Don’t miss this exclusive interview June 28 at 8p ET!
Source:
Don't Miss Justina Pelletier's Exclusive Interview on "Huckabee" June 28!
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Justina Pelletier to be Interviewed Tonight on "Huckabee"
There’s some good news for one Connecticut teenager who has been away from home for a long time.
Justina Pelletier, 16, was taken from her parents and handed over to Massachusetts DCF in a yearlong dispute over her medical condition. She has finally returned home after a judge earlier this week ruled that she should be with her parents.
Saturday, June 28, Mike Huckabee will sit down with Justina in her first TV interview since being released from DCF custody.
Don’t miss this exclusive interview June 28 at 8p ET!
Source:
Don't Miss Justina Pelletier's Exclusive Interview on "Huckabee" June 28!
Don’t miss this exclusive interview June 28 at 8p ET!
Source:
Don't Miss Justina Pelletier's Exclusive Interview on "Huckabee" June 28!
More on Ohio Attorney/Guardian James Thomas Jr. Sentenced for Theft From Clients/Wards
Visiting Judge Neal Bronson sentenced James Thomas Jr., 38, of Brookville, to 4.5 years in prison and ordered him to pay $208,094.65 in restitution to the victims, on Tuesday, June 17.
Thomas was charged in April with three counts of theft from an elderly person or disabled adult and three counts of falsification after an investigation conducted by the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) found that Thomas took hundreds of thousands of dollars from four victims’ bank accounts between 2007 and 2013.
“While he lived with, he left [the victim] to live without,” said Sarah Michael, the now-guardian of the estate for a victim. “[The victim] has trust issues of all attorneys since the actions of Mr. Thomas, as she believes that all people, including I and the support, are doing the same things to her that Mr. Thomas did,” said Michael. “This Christmas, she was not able to buy gifts for her grandkids because she did not have any extra-allowable funds to do so … she could not personally buy Christmas presents for her grandchildren, but it is doubtful that Mr. Thomas denied that luxury to his step-children.”
Thomas apologized to his victims and said, “none of it was intentional. I love each and every one of you and I always did.
What I did to you was horrible, horrible, there’s no excuse for it; I have no excuse.”
The case was prosecuted by Attorney General Mike DeWine’s Special Prosecutions Section, and investigators with the Preble County Sheriff’s Office assisted in the investigation.
Full Article and Source:
Preble Attorney Sentenced for Theft From Clients
See Also:
Ohio Attorney James Thomas Jr. Sentenced for Theft From the Elderly
Lawyer Mark Mayfield, Charged in Nursing Home Break-In, Commits Suicide
One of the supporters of Mississippi state Sen. Chris McDaniel (R) who was allegedly involved in directing a political blogger to break into the nursing home of Sen. Thad Cochran's (R-MS) wife, has committed suicide.
Mayfield's lawyers confirmed to TPM on Friday that Mayfield had died. One of Mayfield's lawyers, John Reeves, said it was in an apparent suicide.
Mayfield (pictured), an attorney and member of the Central Mississippi Tea Party, was one of the men arrested in connection with the criminal case against political blogger "Constitutional Clayton" Kelly, who allegedly went to the nursing home of Rose Cochran's nursing home to take her photograph to use in an anti-Cochran video. Mayfield and Kelly were supporters of McDaniel.
Full Article and Source:
Lawyer Charged in Cochran Nursing Home Caper Commits Suicide
Mayfield's lawyers confirmed to TPM on Friday that Mayfield had died. One of Mayfield's lawyers, John Reeves, said it was in an apparent suicide.
Mayfield (pictured), an attorney and member of the Central Mississippi Tea Party, was one of the men arrested in connection with the criminal case against political blogger "Constitutional Clayton" Kelly, who allegedly went to the nursing home of Rose Cochran's nursing home to take her photograph to use in an anti-Cochran video. Mayfield and Kelly were supporters of McDaniel. Full Article and Source:
Lawyer Charged in Cochran Nursing Home Caper Commits Suicide
Friday, June 27, 2014
Is APS TAking Advantage of the Elderly? Texas Advocates Say, "Yes"
Don Brannan has spent months in a nursing home for the mentally disabled. He was sent there by Adult Protective Services (APS).
"I want to go home," he told News 8.
Critics say the state agency is exploiting seniors and seizing their assets.
Brannan was injured last year and was admitted to a Fort Worth hospital. Doctors called Adult Protective Services and Brannan, who has no immediate family, was sent to a state-funded home.
In a video, given to News 8 by advocates at the Open Records project, you can hear people screaming in the background at the home.
Russell Fisher is an advocate for the elderly and is with the Open Records project.
"What is most disturbing about where he is right now, is there are some severely mentally-disturbed people there," Fisher said.
In the meantime, APS asked a probate judge to sell Brannan's house, as well as seize his money and all his assets.
"Literally, they set me up with a guardian who's making all my financial decisions, and I don't know what they have done with my money," Brannan said.
On Wednesday at a hearing, state legislators in Austin heard testimony from people all across the state whose loved ones have been put into homes by APS.
Virginia Prichard said her best friend was institutionalized after a gall bladder surgery, and everything was taken from her.
"In my opinion, no state agency should have the right to get someone out of their home and take their bank accounts, their home, and every single thing they've got," she said.
APS wouldn't comment on Brannan's case citing medical privacy laws, but said their mission is to help the elderly who can't help themselves.
Full Article, Video and Source:
Some Claim Adult Protective Services Taking Advantage of the Elderly
Critics say the state agency is exploiting seniors and seizing their assets.
Brannan was injured last year and was admitted to a Fort Worth hospital. Doctors called Adult Protective Services and Brannan, who has no immediate family, was sent to a state-funded home.
In a video, given to News 8 by advocates at the Open Records project, you can hear people screaming in the background at the home.
Russell Fisher is an advocate for the elderly and is with the Open Records project.
"What is most disturbing about where he is right now, is there are some severely mentally-disturbed people there," Fisher said.
In the meantime, APS asked a probate judge to sell Brannan's house, as well as seize his money and all his assets.
"Literally, they set me up with a guardian who's making all my financial decisions, and I don't know what they have done with my money," Brannan said.
On Wednesday at a hearing, state legislators in Austin heard testimony from people all across the state whose loved ones have been put into homes by APS.
Virginia Prichard said her best friend was institutionalized after a gall bladder surgery, and everything was taken from her.
"In my opinion, no state agency should have the right to get someone out of their home and take their bank accounts, their home, and every single thing they've got," she said.
APS wouldn't comment on Brannan's case citing medical privacy laws, but said their mission is to help the elderly who can't help themselves.
Full Article, Video and Source:
Some Claim Adult Protective Services Taking Advantage of the Elderly
Georgia Voices: Stopping Elder Abuse
That’s the best way to send the message such atrocities won’t be tolerated.
Sadly, a 70-year-old former hairdresser in Garden City who suffered horrendous deprivation and physical abuse at the hands of her daughter and the younger woman’s boyfriend in 2012 died two weeks ago today.
The death of Caroline Louise Thomas should encourage the public to keep an eye out for citizens who may be suffering but are afraid or incapable of calling for help.
On Feb. 20, Thomas’ 48-year-old daughter, Maria Wiggins, was sentenced to 20 years in prison (but only six to serve) for cruelty to a person 65 years of age or older.
She also was sentenced to five years for exploitation of an elderly person, although those years will run concurrently with the stiffer sentence.
Wiggins’ 52-year-old boyfriend, Michael Victor Nesmith, received the same sentences for the same charges from Superior Court Judge James Bass Jr.
But since Nesmith was charged as a repeat offender, he will not be eligible for parole.
Chatham County District Attorney Meg Heap has made prosecuting crimes against the elderly a priority, and she should be applauded.
Many seniors are helpless and vulnerable. They are easy targets.
As the population ages, it’s possible that the number of innocent victims could grow unless society fights back.
Caroline Thomas didn’t deserve to be treated this way. No one does. That’s why prosecutors and judges must bring down the hammer to punish such atrocious behavior.
And help deter it.
Source:
Georgia Voices: Stopping Elder Abuse
Judge Mike Maggio Appears Before Ethics Commission
Maggio's name hit headlines after blogger Matt Campbell linked the judge to questionable comments on an online sports forum, including disclosing confidential details of an adoption by celebrity Charlize Theron.
That triggered an investigation by the Arkansas Judicial Discipline Commission. Maggio withdrew from the appeals court race and apologized for a lapse in judgment.
Campbell later highlighted thousands of dollars in campaign contributions made to Maggio's campaign from political action committees that were linked to a nursing home owner who had been a defendant in Maggio's court.
That led to additional investigations by the Judicial Discipline and Arkansas Ethics Commissions.
In March, the daughters of Martha Bull filed paperwork with the Arkansas Judicial Commission. Those papers outlined the timing of thousands of dollars in contributions to Judge Maggio's appeals court campaign. The paperwork triggered a Judicial Discipline investigation, but the Ethics Commission also confirmed it was investigating the donations.
Full Article and Source:
Judge Mike Maggio Appears Before Ethics Commission
Judge Mike Maggio Appears Before Ethics Commission
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Advocates Push for Reform of Adult Guardianship System in Texas
It all started when Denise Tighe passed out at a restaurant
in her North Texas hometown. The 85-year-old was taken to the hospital, deemed
incapable of properly caring for herself and became a ward of the state against
her will.
After she was assigned a guardian in 2011, she was taken to a nursing home 20 miles from her hometown near Fort Worth, which she adamantly protested, and her home and a lifetime of jewelry and antiques were put up for sale. She died in January with friends and family questioning whether the state did her more harm than good.
Now one of Tighe’s friends, Virginia Pritchett, is pointing to what happened to Tighe as an example of a broken adult guardianship system in Texas.
Pritchett is one of about two dozen advocates who gave testimony to the state Sunset Advisory Commission on Wednesday hoping to spur change. They say the guardianship process is stripping the rights from competent people and dragging them through a court system that requires them to spend thousands to protect their independence.
The push has gained momentum since the last legislative session when only a handful of critics lobbied with little success. Since then, a coalition of disability and elderly groups from across the state has banded together to develop and refine a set of proposals for the next session — calling for guardianships to be the last option and for more independence for wards of the state.
These elderly people are being warehoused in nursing homes, and these
court-appointed attorneys are going through all their money in court hearings
that the elderly people don’t even know is occurring,” said Debby Valdez with
the San-Antonio based Guardianship Reform Advocates For The Disabled & Elderly.
Adult guardianship cases are lawsuits designed to ensure vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities are not abused, neglected or exploited. A probate court must determine whether people are competent enough to keep themselves safe and healthy. If the answer is no, the judge can appoint a guardian to make medical, financial and other decisions for them.
Lawyers and judges have said that the system is protecting people and that proposed changes would leave people more vulnerable and throw unnecessary roadblocks into the process.
Texas has about 46,000 people in guardianship, according to the state. Between September 2011 and August 2012, more than 4,500 adult guardianship petitions were filed in probate courts across the state. Of those, 206 were filed in Travis County.
Advocates say that guardianship should be the last option for proposed wards and supported decision-making should be the alternative. This means allowing people with limited disabilities to hire supporters whose jobs are strictly to give information so they can make decisions for themselves.
“Even though it seems counterintuitive, not all people under guardianship are totally unable to make decisions,” said Bob Kafka with the Austin-based group Guardianship Reform and Supported Decision Making.
Supported decision-making has also garnered the support of former Texas Health and Human Services Commissioner Tom Suehs.
A few years ago, the Travis County probate court appointed Suehs’ mother-in-law a guardian ad litem, whom she paid about $300 an hour. She also hired her own attorney to fight the process.
After $30,000 in court fees, Suehs’ mother-in-law settled the dispute in mediation and she got her independence back.
“Some people have started using guardianship as an easy way out, to try to attack and resolve family disputes when they don’t need to,” Suehs said. “My own personal belief is that over the last five or six years, lawyers are creating an industry here."
Suehs worked with lawmakers in the last legislative session for guardianship reform, but some laws passed that did more harm than good, according to advocates. The law that has garnered the most criticism gives guardians the authority to decide where a ward can live and peace officers must enforce it.
“It gives the guardian the authority to call the police and say, ‘I’ve got a court order and I can remove the little old lady from her house,’” Valdez said.
Advocates want people under guardianship to have the ability to decide where to live. And guardians should be forced to visit with their wards monthly and submit reports that are reviewed by the court, advocates say.
“Every alternative must be explored before even thinking about taking away someone’s civil rights,” Kafka said.
Source:
Advocates Push for Reform of Adult Guardianship System in Texas
LISTEN and WATCH the archive of the Sunset Advisory Commission. Note: fast forward to 9:27.00
After she was assigned a guardian in 2011, she was taken to a nursing home 20 miles from her hometown near Fort Worth, which she adamantly protested, and her home and a lifetime of jewelry and antiques were put up for sale. She died in January with friends and family questioning whether the state did her more harm than good.
Now one of Tighe’s friends, Virginia Pritchett, is pointing to what happened to Tighe as an example of a broken adult guardianship system in Texas.
Pritchett is one of about two dozen advocates who gave testimony to the state Sunset Advisory Commission on Wednesday hoping to spur change. They say the guardianship process is stripping the rights from competent people and dragging them through a court system that requires them to spend thousands to protect their independence.
The push has gained momentum since the last legislative session when only a handful of critics lobbied with little success. Since then, a coalition of disability and elderly groups from across the state has banded together to develop and refine a set of proposals for the next session — calling for guardianships to be the last option and for more independence for wards of the state.
These elderly people are being warehoused in nursing homes, and these
court-appointed attorneys are going through all their money in court hearings
that the elderly people don’t even know is occurring,” said Debby Valdez with
the San-Antonio based Guardianship Reform Advocates For The Disabled & Elderly.Adult guardianship cases are lawsuits designed to ensure vulnerable seniors and people with disabilities are not abused, neglected or exploited. A probate court must determine whether people are competent enough to keep themselves safe and healthy. If the answer is no, the judge can appoint a guardian to make medical, financial and other decisions for them.
Lawyers and judges have said that the system is protecting people and that proposed changes would leave people more vulnerable and throw unnecessary roadblocks into the process.
Texas has about 46,000 people in guardianship, according to the state. Between September 2011 and August 2012, more than 4,500 adult guardianship petitions were filed in probate courts across the state. Of those, 206 were filed in Travis County.
Advocates say that guardianship should be the last option for proposed wards and supported decision-making should be the alternative. This means allowing people with limited disabilities to hire supporters whose jobs are strictly to give information so they can make decisions for themselves.
“Even though it seems counterintuitive, not all people under guardianship are totally unable to make decisions,” said Bob Kafka with the Austin-based group Guardianship Reform and Supported Decision Making.
Supported decision-making has also garnered the support of former Texas Health and Human Services Commissioner Tom Suehs.
A few years ago, the Travis County probate court appointed Suehs’ mother-in-law a guardian ad litem, whom she paid about $300 an hour. She also hired her own attorney to fight the process.
After $30,000 in court fees, Suehs’ mother-in-law settled the dispute in mediation and she got her independence back.
“Some people have started using guardianship as an easy way out, to try to attack and resolve family disputes when they don’t need to,” Suehs said. “My own personal belief is that over the last five or six years, lawyers are creating an industry here."
Suehs worked with lawmakers in the last legislative session for guardianship reform, but some laws passed that did more harm than good, according to advocates. The law that has garnered the most criticism gives guardians the authority to decide where a ward can live and peace officers must enforce it.
“It gives the guardian the authority to call the police and say, ‘I’ve got a court order and I can remove the little old lady from her house,’” Valdez said.
Advocates want people under guardianship to have the ability to decide where to live. And guardians should be forced to visit with their wards monthly and submit reports that are reviewed by the court, advocates say.
“Every alternative must be explored before even thinking about taking away someone’s civil rights,” Kafka said.
Source:
Advocates Push for Reform of Adult Guardianship System in Texas
LISTEN and WATCH the archive of the Sunset Advisory Commission. Note: fast forward to 9:27.00
The Legal Handbook for Tennessee Seniors, 2014 Edition
The TBA Public Education Committee has updated The Legal Handbook for Tennessee Seniors for 2014. The updated Handbook contains practical information on a wide range of topics, including issues such as applying for Social Security benefits, long-term care considerations and estate planning, as well as completely new sections addressing online security and new health care legislation.
An updated list of resources relevant for Tennessee Seniors is also included. Copies are available for download or by printed form.
Source:
2014 Legal Handbook for Tennessee Seniors
Tennessee State Senator Wants Judicial Discipline Panel to Investigate Nashville Judges
The Oak Ridge Republican said he was inspired to send a letter to the BJC by newspaper reports of General Sessions Judge Casey Moreland moving to promptly release Nashville contractor David Chase when Chase was charged with assaulting his girlfriend, whereupon Chase returned to the woman’s home and brutally beat her again, authorities allege.
Current state law allows a judge to order someone charged with domestic violence to spend 12 hours in jail as a “cooling off” period before release. But Moreland waived the requirement at the request of Chase’s attorney, Brian Lewis. Another judge, Night Commissioner Thomas Nelson, waived the 12-hour rule after Chase’s second arrest.
The Tennessean reported that Lewis and his wife had donated $3,000 to Moreland’s re-election campaign last November. Moreland also told the newspaper the two were close friends and had vacationed together.
Full Article and Source:
Senator Wants Judicial Discipline Panel to Investigate Nashville Judges
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)