From NASGA's Archives: Legal Guardian Denies Alzheimer's Patient Her Home and Family Contact

Note:  Awareness is spreading about guardians who wrongfully isolate their wards from family and friends.  NASGA believes isolation (without court order) is cruel and inhumane treatment and must be classified as the crime it truly is.

The following article is from our 2009 archives:

Carol Kinnear, a retired Belleair Elementary teacher in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, signed an update to her trust in June 2008.

Her wish was clear: For the rest of her life, regardless of her health, she wanted to stay home.

The trust provision, her daughters thought, would assure she could do that.

On Monday, Kinnear, 78, was taken from home and moved to an unnamed facility, the act of a court-appointed guardian. She would be treated there for "high anxiety and confusion," the guardian wrote in an e-mail. Her children, blocked from contact, were told it was in their mother's best interest.

Earlier this year, to safeguard their mother's estate after money had come up missing, they had filed for guardianship in a Pinellas court.

Now they find themselves the victims of unintended consequences, guarded against by the person they had sought for help.

Kinnear's first guardian, Sandra Scott, caused her to fall after giving too high a dose of medication, said Kellee Watt, 45, of Indian Rocks Beach.

Teri St. Hilaire, who replaced Scott on July 1, didn't return phone calls and e-mails from the daughters.

Full Article and Source:
Legal guardian denies Alzheimer's patient her home and family contact

Sandra Scott certified with the Center for Guardianship Certification, an allied foundation of the National Guardianship Association (NGA).

Teri St. Hilaire is certified with the Center for Guardianship Certification, an allied foundation of the National Guardianship Association (NGA).

Judge Rules Charlie Fink Will Stay in Custody

Charlie Fink, an 85-year-old man who made a call for help recently to FOX 4 after the state took emergency custody of him, had a date in court on Friday.  

Fink fought for his freedom, but it was not to be.

The state, through its expert witness, testified Fink could not take care of himself and in fact would be in danger if he returned home.

That witness testified Fink did poorly on a battery of tests, and Dr. C. Alan Hopewell said that while Fink could handle minor physical and mental tasks, he was not able to function independently and that he had substantial cognitive impairment.

That finding was in contrast to that of another state psychologist and the findings of Dr. William Tedford, the former chair of psychology at SMU who also evaluated Fink.

It was Tedford's opinion that nothing is wrong with Fink that would prevent him from living in his own home. At the end of the day, Judge John B. Peyton allowed the emergency protective custody order of Adult Protective Services to stay in place.

"We're extremely disappointed with the findings by the judge," said Fink's attorney, Lysette Rios.

"We didn't believe there was enough credible evidence by any doctor that indicated Mr. Fink lacked capacity. The records speak for themselves; you've got two reports out of three indicating he has none to mild impairment, and then one report by a doctor who didn't include half of his objective findings in his report."

Officials with Adult Protective Services disagreed with Rios, though.

"We do feel that Mr. Fink lacks capacity," said Shari Pulliam with Adult Protective Services. "We're concerned for his health and safety in his own home living alone. We are also now concerned with financial exploitation, which is huge in elderly populations. We want to prevent that before it happens, and that's what we are doing here today -- trying to make sure that Mr. Fink is going to be safe financially."

Fink says the state's witness was untruthful in his testimony on Friday and that what he testified to in court was not the same thing he told Fink after performing a psychological test on him at the Arlington nursing home he has been in and returns to Friday.

"Yes, I'm disappointed," said Fink. "If it's against me, if he tells the truth and the judge rules against me, I can take it, but don't rule against me on account of lies. Don't do that on account of boldfaced lies."

Fink is in custody for another 30 days. The state says it will move forward now seeking guardianship of Fink.

Source:
Judge Rules N.Texas Man Will Stay in Custody

See Also:
Texas:  Charlie Fink May Bet to Go Home

Cleveland Municipal Judge Angela Stokes needs to surrender her gavel: editorial

According to Cleveland Municipal Judge Angela Stokes’ recent written statement, Administrative Judge Ronald Adrine’s  decision to remove her from hearing criminal cases beginning this week is “warrantless.”

On the contrary, it’s clear that Adrine’s decision is very much warranted in view of continual allegations that Stokes abuses court staff, lawyers and defendants.

She should step down immediately.

Questions have been raised for years about Stokes’ courtroom behavior. In October, the Ohio Supreme Court’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel charged that she mistreats people in her courtroom. The Ohio Supreme Court’s Board of Commissioners on Grievances and Discipline has yet to act on that finding, but considering Adrine’s decision, the slow-as-molasses board must act quickly if Stokes refuses to step down.

 Adrine did the right thing — the only thing he could do — by removing Stokes from hearing criminal cases. She will be assigned much rarer civil cases, although it would be  understandable if some lawyers balked even at that.

Adrine said in his motion — he would not comment further because Stokes’ case is before the disciplinary board — that he removed her from hearing criminal cases because he continues to receive complaints about her behavior.

His decision followed a motion by the Cuyahoga County Public Defender’s Office that the court transfer criminal cases from her courtroom and refrain from assigning any more such cases to her docket.

Stokes' denies all of the charges, saying she will “resort to the court judicial system” and pointing out that the board rejected a request from the disciplinary counsel that she undergo a psychiatric examination.

However, that decision hardly puts her in the clear, since complaints about her actions keep multiplying.

This growing controversy calls into question the quality of justice in the Municipal Court and undermines Stokes’ good family’s name.

Stokes, the daughter of former Congressman Louis Stokes, a highly respected member of this community, and the niece of the late Carl Stokes, the first black mayor of a major American city, stood out at the ballot box.

But the barrage of complaints has proven — once again — that a respected family name is no guarantee of a quality public servant.

Do the right thing, Judge Stokes. Step down.

Full Article & Source:
Cleveland Municipal Judge Angela Stokes needs to surrender her gavel: editorial 

See Also:
Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Angela Stokes barred from hearing criminal cases 

Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Angela Stokes says she will defend against court complaint recommending she undergo psych exam

Ex-Denver resident Akihiko Siegfried sentenced to 63 months in prison for defrauding elderly victim

DENVER - A former Denver man, who pled guilty to defrauding an elderly victim, was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison Wednesday.

Akihiko Siegfried, 55, was also ordered to serve a three-year term of supervised release following his prison sentence and pay $512,341.97 in restitution to the victim.

Siegfried was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on June 17, 2013. He pled guilty on Oct. 28, 2013 to one count of mail fraud and one count of money laundering.

According to the facts contained in the indictment as well as the stipulated facts contained in the plea agreement, in January 2008, Siegfried knocked on the door of the elderly victim's residence and when the door opened Siegfried pretended to be distraught and was crying.

Siegfried falsely told the victim that Siegfried's parents had just died in a car crash and that he had no money and no family to turn to for help.  Siegfried asked to borrow money.  The victim, who was then an 89-year-old widower of Japanese descent with little family, asked Siegfried if he was Japanese which he replied that he was.  He felt sorry for Siegfried and, in part because of their shared Japanese heritage, decided to help Siegfried.

Siegfried borrowed from the victim several times and in the middle of 2008 falsely told the victim he would inherit substantial money as a result of his parents' death, but that it would be tied up in probate for some time and he needed money for paying the associated fees and taxes. 

Full Article & Source:
Ex-Denver resident Akihiko Siegfried sentenced to 63 months in prison for defrauding elderly victim

OLPR accuses Perham lawyer of “impermissible conflict of interest”

The Minnesota Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility filed a petition for discipline with the Supreme Court seeking the suspension of Bruce Anthony Kunz of Perham.

He was admitted to practice law in 1992 and was disciplined before in 2008. In that case he was privately reprimanded for commingling client funds with personal money in his trust account, using that account to process funds received from a personal real estate deal, failure to respond to discovery requests from opposing counsel and other charges.

In this matter he is accused of entering in to an improper business relationship with a client and causing a conflict of interest. From 2001 to approximately 2010 Kunz represented the farming operation B&B Feeders Inc. owned by Roger and Kathryn Bryniarski. Kunz represented the family in a series of criminal, business, bankruptcy, real estate and civil matters. The OLPR alleges that during that time he also entered in to a series of business transaction with members of the Bryniarski family including buying real estate and farm equipment jointly. He failed to advise the family to obtain the advice of an independent attorney in these deals. The real estate deals created an “impermissible conflict of interest,” the complaint states.

Kunz represented Roger Bryniarski in a bankruptcy proceeding in 2008 and did not disclose that he and Roger were partners in several business deals. He also is accused of lying to the trustee and the creditors and failing to disclose his interest in the transactions.

Kunz has until early next month to respond to the allegations.

Full Article & Source:
OLPR accuses Perham lawyer of “impermissible conflict of interest”

NJ Attorney General Announces Arrests In Major Elder Fraud Case

Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced that a prominent Atlantic County attorney who specializes in elder law and the owner of an in-home senior care company were arrested on charges they conspired to prey on elderly clients and steal their life savings.  The two women allegedly stole over $2 million from at least 10 victims. The company owner’s sister and a former employee also are charged in the investigation by the State Police and the Division of Criminal Justice.

The following two women were arrested yesterday in the ongoing investigation. They are charged by complaint with first-degree money laundering, second-degree conspiracy and second-degree theft by deception for allegedly stealing from the victims, who lived in Atlantic and Cape May counties.

 Barbara Lieberman, 62, of Northfield, the attorney, was arrested at her home on Northwood Court.  Search warrants were executed there and at her law office on New Road in Northfield.  She was lodged in jail with bail set at $300,000.  The state froze approximately $5 million in assets Lieberman holds in various accounts, which it will seek to use for restitution.

·Jan Van Holt, 57, of Linwood, the owner of “A Better Choice,” a company that purportedly offered seniors “custom designed life care and legal financial planning,” was arrested at her home on West Vernon Avenue. She also was lodged in jail with bail set at $300,000.

Investigators previously filed charges of second-degree theft by deception against Van Holt’s sister, Sondra Steen, 58, of Linwood, who lives with her and helped her operate “A Better Choice,” and Susan Hamlett, 55, of Egg Harbor Township, who worked for them as an aid for elderly clients.

The defendants allegedly targeted elderly clients with substantial assets who typically did not have any immediate family, offering them non-medical care and assistance, including financial and legal services.  The defendants allegedly took control of the finances of their victims by forging a power of attorney or obtaining one on false pretenses.  The defendants then added their names to the victims’ bank accounts or transferred the victims’ funds into new accounts they controlled.  Thereafter, the defendants allegedly siphoned away the money to pay their own expenses, including, for Van Holt, two Mercedes cars, a Florida condo, pool supplies and veterinary bills for her pets.  Lieberman allegedly used stolen funds to pay off six-figure credit card bills.  In one case, the defendants allegedly put a reverse mortgage for $195,000 on a 94-year-old woman’s home.  That victim died in a nursing home because she could not afford to live in her home after her assets allegedly were stolen.  Lieberman and Van Holt also executed the wills of some of the victims and allegedly continued to steal from their estates after they died.

“These women allegedly preyed ruthlessly on elderly clients, most of whom were facing the end of life without family and with only their savings to ensure they would be cared for properly,” said Acting Attorney General Hoffman. “We’re supposed to honor our elders, but these women heartlessly exploited them, allegedly stripping them of their life savings and their ability to live out their final days in comfort, peace and dignity. This is an ongoing investigation, and we urge any individuals who suspect that they or their loved ones may have had their assets stolen by these defendants to notify us.”

Full Article & Source:
NJ Attorney General Announces Arrests In Major Elder Fraud Case

New NC law shrouds judicial discipline process in secrecy

Late last summer, lawmakers and Gov. Pat McCrory agreed to shroud in secrecy the state’s process for disciplining judges.

The result is apparent today at the online space where notices of pending judicial discipline were traditionally posted for the public to see. Now, that Web page is blank except for a disclaimer in bold: “All proceedings for judicial discipline are confidential,” it says, citing legislation McCrory signed into law on Aug. 23.

Anyone interested in judicial discipline who had clicked on that page in, say, September 2011 would have seen pending cases against two judges and their answers to the charges. In 2008, charges were brought against six judges, with the public able to read the allegations and responses from the elected or appointed judges.

Before state law changed last year, the public could see charges brought against judges; the judges' responses; and find hearing notices to attend public hearings as with this archive of the commission's webpage from Nov. 2011. The judicial discipline process was an open one.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/18/3712722/new-nc-law-shrouds-judicial-discipline.html#storylink=cpy

For decades, the state’s Judicial Standards Commission has led the work to investigate and recommend discipline of judges when questions arise about their professional conduct. That work, too, was largely conducted in secret until a committee, acting as a sort of grand jury, had determined that there was sufficient evidence against a judge to merit sanction or punishment. Then the charges became public.

A different panel would then conduct a hearing, with any recommendations about punishment beyond a “public reprimand” going to the state Supreme Court. Those hearings were also open to the public.

The commission still plays the role of investigator and conducts hearings about judicial conduct. But the new law keeps it all behind closed doors.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/03/18/3712722/new-nc-law-shrouds-judicial-discipline.html#storylink=cpy

Full Article & Source:
New NC law shrouds judicial discipline process in secrecy

Gainesville Elder Law Attorney Shannon Miller Helps Develop Bill to Protect the Elderly

Gainesville, FL (PRWEB) March 19, 2014 

A new bill developed by Gainesville elder law attorney Shannon Miller and fellow Floridian lawyers will make it much easier to protect elderly and disabled adults from exploitation.

Currently, it is extremely difficult to prosecute elderly exploitation. "Before this year, we had no prosecutions in Alachua County on elder exploitation cases," Miller told The Gainesville Sun. Attorneys must prove deception and intimidation of the victim has taken place, which many victims cannot or will not admit to due to incompetence or embarrassment.

The new bill, however, will make it much easier to prosecute such cases. The presumption of exploitation would apply when someone is not a family member, has known the victim for less than two years, and a transfer of assets has occurred. The bill will allow prosecutors to help protect elderly and disabled adults who have joint bank accounts for convenience. "The presumption of exploitation will really help address some of the deficits that we currently have in the law as it stands," Miller said to GTN News.

No other state has such a presumption in place, making House Bill 409 the first of its kind. "This legislation that is pending is literally groundbreaking," Miller said.

Miller is working hard with fellow elder law attorneys to secure the bill's promising future. The bill has support from Gainesville State Attorney Bill Cervone and legislative committee approval.
Shannon Miller is a Board Certified Specialist in elder law at the Miller Elder Law Firm in Gainesville, Florida. She sits on the Elder Law Certification Committee of the Florida Bar.

For more information, contact Shannon Miller at (352) 379-1900 or visit MillerElderLawFirm.com

Full Article & Source:
Gainesville Elder Law Attorney Shannon Miller Helps Develop Bill to Protect the Elderly

The "Boys" in the Bunkhouse

For more than 30 years, [Clayton Berg] and a few dozen other men with intellectual disabilities — affecting their reasoning and learning — lived in a dot of a place called Atalissa, about 100 miles south of here. Every morning before dawn, they were sent to eviscerate turkeys at a processing plant, in return for food, lodging, the occasional diversion and $65 a month. For more than 30 years.

Their supervisors never received specialized training; never tapped into Iowa’s social service system; never gave the men the choices in life granted by decades of advancement in disability civil rights. Increasingly neglected and abused, the men remained in heartland servitude for most of their adult lives.

This Dickensian story — told here through court records, internal documents and extensive first-time interviews with several of the men — is little known beyond Iowa. But five years after their rescue, it continues to resound in halls of power. Last year the case led to the largest jury verdict in the history of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: $240 million in damages — an award later drastically reduced, yet still regarded as a watershed moment for disability rights in the workplace. In both direct and subtle ways, it has also influenced government initiatives, advocates say, including President Obama’s recent executive order to increase the minimum wage for certain workers.

Overall, the Atalissa case has been a catalyst for change, according to Senator Tom Harkin, Democrat of Iowa, a longtime champion of people with disabilities, who still struggles with what these vulnerable men endured in his home state.

“I hate to see what happened to them,” the senator says. “But, by gosh, something might happen from them.”

Full Article and Source:
The "Boys" in the Bunkhouse