Newsfeed – Friday, March 28, 2014
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! An archived collection of previous newsfeeds is available here: http://ncea.posthaven.com/
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
ARIZONA (Yavapai County), The Bugle, March 25, 2014
90-year-old couple victims of fraud
http://www.cvbugle.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&SubsectionID=1&ArticleID=41911
On March 15, The Yavapai County Sheriff's Office deputies were dispatched to a married couple in Congress, on a report they were involved in a fraud. The husband and wife, both in their 90s, were in good health but readily admitted to deputies they had been "taken advantage of" resulting in loss of several thousand dollars.
CONNECTICUT (Newington), New Britain Herald: The Newington Town Crier, March 26, 2014
Newington legislators present new plan to address senior scams
Sen. Paul Doyle and State Rep. Sandy Nafis have put forth new legislation to safeguard seniors against common scams and provide transparency, protection and accountability. One bill would raise penalties for business non-compliance of unsolicited phone intrusions and include text-messaging in the current Do Not Call law. It would also increase consumers’ awareness of how to make complaints of violations on phone bills.
FLORIDA (Boynton Beach), Sun Sentinel, March 27, 2014
Man defrauds older women out of more than $280K, police say
A Boynton Beach man defrauded two older Delray Beach women out of more than $250,000 by writing false checks and then cashing them, police say. Roger Lavoie, 60, was arrested Wednesday for writing checks from the accounts of the women, who hired him as a financial adviser, and cashing the checks for his own gain.
GEORGIA (Athens-Clarke County), Online Athens: Athens Banner-Herald, March 27, 2014
Authorities arrest one of Athens' 'Most Wanted'
http://onlineathens.com/local-news/2014-03-26/authorities-arrest-one-athens-most-wanted
Authorities on Tuesday arrested a man who had been on the Athens-Clarke County Police Department’s “Most Wanted” list for his alleged involvement in a series of crimes that include theft, fraud and elder abuse. Brudon was placed on the police department’s “Most Wanted” list in August 2012 after he jumped bail.
IOWA, Des Moines Register, March 25, 2014
House approves bill creating new crime for financial exploitation of older Iowans
The Iowa House has approved the creation of a new crime of financial exploitation of a vulnerable elder in a scaled back version of elder-abuse legislation that previously passed the state Senate. The House version of Senate File 2239 makes financially exploiting vulnerable adults who are age 65 or older and unable to protect themselves a crime ranging from a simple misdemeanor up to a class C felony punishable by 10 years in prison. The penalty would depend on the dollar value of the exploitation.
KENTUCKY (Frankfort), 10 TV, March 25, 2014
House OKs bill to form adult protection registry
http://www.10tv.com/content/stories/apexchange/2014/03/25/ky-xgr--adult-abuse.html
A bill aimed at creating an adult protection registry in Kentucky has passed the state House. The registry would list people found to have abused, neglected or exploited vulnerable adults.
MICHIGAN, Insurance News Net, March 27, 2014
Senate (Special Committee on) Aging Committee Hearing
Bettie Hughes from The Senior Alliance Area Agency on Aging 1-C spoke to committee members and senators about first hand experiences with detecting and reporting Medicare fraud. She asked them to do what they could to “give the Medicare program better tools to fight health care fraud.”
NEW HAMPSHIRE (Portsmouth), Seacoast Online, March 26, 2014
Police officer named heir disputed dementia diagnosis
http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20140326-NEWS-403260376
The same day Geraldine Webber was diagnosed at the local hospital as having mild dementia and being in need of a guardian, a police officer now accused of financially exploiting her radioed police headquarters to say that Webber "does not have dementia." The officer, Sgt. Aaron Goodwin, is the primary beneficiary of Webber's estate with an estimated value of $2 million. Her estate is being contested in the county probate court by multiple parties who allege Webber was incompetent when she endorsed a new will and trust to largely benefit Goodwin and that she was unduly influenced by him.
NEW JERSEY (Atlantic County), Press of Atlantic City, March 25, 2014
Atlantic County surrogate reviewing court files after guardian accused of stealing millions
The Atlantic County Surrogate’s Office is looking into its records after a former court-appointed guardian was charged with stealing millions from seniors. So far, the Attorney General’s Office has said 10 people in their 80s and 90s were robbed by Lieberman with the help of former Atlantic County Adult Protective Services worker.
NEW JERSEY (Lodi), Cliff View Pilot, March 26, 2014
Mother, 90, in elder abuse case against Lodi fire marshal dies
http://cliffviewpilot.com/mother-90-in-elder-abuse-case-against-lodi-fire-marshal-dies/
A 90-year-old Lodi woman who Bergen County authorities said was the victim of elder abuse at the hands of her son died yesterday, a little over a year after the incident. An indictment returned by a grand jury in Hackensack charges the 58-year-old son with elder abuse and aggravated assault “for attempted serious bodily injury with indifference to the value of human life.”
OHIO (Lucas County), The Blade, March 26, 2014
Health worker guilty of bilking a senior client
http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2014/03/26/Health-worker-guilty-of-bilking-a-senior-client.html
A home health aide was found guilty Tuesday of befriending an older patient and convincing him to write her checks for thousands of dollars. Ammie Carmona, 37, of 1711 Kelsey Ave. entered Alford pleas before Lucas County Common Pleas Judge James Bates to theft from an elderly or disabled adult and Medicaid eligibility fraud. She faces up to three years in prison at sentencing May 6.
OKLAHOMA (Tulsa), FOX 23, March 25, 2014
Sexual assault by a caretaker reported by patient at Autumn Leaves Memory Care Assisted Living Facility
A Claremore man is now behind bars, charged with two counts of first-degree rape. Police said a resident of the Autumn Leaves Memory Care Assisted Living Facility told a family member that her 61-year-old caretaker raped her.
PENNSYLVANIA (Harrisburg), WSIL TV 3 abc, March 26, 2014
Harrisburg Woman Pleads Guilty to Identity Theft
http://www.wsiltv.com/news/local/Harrisburg-Woman-Pleads-Guilty-to-Identity-Theft-252495901.html
A Harrisburg woman has pleaded guilty to stealing the identity of a senior citizen in her care. Kimberly Ital, 46, pleaded guilty Tuesday to three counts of aggravated identity theft and one count of theft. A second theft charge and one count of financial exploitation of the elderly were dismissed.
PENNSYLVANIA (Newport Township), WNEP 16 The News Station, March 25, 2014
Nursing Home Employee Charged with Assault
http://wnep.com/2014/03/25/nursing-home-employee-charged-with-assault/
A person who was responsible for the care of an elderly patient is now charged with abuse in Luzerne County. The investigation into this case began last year. The patient told police she had a fight with the caretaker and that the woman had grabbed her arms and bruised her. She also said that the caretaker had covered her face with a pillow, took one of her dolls, and left.
INTERNATIONAL (Ireland), Independent.ie, March 27, 2014
Care worker appeals dismissal for taking newspaper from patient (93)
A nursing home care worker was fired after he upset a 93-year-old dementia patient by taking her newspaper, allegedly to read on his break, a tribunal has heard. Mr. Doyle told the tribunal, chaired by Peter J O'Leary, that the woman became "quite agitated" when the newspaper was taken from her and "pulled it back towards her" but nonetheless Mr. Hogan then "took the newspaper and went on his break".
ABUSE OF ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES
FLORIDA (Bay County), WJHG News Channel 7, March 27, 2014
Two charged with abuse of disabled adult
http://www.wjhg.com/home/headlines/Two-Charged-of--252557261.html
Panama City Police and State authorities are investigating a possible case of neglect involving at least 1 disabled person, maybe more. Officers arrested two people early Monday morning, after finding their home in deplorable condition.
NORTH DAKOTA (Bismarck), March 27, 2014
Woman Accused of Scamming Man with Brain Injury
http://www.drgnews.com/2014/03/27/woman-accused-scamming-man-brain-injury/
A Cannon Ball, N.D. woman is accused of taking advantage of a man with a brain injury after he won money at a casino. Fifty-three-year-old Jeanette Blackcloud is charged with felony exploitation of a vulnerable adult, and a warrant has been issued for her arrest.
OHIO (Euclid), 3 WKYC, March 26, 2014
State may not renew license for special needs home
The Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities fired off a letter to the Rose-Mary Center in Euclid informing administrators that the center's license should not be renewed. The proposed action comes just a day after the Investigator Tom Meyer aired a second report detailing alleged abuse and substandard care at the facility.
OHIO (Cleveland), Cleveland, March 26, 2014
Rose-Mary Center, focus of state examination, has been cited numerous times in the past, records show
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2014/03/rose-mary_center_focus_of_stat.html
The Rose-Mary Center, a care facility in Euclid for children and adults with functional disabilities that is under state investigation, has been cited numerous times in the past two years for the way it documented and monitored issues involving its residents, records show. The state is examining whether to renew the Rose-Mary Center’s license. Earlier this month, it suspended the facility from accepting new residents.
TENNESSEE (Clay County), The Tennessean, March 27, 2014
Ex-conservator's control over couple fed 'evil desires'
Citing "the horrific abuse of power and misuse of trust by a court-appointed conservator," a federal judge in Nashville has awarded nearly $700,000 to a mentally disabled Clay County couple victimized by sexual and financial abuse for more than six years. In a 12-page order issued Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Kevin H. Sharp ordered Walter M. Strong of Celina to reimburse the couple for money he misappropriated and to pay damages to the wife for sexual battery charges.
TEXAS, KLTV 7, March 26, 2014
E. Texas woman pleads guilty to starving disabled daughter
http://www.kltv.com/story/25082488/e-texas-woman-pleads-guilty-to-starving-disabled-daughter
On Wednesday, a trial for a woman accused of neglecting her severely disabled daughter took an unexpected twist when she changed her plea to guilty. Irma Espinoza, 52, of Athens stopped the jury trial and changed her plea of not guilty to guilty after one day of graphic testimony which depicted the long-term chronic neglect of her 17-year-old severely disabled daughter. The girl weighed only 29 pounds when investigators from Adult Protective Services and the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office became aware of her condition.
INTERNATIONAL (United Kingdom), Gazette, March 26, 2014
Serious case review into Dursley care worker rapist Colin Stokes
A SERIOUS case review is being launched into how a Dursley rapist was able to prey upon vulnerable women. Care worker Colin Stokes, 48, was handed a 20-year sentence at Gloucester Crown Court last Thursday. He had admitted raping three vulnerable women aged 32, 50 and 52 – all of whom have severe physical and mental disabilities – between January 2012 and April 2013.
RELATED ISSUES
NATIONAL, PR Newswire, March 26, 2014
Millions of Disabled and Poor Americans Encounter Discrimination When They Face Mental or Addictive Disorders, Says NAPHS
Mental illnesses are the leading cause of disability and contribute to premature death, but millions of Americans face discrimination when they most need help, according to the National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems (NAPHS). NAPHS President and CEO Mark Covall detailed the challenges in a letter submitted today for the record to the U.S. House of Representatives' Energy and Commerce Oversight Committee hearing on "Where Have All the Patients Gone? Examining the Psychiatric Bed Shortage."
CALIFORNIA (Santa Ana), CBS Los Angeles, March 25, 2014
Santa Ana Police Seek Public’s Help In Locating Missing Man With Dementia
Police are seeking the public’s help in finding an 88-year-old man with dementia who went missing from his Santa Ana home. Anyone with information was asked to contact authorities.
CALIFORNIA (Spring Valley), KUSI News, March 26, 2014
Alzheimer's, dementia-diagnosed woman missing in Spring Valley
http://www.kusi.com/story/25085623/alzheimers-and-dementia-diagnosed-woman-missing-in-spring-valley
A 73-year-old woman diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and dementia went missing from her home in Spring Valley Wednesday. If you ask the woman her age, she will smile and say, "Sweet 16."
TEXAS, My FOX Dallas-Fort Worth, March 26, 2014
Elderly Mineral Wells woman fights state for independence
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/story/25084121/elderly-mineral-wells-woman-fights-state-for-independence
An 85-year-old woman who suffers from Alzheimer's and dementia was placed in a nursing home by Adult Protective Services after she was sick and went to the doctor in 2011. The article states that the woman wants her independence and says she has a right to stay in her own home with the help of a caregiver.
VERMONT, VT Digger, March 26, 2014
Four charged with Medicaid fraud
http://vtdigger.org/2014/03/27/four-charged-medicaid-fraud/
Four individuals enrolled as either caregivers or employers-of-record in Vermont’s Medicaid-funded Home and Community Based (HCBS) or Personal Care programs were separately arraigned yesterday in Vermont Superior Court for Windsor County on felony counts of Medicaid Fraud for allegedly billing for care to children and vulnerable adults that was not provided. Collectively, these individuals are alleged to have submitted thirty-four fraudulent timesheets for almost two thousand hours of care that was not rendered, resulting in overpayments by the Vermont Medicaid program of approximately $18,000.
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Upcoming Elder Abuse Conferences/Training Events (in chronological order):
- 14th Annual International Family Justice Conference “The Root of All Crime” is April 2-4, 2014 in San Diego, CA. The conference will include training and interactive peer to peer discussions on issues related to the handling of domestic violence, child abuse, sexual assault, elder abuse and stalking cases with special focus on law enforcement response, criminal prosecution, civil legal assistance, and advocacy. For more information click here: https://www.regonline.com/builder/site/default.aspx?EventID=1231094
· A Webinar on “Nursing Home Admissions Agreements: A Discussion of the Unfair Terms in the Agreements Presented to Elders on Entering a Nursing Home” will be held Wednesday, Apr 2, 2014 2pm EDT. This free webinar is part of a series of National Elder Rights Training Project webinars for the National Legal Resource Center. This webinar will focus on nursing home admissions agreements, identifying the terms that elders and their advocates should be most wary of and explaining the protections that some states afford against enforcement of some of these terms. Though presenters will cover a range of issues, we will focus on arbitration clauses, attempts to hold family members liable for a resident’s bills, purported waivers of a facility’s liability, and improper grounds for eviction. Register here: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/716487744
- The National Crime Prevention Council (NCPC), the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), and various senior advocacy and criminal justice experts will be speaking on April 10, 2014, for a free, day-long, online event to learn how to spot the warning signs of elder abuse and financial fraud, and how to combat these heinous crimes. This event is available to the public, and seniors, seniors’ caregivers, law enforcement, social services, adult protective services, and people with elderly relatives are highly encouraged to attend. Those who wish to attend can register here: http://engage.vevent.com/index.jsp?eid=2155&seid=268
- The American Psychological Association and American Bar Association will hold a National Conference on Violence, May 1-3, in D.C. This 3-day APA/ABA continuing education national conference will address a broad range of issues related to the exposure of children, youth, and families to violence in and around the home, community, and society. For registration information go here: http://www.apa.org/about/offices/ogc/apa-aba/conference.aspx. For inquiries, email: APAABAViolenceConf@apa.org.
- The 7th Annual Forensic Investigations Conference will be held in the Kansas City Convention Center May 12-17, 2014. The conference will focus on a broad array of emerging forensic issues, including sexual assault, interpersonal violence, ballistics, strangulation, and child and elder abuse in both urban and rural environments. This year’s conference is designed to provide an interactive joint educational opportunity and promising practices when working with victims of violence. To find more information, see here: http://www.saintlukeshealthsystem.org/forensic
- The 3rd World Congress on Adult Guardianship will be convened on May 28-30th , 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
- The 2014 Consumer Voice Annual Conference will be held in Arlington, Virginia from November 15-19, 2014. There will be speakers in the field, long-term care policy updates from key experts, and tools and resources for advocacy. Registration and the conference agenda details will be coming soon. For questions, contact: info@theconsumervoice.org.
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Funding Opportunities:
- The National Institute of Justice is seeking proposals for research and evaluation related to the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of elderly individuals. Research that includes residents of residential care facilities also will be considered. Research proposed may be focused at the state, local, tribal, federal, juvenile justice policy and/or practice level. The closing date for the application is April 25, 2014. Click here for more information: http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=251247
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
Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology
101 The City Drive South
Orange, CA 92868
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