NCEA Newsfeed 11/22/13

Newsfeed – Friday, November 22, 2013

The newsfeed includes articles and stories related to abuse of elders and adults with disabilities.  Articles related to elders appear in the top half of the newsfeed.  Articles related to abuse of adults with disabilities appear towards the bottom.  To subscribe to the NCEA listserv, please send an email with your name, occupation, your organization/agency name, city and state, and a statement about your professional interest or expertise in elder abuse to NCEA@UCI.edu.  Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter!

 

Did you know? A calendar of upcoming elder abuse and neglect events and funding opportunities can be found at the bottom of the newsfeed.

 

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ELDER ABUSE NEWSFEED



           NATIONAL,  Elizabeth Warren, November 21, 2013

Senators Warren, Rubio propose stronger financial protections for veterans

http://www.warren.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=294

United States Senators Elizabeth Warren and Marco Rubio today introduced a bipartisan amendment to the  National Defense Authorization Act that would help protect older veterans from financial scams. The legislation directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to work with other federal agencies and states to crack down on scam artists who are diverting federal funds intended to support low-income older veterans.

 

NATIONAL, Pacific Standard, November 20, 2013

The horrible condition of assisted living facilities across America

http://www.psmag.com/health/horrible-condition-assisted-living-facilities-across-america-70313/

An examination of the multibillion-dollar industry reveals a mishmash of minimal state regulation and no involvement by federal officials, the article states.  Despite the growing demands on care in assisted living, most states set the entry bar low for facility workers, requiring little in the way of education or qualifications.  Also, the interval between having an outside inspections of the assisted living facility can be five years in some states, and in 6 states there is no requirement for regular inspections at all.   

 

CALIFORNIA (Placerville), News 10 ABC, November 20, 2013

Attorney general won’t seek new trial in Placerville elder abuse case

http://www.news10.net/news/article/263818/2/Attorney-General-wont-seek-new-trial-in-Placerville-elder-abuse-case  

California's attorney general has declined to seek a new trial against the former head nurse at a senior care facility who was accused of felony elderly abuse in the death of an Alzheimer's patient.  The Sacramento Bee reports state officials said this week they won't seek another trial against Donna Darlene Palmer after an El Dorado County judge declared a mistrial when a jury failed to reach a verdict.

 

CALIFORNIA (Santa Cruz), Good Times, November 19, 2013

Protecting our elders

http://www.gtweekly.com/index.php/santa-cruz-news/santa-cruz-local-news/5210-protecting-our-elders.html

One alarming trend found in the 2013 CAP report of Santa Cruz County is a nearly 20 percent increase in investigated cases of elder abuse from 2006 to 2012.  Kari Beuerman, division director of Adult and Long Term Care Services, states that financial abuse is one of the most prominent types of abuse in the county, and comprises 34 percent of the total reported cases that come in to APS.

 

CALIFORNIA (Ventura County), Camarillo Acorn, November 22, 2013

Caretaker charged with stealing from elderly clients

http://www.thecamarilloacorn.com/news/2013-11-22/Police/Caretaker_charged_with_stealing_from_elderly_clien.html

A Northridge woman suspected of stealing about $30,000 worth of property from two elderly couples in Thousand Oaks and Camarillo while working as their caretaker pleaded not guilty to elder abuse charges Tuesday, Ventura County court records show.  Police allege that the thefts occurred between April and September.

 

FLORIDA (St. Johns County), Jacksonville, November 21, 2013

73-year-old St. Johns man swindled; Jacksonville daughter arrested

http://jacksonville.com/breaking-news/2013-11-21/story/73-year-old-st-johns-mans-swindled-jacksonville-daughter-arrested

A 52-year-old Jacksonville woman was charged with exploitation of the elderly Wednesday after St. Johns County deputies said she took about $29,000 from her father, according to the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office.

 

FLORIDA (Weston), The Star, November 22, 2013

Retirement home that neglected residents loses its license

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2013/11/22/retirement_home_that_neglected_residents_loses_its_licence.html#

A Weston retirement home that abused and neglected several of its residents, many of whom suffer from dementia, has lost its operating license.  The decision comes three years after an undercover Star reporter exposed the horrid conditions and profound neglect endured by the 18 residents living at In Touch Retirement in the Weston Rd. and Lawrence Ave. area.

 

IDAHO (Nampa), Idaho Press-Tribune, November 22, 2013

Nampa woman charged with financial exploitation

http://www.idahopress.com/members/nampa-woman-charged-with-financial-exploitation/article_03834c0e-5341-11e3-9b38-001a4bcf887a.html

A 37-year-old woman faces a felony charge of exploitation of a vulnerable adult for allegedly stealing more than $50,000 over a period of two years from her grandmother, Nampa Police Sgt. Tim Randall said in his statement.

 

ILLINOIS (East Moline), Quad-City Times, November 22, 2013

State investigates EM nursing home

http://qctimes.com/news/local/state-investigates-em-nursing-home/article_0d303366-d61e-5ace-9a02-df7815d0b43c.html

An East Moline nursing home that is closing its doors is under investigation by the Illinois Department of Public Health, a spokeswoman said Thursday.  Arnold said the health department began its investigation Wednesday after receiving a complaint against the nursing home. 

 

INDIANA (Indianapolis), INDY STAR, November 22, 2013

88-year-old woman with dementia found beaten to death

http://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2013/11/22/88-year-old-woman-with-dementia-found-beaten-to-death/3676315/

Indianapolis police are investigating the Eastside beating death of an 88-year-old woman with dementia.  The woman was found at her home Tuesday afternoon in the 800 block of North Shortridge Road with several “blunt force trauma injuries to the head,” according to a Marion County coroner’s report. Her death was ruled a homicide.

 

MAINE (Harrington), WLBZ2, November 22, 2013

Harrington standoff ends with two arrests

http://www.wlbz2.com/news/article/263655/3/Maine-state-police-dispute-turns-into-standoff

Two men are under arrest after a six hour standoff in the Washington county town of Harrington.  State police say the son and his father are charged with preventing authorities from taking the 84-year-old wife and mother for medical treatment.

 

MISSISSIPPI (Stone County), Sun Herald, November 21, 2013

Care home residents in Stone County relocated; couple face felony charges

http://www.sunherald.com/2013/11/21/5135666/personal-care-homes-shut-down.html 

Authorities, citing deplorable conditions at a personal care home in Stone County, have helped find new housing for the home's 12 residents. The couple who ran the home is accused of neglect and of operating it illegally. A second home the couple ran, in Wiggins, also was shut down and its 16 residents removed.

 

MISSOURI (Forsyth), Branson Tri-Lakes News, November 19, 2013

Man charged with elder abuse, gun violation

http://bransontrilakesnews.com/news/article_1c0869f0-515a-11e3-a2bf-0019bb2963f4.html  

A Branson man is in jail facing charges of elder abuse and for being a convicted felon in possession of more than two dozen guns.

 

TENNESSEE (Hamilton County), News Channel 9, November 21, 2013

Elder abuse: growing problem in Hamilton County

http://www.newschannel9.com/news/top-stories/stories/elder-abuse-growing-problem-hamilton-county-8003.shtml

When an older adult’s wife passed away three years ago, his granddaughter and her husband moved in to supposedly to take care of the man.  He found out when he went to the bank one day that his account was cleared out, and the safe was empty except a roll of quarters.  He then discovered that over the past year his granddaughter and her husband had been buying expensive cars, TV's, computers, hundreds of lottery tickets, and taking lavish trips.

 

INTERNATIONAL (United Kingdom), Express), November 21, 2013

Daughter stole life savings of dementia mum leaving nothing left to pay for funeral

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/444201/Daughter-stole-life-savings-of-dementia-mum-leaving-nothing-left-to-pay-for-funeral

A 59-year-old daughter treated herself to lavish shopping sprees and expensive holidays – including a trip to Australia – while her 81-year-old mother lay in a care home suffering with dementia.  Over three years, the daughter squandered the huge sum that had been set aside for her mother’s residential care, and on the day the mother died, the daughter cleared out her bank account of the remaining £22,000.

  

ABUSE OF ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES

 

FLORIDA (Bradenton), Bradenton Herald, November 21, 2013

Three charged in attack at Bradenton Riverwalk skate park now face life in prison

http://www.bradenton.com/2013/11/21/4843392/three-charged-in-attack-at-bradenton.html 

The three men charged with beating a disabled man at the Bradenton Riverwalk Skate Park earlier this month now face the possibility of life in prison.  The charge now alleges that assault was also a hate crime against the victim, making the charge a life felony, not a third-degree felony as filed by Bradenton police. 

 

MASSACHUSETTS, My Fox Boston, November 21, 2013

Abuse, sexual harassment alleged at center for disabled

http://www.myfoxboston.com/story/24039441/abuse-sexual-harassment-alleged-at-center-for-disabled

A former employee of an organization that provides services for adults with disabilities filed a complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, which in April found probable cause that the woman was harassed by her boss at work.  She also filed multiple complaints against her boss with the state's Disabled Persons Protection Commission alleging abuse and retaliation.  "It seems to be that the place is very poorly run and very poorly managed and there is a supervisor there who was abusing clients and sexually harassing [my client]”, attorney Jessica Hedges said.

 

MASSACHUSETTS (Somerset), McCreary County Record, November 20, 2013

Two Pine Knot men indicted in Oakwood investigation

http://www.mccrearyrecord.com/local/x1050746202/Two-Pine-Knot-men-indicted-in-Oakwood-investigation 

Attorney General Jack Conway announced Monday that three former employees of Oakwood Manor in Somerset have been indicted on felony charges of abuse and neglect by a Pulaski County grand jury.  One of the employees was re-arrested on Monday afternoon and at press time was lodged in the Pulaski County Detention Center. He is scheduled to appear in Pulaski Circuit Court on November 26.

 

NEVADA (Las Vegas), 8 News Now, November 21, 2013

I-Team: Abuse allegations lead to changes

http://www.8newsnow.com/story/24024467/desert-regional-center-changes-following-investigations-of-abuse

An I-Team investigation and congressional action have created changes in how Nevada treats mentally disabled adults.  In February, the I-Team looked into claims of patients with broken teeth, blackened eyes and deep bruising.  Police and DRC officials investigated, but could not find enough evidence to move forward. After the stories of alleged abuse were aired on channel 8, Congresswoman Dina Titus called for an independent review.

 

INTERNATIONAL (Northern Ireland), BBC News, November 22, 2013

Disabled woman held captive for ten years, court told

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-25055936

A malnourished woman with learning disabilities was allegedly raped repeatedly and imprisoned for almost a decade, the High Court has heard.  The man, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, faces charges of rape, false imprisonment and sexual activity with a person with a mental disorder. 

   

RELATED ISSUES  

 

OHIO (Newark), The Columbus Dispatch, November 20, 2013

Body found along lake of Newark man showing dementia

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/11/20/mans-body-found-along-lake.html

The body of a Newark man who was last seen on Monday morning was found yesterday afternoon by a group of teenagers walking home from school.  Newark police had searched for the man through most of Monday night and into yesterday, after he was reported missing by his brother on Monday morning. The 60-year-old man, who lived alone, was admitted to Licking Memorial Hospital on Sunday with symptoms of dementia.  

 

OKLAHOMA (Stillwater), News Channel 4, November 21, 2013

UPDATED: Stillwater police look to public for help locating missing person

http://kfor.com/2013/11/21/stillwater-police-look-to-public-for-help-locating-missing-person/ 

The Stillwater Police Department are asking for the public’s help in locating 21-year old Brent Lee Stout.  Police tell us Stout is a developmentally disabled adult, who left a group home facility in Stillwater.

 

TEXAS (Spring), KHOU, November 19, 2013

Houston man with dementia remains missing after 2 weeks

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Houston-man-with-dementia-remains-missing-after-2-weeks-232584621.html 

Nearly two and a half weeks have passed since a 68-year-old man disappeared, and his daughter is demanding answers from the home where he vanished from.  The man, who suffers from dementia and other medical conditions, had been living in the house located on Country Walk Drive in Spring for more than a month. 

 

WEST VIRGINIA (Belington), National Legal and Policy Center, November 21, 2013

Ombudsman for West Virginia legal services affiliate sentenced

http://nlpc.org/stories/2013/11/21/ombudsman-west-virginia-legal-services-affiliate-sentenced 

On July 2, Phillips, an ombudsman for Legal Aid of West Virginia, a Legal Services Corp.-affiliated nonprofit group, received a 10-month sentence in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia for obtaining false reimbursements.  during January 2007-May 2010 submitted false mileage claims and time sheets to obtain more than $90,000 from the federally-funded Long-Term Care Ombudsman Fund in connection with her work for Legal Aid of West Virginia.

 

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 Funding Opportunities:   

  • December 1, 2013
    • Applications for noncash support from the Service Grants Program, administered by the Taproot Foundation. Grants consist of technical assistance offered by business professionals in four areas: information technology, leadership development and strategic human resources, marketing, and strategy management.  Applicants must be based in the Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington metropolitan areas.
    • Contact: Allie Hallock, Taproot Foundation, 40 Worth Street, Suite 601, New York, N.Y. 10013; (212) 257-7642; allie@taprootfoundation.org; http://www.taprootfoundation.org/getprobono/get-service-grant
  • December 17, 2013
    • Letters of intent to apply for grants from the VNA Foundation. Grants will support nonprofit organizations for home and community-based health care and health services that focus on the needs of disadvantaged people in the metropolitan Chicago area. The foundation awards program, operating, and capital grants in support of home health-care services, community and school-based services, primary care and chronic disease management, and health promotion.
    • For more information contact VNA Foundation, 20 North Wacker Drive, Suite 3118, Chicago, Ill. 60606; (312) 214-1521; http://vnafoundation.net/guidelinesprocedures
  • December 22, 2013
    • Nominations for the Roth Award from the Mary Byron Project for programs that demonstrate promise in ending the generational cycle of domestic violence. A cash award of $10,000 will be given to a program that focuses on disadvantaged people. Such a program provides services to those who are identified as such based on characteristics that include age, race, ethnicity, gender, faith, disabilities, low socio-economic status, non-English speaking, sexual preference, and victims from suburban areas who traditionally do not know how to avail themselves of services or who are too ashamed to find them.
    • Find more information by contacting Kathy Paulin, Mary Byron Project, 10401 Linn Station Road, Louisville, Ky. 40223; (502) 992-3444; kathypaulin@marybyronproject.org; http://marybyronproject.org/index.php/our-work/the-roth-award
  • January 10, 2014
    • Applications for grants from the Needmor Fund, which support community organizing projects that encourage the efforts of people who are working together for justice and the common good; encourage involvement in community affairs by people whose participation has been systematically denied; and foster the active participation of all citizens in crafting values and policies that are more equitable.
    • Contact: Needmor Fund, 42 South Saint Clair Street, Toledo, Ohio 43604; (419) 255-5560; http://www.needmorfund.org/procedures.htm

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 Upcoming Elder Abuse Conferences/Training Events (in chronological order):

  

·    The New York City JASA Elder Abuse Training Institute has new training classes for Fall 2013.  For more details and registration information click here: http://jasa.org/sites/default/files/NextAct_Catalog_Final_8.9.13.pdf Contact Martha Pollack for further questions: 718-286-1540 or mpollack@jasa.org

·    The 30th Annual Adult Protective Services Conference will be held in San Antonio, Texas from November 19-22, 2013. For more information: https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Adult_Protection/Adult_Protective_Services_Conference/

·    The 2nd Annual National Elder Abuse Symposium, hosted by the California District Attorneys Association, will be held at the Hyatt Regency Orange County in Anaheim, California on December 3-6, 2013. Register here: http://www.cdaa.org/training/seminar-conference-registration?regevent_action=register&event_id=154

·    The 3rd World Congress on Adult Guardianship will be convened on May 28-30, 2014 in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area. It is sponsored by the National Guardianship Network in affiliation with the International Guardianship Network. The theme of the conference is, “Promising Practices to Ensure Excellence in Guardianship Around the World.” Proposals for presentations are due July 31.  See http://worldcongressguardianship.org  

 

An archived collection of previous newsfeeds is available here:  http://ncea.posthaven.com/

 

National Center on Elder Abuse
Center of Excellence on Elder Abuse & Neglect
University of California, Irvine
Program in Geriatrics
101 The City Drive South
Orange, CA 92868

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