dignity. But the defendants fought to move ahead... without a valid contract and released without the Guardian's consent."
The complaint argued that the network and defendants exploited Williams and should be held responsible for covering her medical care and supervision for the remainder of her life. "Not surprisingly, the public reacted with disgust and revulsion at Defendants’ blatant and vicious exploitation of W.W.H," it continued. "By willfully taking advantage of a severely impaired, incapacitated person, Defendants have made millions on W.W.H.’s back, while W.W.H. has received a paltry $82,000" from the documentary.
"This case arises from the brutally calculated, deliberate actions of powerful and cravenly opportunistic media companies working together with a producer to knowingly exploit W.W.H., an acclaimed African-American entertainer who, tragically, suffers from dementia and, as a result, has become cognitively impaired, permanently disabled, and legally incapacitated," the complaint added. "Eager to sensationalize and profit from W.W.H.’s cognitive and physical decline, Defendants took advantage of W.W.H in the cruelest, most obscene way possible for their own financial gain, in a manner that truly shocks the conscience."
It additionally claimed that the "defendants not only deliberately destroyed" Williams' "credibility and image," but did so for their own financial gain. It added that the 60-year-old was the "laughingstock and drunkard implicitly responsible for her own continued suffering" and many photos of her in a wheelchair with her legs spread were circulated across the internet, along with footage showing her on camera with a nearly bald head — appearances she would have "never, ever consented or allowed."
Full Article & Source:
Wendy Williams’ Guardian Sues Lifetime Over Exploitative Documentary
See Also:
Wendy Williams Has Been Spotted for the First Time in Over a Year
The Wendy Williams Documentary Raises Critical Questions About Guardianship and Incapacity
Wendy Williams' Family Reportedly Still Have No Access To Her Amid 60th Birthday
Wendy Williams Doc Is an ‘Exploitation of a Vulnerable Woman,' Lawsuit Claims
Wendy Williams’ Unsealed Lawsuit Against A&E Cites ‘Exploitation’ And Inability To Consent
Wendy Williams’ Friend Says Guardianship Worse Than Britney’s
Wendy Williams’ ex-husband seeks two years of unpaid spousal support
Wendy Williams’ guardian claims A+E Networks exploited talk show host in new legal filing
Wendy Williams Owes $568,000 In Unpaid Taxes Amid Conservatorship, Health Crisis
Wendy Williams’ guardianship case highlights the need for reforms
Wendy Williams' Guardian Caught in $5.5 Million Fraud Scheme Amid Star's Health Revelations
Lifetime's 'The Bad Guardian' Stars Melissa Joan Hart in a Tale of Guardianship Gone Wrong
‘Bad Guardian’: Lifetime to Tackle Guardianship Debate With Melissa Joan Hart, La La Anthony
Wendy Williams top 5 documentary bombshells
Wendy Williams Seen for First Time in a Year in Devastating Lifetime Documentary Trailer
What's happening with Wendy Williams? From talk show no-show to 'incapacitated person'
Wendy Williams' Son Comes Forward To Say She's Being Exploited In Bombshell First Interview
Wendy Williams' Guardian Cuts Family Ties Amid $40 Million Dollar Fortune Grab
Wendy Williams makes 1st appearance since wellness center stay: exclusive photos
Wendy Williams’ son Kevin Jr gets power of attorney as Wells Fargo freezes her accountsWendy Williams had to be told several times her show had been canceled, execs say
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Maine high court suspends Ellsworth probate judge who didn’t pay taxes, child support
by Gillian Graham
William Blaisdell answers questions from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in Portland in July. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer
Maine’s highest court has ruled that an elected probate judge in Ellsworth will be suspended for four months for failing to file three years’ worth of taxes and pay tens of thousands of dollars in child support.
In a decision handed down Tuesday by the Maine Supreme Judicial Court, justices said that the behavior of William Blaisdell warranted public censure and imposed a one-year suspension from judicial office, with all but four months suspended.
“We view Judge Blaisdell’s misconduct as egregious and deserving of significant sanction. Disobedience of a court order by anyone is serious, but contempt of a court order by a sitting judge cannot be tolerated. We cannot expect the public to have respect and confidence in our courts when a judge himself flouts court orders,” justices said in their ruling.
Blaisdell, 54, was found in contempt of court in Waldo County in March because he was behind on more than $33,000 in child support payments to his ex-wife. He had to pay her $50,000, including attorney fees and interest, to avoid a 90-day jail sentence, according to court records. He also has not filed at least three years of tax returns from 2020 to 2022, records state.
The judicial committee began its investigation into Blaisdell after a district judge in Belfast reported him to the committee and the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar. Blaisdell also runs his own law firm in Ellsworth.
Blaisdell, who has said he has no plans to resign, told the court he would like to keep his judgeship. He said he’s been in office for a little more than nine years, holding court for at least one day a week and earning $30,000 yearly. His term ends in 2026.
Blaisdell appeared before the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in Portland in July as the court’s Committee on Judicial Conduct recommended he be removed from office in light of these failures. Because he’s an elected official, only legislative authorities can remove him, not the court.
The justices said in their opinion that they understand suspending the only probate judge in Hancock County imposes a hardship for the county and other probate courts.
“A partially suspended suspension would ameliorate that harm and provide a means of monitoring Judge Blaisdell’s conduct. For those reasons, we suspend all but four months of the one-year suspension, provided that Judge Blaisdell complies with the conditions imposed in his bar disciplinary matter,” they wrote.
It’s not clear what will happen at the court while Blaisdell is on suspension. Barbara Cardone, spokesperson for the Maine judicial branch, said that decision was up to the individual court and said she was not sure how Hancock County would decide to move forward.
Juliette Wilbur, registrar of probate in Hancock County, did not respond by 7 p.m. to emailed questions about whether cases would be paused or whether an interim probate judge would be appointed.
To “emphasize the gravity of the misconduct,” the court ordered Blaisdell to forfeit $10,000 from his salary, an amount equivalent to months of his judicial pay.
Last month, the state Board of Overseers sanctioned Blaisdell, and while he remains eligible to practice law, he must be monitored by another lawyer – former district attorney Matthew Foster – under an agreement with the board.
That agreement also outlines allegations by a former client that he spent months in jail while Blaisdell failed to act upon the client’s requests for a motion to adjust his bail. That former client said he struggled to contact Blaisdell, who had been appointed to the case.
Blaisdell could not be reached for comment Tuesday. One phone number listed for him in an online database had been disconnected; another rang several times before reaching a voicemail inbox that was full.
From 2016 to 2022, the years for which data is readily available, the Judicial Conduct Committee sent only eight complaints – lodged against a total of six judges – to the Supreme Judicial Court. Among those disciplined judges was former York County Probate Judge Robert Nadeau, who was suspended from the bench for 30 days in 2016. In 2017, Nadeau was suspended from practicing law for two years.
In that same time, the committee dismissed nearly 650 such complaints, according to an analysis of the committee’s annual reports.
Staff Writer Daniel Kool contributed.
Full Article & Source:
Maine high court suspends Ellsworth probate judge who didn’t pay taxes, child support
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