Nevada Shedding a Light on Elder Abuse

A lot of politicians, judges and attorneys ignore guardianship abuse and fleecing estates.

Update on Devon Bank, Janna Dutton and Josh Mitzen Lawsuit

Devon Bank, Janna Dutton and Josh Mitzen are suing me for defamation and are using Mr. Ziarnik’s estate to pay their attorney, Mr. Pioli from Johnson & Bell.  I agreed to remove the “alleged defamatory snippets” because I thought the case would end but it’s not.  I should have asked for a trial date and will because after Judge Atkins put the kibosh on my discovery request, I lost interest.  I got everything I need.  I removed the snippets but the Plaintiff's want me to remove a comment I made on a gentleman's website.  I appreciate the Plaintiff’s giving me this opportunity to clear the air because I agree, my website was written by a hysterical woman that watched them abuse a helpless elderly man for profit.

Please be careful when hiring an attorney, opening a trust account and ask yourself whether or not you really need a “for profit guardian”.  Mr. Mitzen is a private paid guardian like the Public Guardian’s Office only much more costly.  He hires your doctor and caregivers.  Your family member can do that free.  Once you hire an attorney and open a trust, you’re stuck with them for the rest of your life too.  Find someone that believes in “preserving the estate".

After I wrote what happened to me online, many victims contacted me (and are still contacting me.  Websites do nothing to stop this crime, you just get more victims).  I went to the courthouse to Xerox all Devon Bank’s trusts, wrote a report and investigations were ordered.  I was told by authorities that they would do something about Devon bank and that came as quite a shock.  I flew to DC to give a speech, mailed my report to the probate court judges and so on.  I met with state and federal authorities and they hate this crime as much as we do.  If you have anything regarding Josh Mitzen (in particular), Janna Dutton and Devon Bank please send them to the agencies on the cover of my report and include the Illinois Department of Professional Regulations.  I forgot that one but don't worry too much since they're on record and it will be an ongoing investigation.

Thanksgiving of 2011, I got a phone call from an authority who told me to drop by Judge Kawamoto’s courtroom.  I was out of state but sent a friend.  She said it was like show and tell.  I called my guy the next day and asked what that was all about?  The Judicial Inquiry Board was monitoring her courtroom and he said, “You’re welcome”.  He also told me she’ll be retiring soon and Chief Judge Evans was implementing a financial section on the 18th.  Sure enough, both happened.  There is another blog and group taking credit for all this but like I said, websites and blogs do NOTHING.  You have to get up and introduce yourself and need a big document to get your foot through the door.

I heard that Mr. Ziarnik was near death in 2012 when I got SLAPPed with a defamation lawsuit billing his estate.  I will upload the lawsuit again so you can read my blog and website in it's entirety.  I hired Ed Belz to defend me and he blew it.  This is my answer to their complaint.  I can’t even talk about the two years of lies he told me.

May of 2015, I just wanted it over and we entered into an Agreed Order that I would remove the snippets but the Plaintiff's tried to pull a fast one.  They wrote that I would agree not to talk about my report, flying to Washington, meeting with authorities, etc., and added my colleagues wouldn't either. What colleagues?!  If I agreed to that, I’m giving the Plaintiff’s blanket protection.  I’m sure anyone who talks about them truthfully is my colleague.  I tell everyone Devon Bank sued me and are using estate funds, do they want that to happen to them?  No one is going to talk about Devon Bank until they withdraw all their money first.

I wouldn't agree to their terms and said I want a trial.  I found out Richard Block (bank trustee) was put on administrative leave in 2013 then disciplined by the Illinois Department of Professional Regulations here.  The trustee from Devon Bank confessed to cheating his customers and the bank thinks this is perfectly okay?  It gets even better.

After much teeth pulling, I finally get a copy of Mr. Ziarnik's bank statement.  The Department of Professional and Financial Regulations - Division on Banking investigated within weeks of my report being mailed.  It was in June of 2011 that Devon Bank knew Block would be disciplined and instead of giving me an apology, they sued.  Can you believe this? I'm doing that bank a favor by letting them know their trustee is not doing what's in their best interests, is exploiting their customers and instead of thanking me for pointing it out, they sue.  Read the complaint and make up your own mind about this bank.

Mr. Ziarnik is now bankrupt.  One million dollars was utilized and they're still billing him.  I will break down how much everyone made off the poor soul.  Do you want to know what his heirs say?  Isn't nice that he thought of me?  Maybe the Plaintiff's should think about it's the thought that counts NOT the gift.

Lastly, don't ever think one person can't make a difference in this world or that government doesn't care. Getting sued for defamation was worth it and getting my discovery was the single most humbling experience of my life. I had no idea they investigated Devon Bank or the bank trustee.  It's not flattering to that bank and I didn't hire the man. Just pointed out his character.

I also can't delete the comments I made because I just used my email address then asked them to send me follow up comments.  I hope he publishes my new one.

https://woodgatesview.com/2011/02/11/could-elder-financial-abuse-become-the-crime-of-the-21st-century/

Devon Bank Trustee Disciplined - Richard Block

This bank is still suing me for defamation because of what I wrote in regard to Block's character. Janna Dutton (Elder Law Attorney) is in full support of him. Here's his rap sheet:

https://www.idfpr.com/banks/cbt/enforcement/2015/BlockConsentOrder01142015.pdf

Don't ever give up on elder abuse.  Authorities told me in 2011 that even though trusts aren't regulated, they will get Richard Block.  I filed the report I wrote on court record a year later and thought if Block were forewarned, he'd be forearmed then lay low.  Authorities told me it won't matter since he can't help himself. One down, two to go.  Devon Bank, Janna Dutton, Josh Mitzen and their attorney's are still exploiting Mr. Ziarnik and humiliating themselves in the process.  

There is a new VP of Trusts, Mr. Benz.  He returns emails.  That's a good sign because people out to exploit an elder won't bother.  I have no complaints about him either and he's been there for a while.  Whether or not he can "preserve an estate", I can't answer.  The only thing Mr. Ziarnik's heirs were expecting to inherit six years ago was a lawsuit.  So, I can't complain.  If you have an abusive guardianship, please report it to:

FBI, FDIC, FTC, States Attorney (Cook County), Attorney General, all your Senators, Elder Protective Services and, in particular, Chief Judge Evans or any Chief Judge at the courthouse.  This also works in neighboring counties.  Several of my victims reported abusive guardians to the Chief Judges and received a response the next day.  They want the Guardian of the Person stopped.

Elder Justice Website

“Dear colleagues
The Department of Justice is developing and scheduled to launch, in early 2014, a new Elder Justice Website to serve as a resource to elder abuse prosecutors and others. One key component of the website is a repository of federal and state court pleadings in elder abuse, neglect and exploitation cases. We hope this repository will ameliorate at least one of the barriers to elder abuse prosecutions, namely the lack of training and guidance. we are currently looking for good examples of publicly filed documents (e.g., indictments or informations, motions, and sentencing memoranda) in every state. As we hope to launch the website in early 2014, we need to have all submissions by December 16, 2013. If emailing the documents is inconvenient, please feel free to email us cases with the docket numbers and county/state name so the pleadings can be retrieved from your local clerk of court at our expense/effort. Your submission can make a huge difference not just to other prosecutors, but also to elder abuse victims as well.” I do have contact information if anyone needs it. Have a good evening.

Elder Abuse - Fraud Awareness Campaign Urged by GAO

JULY 12, 2013 • TED KNUTSON

The nation needs an elder abuse awareness campaign, including information on how to prevent seniors from falling victim to financial fraud, according to a General Accountability Office study.

Financial fraud against the elderly can take longer to investigate than other types of senior abuse because financial records can be difficult to obtain and because it is often harder to prove than physical or emotional abuse, according to the GAO report released Wednesday.

In May, the federal Elder Justice Interagency Working Group recommended developing strategies for combating financial exploitation in collaboration with the financial industry. The recommendations included launching an elder justice Web site and a national awareness campaign.

GAO, the investigative arm of Congress, said a national campaign should be run jointly by the U.S. Health and Human Services and Justice departments.

Janna Dutton, Josh Mitzen, Richard Block, Sally Griffin and Devon Bank should be proud of themselves.  They're helping me make so much progress!

Banks Seen as Aid in Fraud Against Older Consumers

The pitch arrived, as so many do, with a friendly cold call.

Bruno Koch, 83, told the telemarketer on the line that, yes, of course he would like to update his health insurance card. Then Mr. Koch, of Newport News, Va., slipped up: he divulged his bank account information.

What happened next is all too familiar. Money was withdrawn from Mr. Koch’s account for something that he now says he never authorized. The new health insurance card never arrived.

What is less familiar — and what federal authorities say occurs with alarming frequency — is that a reputable bank played a crucial role in parting Mr. Koch from his money. The bank was the 140-year-old Zions Bank of Salt Lake City. Despite spotting suspicious activity, Zions served as a gateway between dubious Internet merchants and their marks — and made money for itself in the process, according to newly unsealed court documents reviewed by The New York Times.

The Times reviewed hundreds of filings in connection with civil lawsuits brought by federal authorities and a consumer law firm against Zions and another regional bank that has drawn even more scrutiny, First Bank of Delaware. Last November, First Delaware reached a $15 million settlement with the Justice Department after the bank was accused of allowing merchants to illegally debit accounts more than two million times and siphon more than $100 million.

The documents, as well as interviews with state and federal officials, paint a troubling picture. They outline how banks profit handsomely by collecting fees while ignoring warnings of potential fraud and, in some instances, enabling dubious merchants to prey on consumers.

Anyone, young or old, can be targeted by unscrupulous marketers. But for several reasons — financial worries, age, loneliness — older people are particularly vulnerable to what is known as mass market fraud, deceptive pitches that arrive by telephone, mail and the Internet.

The problems at Zions and First Delaware, where the banks became financial conduits and quiet enablers for questionable businesses, extend well beyond those two institutions, federal authorities say. Indeed, banks across the country, from some of the largest to smaller regional players, help facilitate billions of dollars of fraud each year, according to interviews with consumer lawyers and state and federal prosecutors.

Officials at the Justice Department say they are taking aim at banks’ role in giving predatory lenders and fraudulent merchants access to the United States financial system. The department is considering civil and criminal actions against a number of banks for allowing tainted money to flow through branches, for failing to safeguard against suspicious merchants, and for originating transactions on behalf of businesses that they know make unauthorized withdrawals from customer accounts, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter.

“You can’t close your eyes anymore to the fraud that you are allowing to happen,” said Michael Blume, the director of the consumer protection branch at the Justice Department. “Banks are in business to make a profit. Unfortunately, this is a moneymaking operation at consumers’ expense.”

Zions did not interact directly with the company that called Mr. Koch, National Health Net Online. What the bank did was establish a banking relationship with an intermediary, Modern Payments, that handled payments for National Health. Mr. Koch’s account at a small Virginia bank was debited by National Health, which in turn paid Modern Payments for processing the transaction. Modern Payments gave its bank, Zions, a cut of its fee.

In all, Zions in effect let roughly $39 million be withdrawn from hundreds of thousands of accounts from 2007 to 2009. Much of that money was ultimately transferred to bank accounts in Canada, India and the Caribbean, according to a Times review of court records. Many of the Internet merchants’ customers were older people and others on shaky financial footing. But that, too, worked in banks’ favor: the withdrawals set off a cascade of insufficient fund fees — more than $20 million in all, court records show.

“Zions takes seriously the need to prevent the banking system being used for fraudulent purposes; however, it is our general policy not to comment on pending legal matters,” said James R. Abbott, director of investor relations for Zions. “There is another side to this story, other than that told by the plaintiff. Our side of the story will be told at the appropriate time through the legal system.”

A spokesman for First Delaware declined to comment. Neither National Health Net Online nor Modern Payments responded to e-mails and telephone messages.

Mr. Koch, a retired teacher, said that he was usually skeptical of telemarketers. But when his phone rang one afternoon in November 2007, he recalled, he listened as the caller identified himself as a Medicare official and suggested that Mr. Koch update his health insurance card. Mr. Koch, as requested, supplied his bank information.

But instead of a new insurance card he received notice that he had been enrolled in National Health Net Online’s discount health plan. The company had withdrawn $299.95 from his bank account as payment, according to records reviewed by The Times.

National Health, a unit of NHS Systems Inc. of Collegeville, Pa., has a troubled history. In April, the Federal Trade Commission permanently banned the company from telemarketing and ordered it to pay a $6.9 million fine after accusing NHS Systems of defrauding consumers. NHS Systems did not return multiple telephone calls seeking comment.

“I was so angry,” Mr. Koch recalled. He demanded a refund from NHS Systems but was not reimbursed.

Between 2007 and 2009, tens of thousands of Americans, many of them over age 65, lodged complaints with state attorneys general, banking regulators and the F.T.C., requesting refunds for bank charges that they say were unauthorized, according to court records.

Lawyers at Langer, Grogan & Diver sued Zions, representing several hundred thousand consumers who said that NHS Systems and other telemarketers took money from their accounts without authorization. The lawsuit, which is pending in a federal court in Pennsylvania, claims that Zions effectively gave “fraudulent marketers direct access to every bank account in the United States.”

According to internal e-mails and other documents filed in connection with that suit, Zions bankers recognized something was amiss early on. An outsize number of customers were disputing payments to certain processors. The rates of return — that is, the percentage of payments that are returned for insufficient funds and lack of authorization — stood out. “WOW,” one Zions officer wrote in an e-mail after seeing the numbers.

Others inside Zions raised alarms, too. Zions executives told colleagues that the high return rates were a troubling sign. In January 2007, one warned that the rates were “staggering.” In 2007, more than half of the payments that one Internet merchant was routing through Zions were bounced back — roughly 40 times the industry standard.

Reviewing complaints about one Internet merchant, a Zions vice president wrote, “Every red flag possible went off in my head.”

And yet the bank kept handling the transactions, court records show. Why? One payment processor executive suggested an answer: the business was a gold mine.

“Turning them off and sending them somewhere else is not an option,” this executive told Zions in an e-mail in September 2007.

Officials at the F.T.C., the Justice Department, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation say this is just the tip of the iceberg, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

In a move that prosecutors say is a harbinger, the United States attorney in Philadelphia sued the First Bank of Delaware in November, claiming the bank effectively abetted “fraudulent Internet and telemarketer merchants,” court records show. The bank, the lawsuit claims, stayed “willfully blind” to the fact that the merchants were illegally taking money from customers, including a disproportionate number of seniors, through “fraud, trickery and deceit.”

Like Zions, First Delaware dealt with intermediaries rather than directly with the merchants.

But as Zane David Memeger, the United States attorney in Philadelphia, said in the lawsuit against First Delaware, bad actors “must access the banking system to gain access to the consumer’s money.”

At First Delaware, return rates for some merchants exceeded 80 percent. Yet the more questionable the merchant, the more fees a bank stands to collect, prosecutors say. Every time victims flag an unauthorized charge and demand money back, banks collect fees to process the return. Those fees are far larger, according to banking documents, than the ones charged for processing the original transactions.

First Bank of Delaware anticipated that revenue from its processing business would swell by more than 1,300 percent, from $150,000 in 2010 to roughly $2 million a year later, court records show.

Bradly D. Swartz, of Meshoppen, Pa., learned firsthand how much such practices can cost consumers. Mr. Swartz, 59, was trying to stretch his retirement savings when a telemarketer called in 2007 with what sounded like good news: Mr. Swartz had won a prize. All he had to do to collect was fill out a money order.

Then, starting in 2007, Mr. Swartz said, a subsidiary of NHS Systems — the same company that Mr. Koch had dealt with — started withdrawing $19.95 a month from his checking account. After emptying the account, National Health referred him to a debt collector, Mr. Swartz said.

Mr. Swartz said his credit was ruined. He now works part time at Walmart to supplement his savings.

“I have to work until the day I die, and these greedy banks just profit,” he said.

Federal officials say banks not only must know their customers, but also their customers’ customers in order to ensure that consumers in general, and older Americans in particular, are not at risk. The First Delaware case, they say, is a warning to the industry.

“Nothing sharpens the focus for banks like an enforcement action,” said Michael Bresnick, the director of President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement unit.

Devon Bank Text Message Scam

This phone number is fraudulent . 228-831-5223

I don't think anyone infiltrated the bank since the Feds would force them to say something.  I think it's just a random person hoping you have an account here and asking for your personal information.

Don't give out your account information to anyone. 

If you fell for this scam, I'm so sorry.  I don't know why this bank doesn't step up and take better care of their customers?  You can call Devon Bank at this number 866-683-3866 toll free or contact them at bank@devonbank.com.  I would email the president of this organization or one of the other heads. RLoundy@devonbank.com or ILoundy@devonbank.com.  People have told me that their customer service isn't very good so, you may want to go straight to the top (although, I've been that route and wasn't very successful.)

I'm sure the bank will make a statement when they're finished cooperating with authorities, I hope.  Also, be very careful in regard to what you publish about this bank since they'll sue you for defamation even if you're publishing the truth. They're a bunch of bullies so this scam may be perpetuated by the owners just to make a couple of $$$ off you, I don't know.  I just know I'm being notified and I know another scam when I hear one.

March 2013 Legal Update

I got this in my inbox from a law firm:

DO-IT-YOURSELF WILL LEADS TO UNWANTED RESULT

 If you choose to write your own will, you run the risk of not having your estate distributed [http://ih.constantcontact.com/fs010/1102793168627/img/177.jpg] the way you want, as a
recent case illustrates.

George Z. wanted his estate to go to two of his five children. Instead of seeking out an elder law attorney to advise him on drawing up an estate plan, he decided to write his own will. The will gave his pickup truck to his daughter Diane and his summer property to his son Wayne. Mr. Z. also wrote in the will that he was intentionally leaving out his other three children. 

 The problem with the will was that Mr. Z. did not specify what to do with the remainder of his estate (called a "residuary clause"). While Mr. Z. probably intended that the rest of his estate would go to his favorite children, he didn't state that in the will. Because the will had no residuary clause, the remainder of Mr. Z.'s estate passed under the state law that specifies who inherits when there is no will. A court battle between the adult children began and was resolved, but only after the children had spent much more in attorney fees than their father would have paid to have his will done properly. While you may save some money drafting your own will, you are in danger of making mistakes that can cause unneeded conflict and don't get the result you want.

In regard to my Mr. Z, his attorney didn't forget to designate his automobile - it was the rest of his assets that she liquidated.  She hired herself to force him into guardianship, hired her friends to be guardians then made further money suing me for defamation after I published the crime she committed.  I can't prove how much she made off this Mr. Z but I can prove how much it will cost you to hire this law firm to handle your affairs (based on actual clients) and how much Mr. Z's heirs will inherit after this law firm is done financially exploiting him.

The questions are these:

Do you have 30-60K to hire an attorney to set up your affairs?  

Do you have 100K-1M to hire their friends as your guardian?  

Do you want your attorney to inherit your estate or your family?  George Z may have only wanted 2 of his 5 children to inherit but at least there was money left to inherit and it went to the rightful heirs, not an interloper.

Every time I read about this attorney, she's always putting herself in the middle of the elderly and their loved ones.  It's not surprising that she would write about a family fight.

Fed Issues Order Against Devon Bancorp in Illinois

by Brian Browdie

MAR 19, 2013 1:57pm ET

The Federal Reserve Board has taken action against a Midwest banking company.

The Fed said Tuesday that it has reached a written agreement with Devon Bancorp in Chicago. The company agreed to refrain from paying dividends, distributing capital or redeeming stock without regulatory approval. It will also provide written details about its sources and uses of cash.

The parent of the $240 million-asset Devon Bank also agreed to serve as a source of strength for the bank and to provide the Fed with quarterly progress reports.

Separately, the Fed terminated a written agreement with Bank VI in Salina, Kan., that obligated the bank to provide a written plan for maintaining sufficient capital and strengthening board oversight of its operations.

The July 2010 agreement also required the $65 million-asset bank to strengthen its credit risk management practices, to reduce concentrations of credit, to improve management of its funds and to hire an outsider to review its loan portfolio.

Bank VI also agreed to refrain from lending to any borrower that had loans flagged by examiners during a January 2010 examination. The bank was also required to improve its position in connection with past-due loans in excess of $250,000 and to eliminate losses that it had not already charged off.

The Fed took both actions on March 13 and announced them on Tuesday.

Link to Federal Reserve Action.

Suze Orman Will & Trust Kit

This is a much SAFER alternative to going to an attorney to set up your financial affairs.  If you do go to an attorney, make sure they're NOT probate lawyers.  Trust Attorneys and Estate planning are good - Probate or Elder Law should be avoided.  Attorneys are expensive and there are some who prey off the elderly and disabled and if you're a regular reader, I'm sure you know whom I'm talking about.

This is an easy-to-use and fast way for you and other members of your household to create your own advance directive, also known as a living will, durable power of attorney for health care, living revocable trust, and all the other must-have documents you need to protect you and your family. It’s as easy as 1-2-3—simply personalize, print, and protect.

Suze Orman and her own estate trust attorney have created the most state-of-the-art documents found anywhere. There are more than $2,500 worth of estate documents in this kit. Why pay thousands of dollars when you can get the same documents in this kit!

This kit includes:

• More than 50 state-of-the-art documents • Free automatic on-line updates • Verbal and written instructions taking you step by step through the four must-have documents • Password protection securing multiple users’ information • A tutorial that shows you everything you need to know • 10 electronic books

PC and Macintosh Compatible . . . and good in all 50 states!

You don't need an attorney with this kit.  You do need a Notary Public to witness signatures (most banks or currency exchanges have one).  It's also a good idea to have many copies of the legal documents and if anyone has an idea of what to do with the original?  I wouldn't put it in a safety deposit box at a bank.  In regard to Devon Bank taking over your assets, they just drill it open and take the contents.  Your family is then at the mercy of the trustees regardless of what the document states.  First thing banks do is liquidate assets or family jewelry, heirlooms, stocks, cars, land, property, etc., then invest that money in small state banks (friends of theirs) that yield little or no interest.  It's not uncommon for the bank to try to make money off you and the sentimental value you placed means nothing to them.

It's a good idea to keep everything "within the family" and that includes hiring caregivers (no agencies).  Don't invite strangers into your loving family unit.

Devon Bank Texas Ratio 2012

I don't know anything about the acquisition of this bank.  I found the Texas Ratio for the fourth quarter of 2012 here.

You can read what the FDIC published last year here.  Search Devon Bank.

Chief Judge Timothy Evans - Cook County Probate Court

Back in 2011, wonderful things started happening down at the courthouse after I mailed my report on Devon Bank and what I consider to be legalized abuse and financial exploitation.  The probate court judiciary is amazing, I can't emphasize that enough.  (The Honorable Lynne Kawamoto is my personal favorite for restoring my faith in justice.  I also helped a woman win custody last March and Judge Kawamoto was the judge who ruled on the case.  She ruled fairly.)  The entire 18th floor changed more than a year ago and "it's my personal opinion" that the people suing me for defamation truly believe the judges were reading my blog.  They weren't.  Judges don't read blogs, they don't care what anyone writes online (until recently, it's causing quite a stir now that I'm being sued for it) and you never hear any politician creating new legislation or making any major changes because they "googled it."  If you want your world to change, blogging isn't going to cut it.  You've got to get up.

About a year ago, I heard that Judge Evans didn't like the financial exploitation occurring in probate court and was going to tackle the problem.  I haven't heard anything else about this other than he kept his word.  He did, indeed, tackle the problem.  The elder law attorney's are upset because they have to actually do some work in order to get paid now.  (What a pity.)  Needless to say, they are NOT thrilled with Judge Evans (which has me loving the man).  I'm also Chicago born and bred and very competitive.  I'm in a race with other states in getting this crime to stop and as far as I'm concerned, I'm winning but I give all credit to Devon Bank and Janna Dutton.  (You can also read my post on How to Win Guardianship.)

This is Chief Judge Evans Order:

General Order No. 26 - Petition for Fees and Costs for Court Appointed Attorney's

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:

1.  In cases pending any Department or Division of this court on or after the effective date of this order, all attorney fee petitions for court appointed attorneys including petitions to pay costs of expert witnesses, court reporters and other service providers, must be filed by the earlier of 60 (SIXTY) days after entry of the final order disposing of the case or 6 (SIX) months after the attorney performed the service or incurred the cost.

2.  In cases pending in this court on or before the effective date of this order, all fee petitions for services rendered and costs incurred more than 6 (SIX) months before the effective date of this order shall be filed and set for hearing November 30,2012.

This order supersedes all provisions governing the procedures for payments of the fees and costs of court appointed attorneys in previous orders of this Court, including orders of any Department or Division of this Court.

Dated 6th day of July, 2012.  This order shall be spread upon the records of this Court and published.

Defamation Hearing in Probate Court

Everyone is asking me about my defamation case and I don’t have time to respond to you all individually.  I’m not sure what happened?  I am going to stay on top of it this time but here’s the gist:

My attorney responded with a motion to dismiss and wants a trial date for the Citizen’s Participation Act.  Janna Dutton hired a law firm to represent her or them.  The law firm responded with their own personal spin (on my life story) and we waited for the trial date to be set.

Throughout the summer and fall my case was in Chancery Court waiting for Judge Preston to assign it a date - it was up for case management three times before he sent it back to Probate Court.  Around Christmas, Dutton’s attorney petitioned the court again (and I forgot why but I’ll read my file to fill in these blanks) but no one seems to understand why Judge Preston would send it to Cesario?  It’s a big mystery.

Yesterday, we all went to court.  I went because I have a copy of a letter that Janna Dutton faxed my attorney stating that Judge Cesario will order my websites to come down, that she’ll protect her ward against me.  (I will find the letter and put the exact language that Dutton used later.)  So, I went because I would like to meet her.

Needless to say, Judge Cesario is absolutely lovely.  She explained that Ludwig’s file went missing a few weeks ago and was holding up a hot pink paper that ordered the case to be moved to Chancery Court.  She was pointing to Judge Coghlan’s signature.  She wanted to know where Janna Dutton was?  That’s when her attorney spoke up (who is a very nice young man) and told her that he was retained.  My attorney told Judge Cesario that he filed a motion to dismiss, that he didn't attend the case management hearings because he was waiting for a trial date to be assigned and some other things.  Then Judge Cesario asked Dutton’s attorney what he said to Judge Preston?  She wanted to know why it was on her desk?  He told her that he asked Preston for a trial date which is why (I suppose) she got it back?  She apologized to us for the mix up, explained to Dutton’s attorney that he needs to fill out another hot pink form moving the case to Chancery then explained to me and my attorney that it’s going to be a lengthy process because it has to go through the hands of many head judges for reassignment.

So, I’m thinking I should have a new court date in about three-four weeks.  I gather from yesterdays hearing that Dutton’s attorney asked Judge Preston three times to go to trial and after the third time, he sent it to Probate?  Like I said, it's a big mystery.

Changed my game plan on this one so......

The New Cash Cows : Elderly With Assets

ElderAbusehelp.Org

If Adult Protective Services (Elder Protective Services here in IL) was actually focused on protecting vulnerable adults, they have only to look to our streets that are littered with homeless, hungry and many times disoriented adults of all ages who desperately need help and protection. But…. these people have no money, and no estates to loot. APS steps over these individuals in order to get to those who have assets.


In every state organized crime rings are operating involving the same judges, predatory guardians, attorneys, Adult Protective Services personnel, medical personnel, and participating facilities who will violate the rights of an elderly or disabled victim in exchange for payment or personal profit.

“This system of theft will continue until the entire estate has been stolen leaving the victim penniless. At this point, Medicare and Medicaid are used as the cash cow to cover medical expenses and the inflated charges of nursing, the doctors’ visits and vast amounts of medications are charged off to these services costing these services millions each year in padded billing. ”

If predatory guardians were actually concerned about the health and welfare of their victims, there would be no need to physically kidnap, isolate and forcibly medicate these people and then to proceed on to steal their life’s savings.

Of wills, trusts and other legal instruments

Overseeing the looting of an estate is a probate judge who is well aware that what is happening has nothing to do with the health, wellbeing, or welfare of the victim, but who can be depended upon to facilitate the predators. It is all about the estate, how much it is worth and who will gain access to it.

Advance planning instruments for retirement dictate the victims plans for their property such as wills, trusts, insurance benefits, savings accounts, investments, land titles and other assets. These instruments are routinely discarded by the probate judge and declared void even though the judge has no actual lawful authority to do so.

This is done after the victim has been forcibly medicated with drugs such as Zyprexa or Seroquel in doses so high that the victim is unable to function even minimally. It is in the state, and known to the judge to be drug induced dysfunction, that the victim is declared [incompetent]. [Even if the victim was in actuality at that moment in time, incompetent, the judge has no authority to void or discard previously created legal instruments. This would assume, without any factual basis, without hearing or relevant testimony and evidence that the victim was always incompetent and unable to judiciously construct their own estate; a determination clearly not possible.]

Several techniques are used to coerce the victim and to blackmail the family members or friends into silence. Emotional blackmail, consisting of isolating the victim and then accusing family and friends of being a danger to, or having abused the victim is most common.
  Multiple abuse charges are levied against family members or friends of the victim who might attempt to rescue them from their kidnapers. In many instances which have been documented, the predators have no knowledge of any abuse, of any kind, by anyone. Still, the charges are made and the cooperating probate judge for some reason needs no evidence to be supplied by the predators to support these allegations. In most cases, the predator is a stranger not only to the family and friends, but to the victim themselves.

In these same situations when actual investigations into the charges determines the charges are unfounded, these stay on the probate court record as if they were in fact, true. They are then repeated as if they were fact at every opportunity causing further defamation and personal injury to the family members.

[In one particular county in Florida, one predatory guardian has made the same ver batum charges against 18 various family’s and friends of 18 guardiansized victims from whom millions in estate assets have been looted. At no time has the predator produced anything other than their own personal testimony to support the charges levied].

None of this benefits the “ward”

Adult Protective Services (APS) operates on either a quota system or on a commission system, just as Child Protective Services does. This means X number of bodies must be processed in order to garner federal grant monies, and reimbursements as well as state funding. Projected annual budgets for operating APS include a projected number of victims, rising with each year of projection. Job protection and security are necessarily factored into these projections.

APS must adhere to various performance indicators that will meet the minimum return needed to qualify for funding. Failing to do so will result in the withholding of payments and could eventually find them in non-compliance and out of funding altogether.

An APS goal is to insure that all older Americans have the opportunity to live independently, with dignity, in their homes and communities for as long as they are able and choose to do so. This is the goal possibly, but the reality is that this will most likely not happen if these same older Americans have amassed any sizeable estate. Once identified as having assets they are targeted by the predators. Various offices of APS in several states and communities, have been implicated repeatedly in the flagging of potentially wealthy individuals whose estates could be exploited.

Preying on the elderly who committed the crime of aging/with assets, has become a lucrative and government sanctioned vocation. Across the country, in every state and community are rings of professional predators who make their living targeting elderly individuals whose estates can be looted under the guise of guardianship or conservatorship. Akin to a flock of vultures picking the bones of a dead carcass, professional predatory fiduciary’s, unethical lawyers and a host of government agencies and personnel begin chipping away at the estate, each of them billing the victim’s estate for supposed services rendered.

Any and all assets of the victim [now a so-called ward of the state], are immediately transferred to the victims new owner…..the guardian. Titles to homes are transferred to the guardian and quickly sold for pennies on the dollar to friends and co-predators or they might be sold at market value. Either way, the proceeds go directly into the predators private accounts supposedly to benefit the ward, of course.(sarc) Stocks, bonds, investments, savings, personal items are now all in the possession of the predator to dispose of and profit from.

In the meantime?

The victim is held in a participating facility that is willing to isolate, medicate and violate the rights of the victim in exchange for payment. This forced imprisonment of elderly victims amounts to torture.

Who ya gonna call?

You might as well call “Ghostbusters” on this one. There is not a federal or state representative or senator who will address this issue. Most will not even admit to having any knowledge that these criminal rackets are operating right under their noses.

The Department of Justice has been made aware, along with the FBI, states attorney’s general, governors, and all levels of local law enforcement. Not one of these agencies will act to protect the victims from these criminal rings.

“Law enforcement agents, social workers, and judges have all been trained to maintain a watchful eye over exploitative family members. Yet no one seems to be guarding the guardians. Family members have complained to local law enforcement, the state attorneys’ office, and even the F.B.I.”

Judicial oversight boards have been notified, and have been sent court documents clearly exposing the civil rights violations, judicial indiscretion and abuse, and the ongoing harassment and intimidation perpetrated by probate judges on behalf of and to protect the predatory guardian against family’s and friends of the victim. In several instances, family members are threatened with jail, told they cannot file any charges, cannot call the police, cannot report the abuse by the predators. Predatory guardians have been given immunity from prosecution for failing to report accurately and timely, for falsifying court documents and reports, for emotionally and physically abusing the victim and for violating state and federal regulations and statutes regarding the rights of the victim.

In every instance of the submission of evidence showing the blatant corruption of the probate court and the collusion of the judge, predatory guardians, attorney’s and others, the boards have upheld the corruption.

In my opinion, what is happening to the elderly in this country is government sanctioned human trafficking. Our elderly are being treated as commodities and are referred to as “units” or “human property”. This is nothing less than organized criminal racketeering operating within government agencies and offices and with the full knowledge and cooperation of every level of government.

I'm publishing this because Janna Dutton, Josh Mitzen, Rick Block and Devon Bank's response in their defamation lawsuit against me, they wrote something about the "Elder Protection Services Scam" like that's shocking.  It's happening all over the country and even though I had the best elder abuse investigators, doesn't mean that they're not hooking them up with clients instead of calling family members.  What's more shocking is the fact they're pretending they don't know about it.  I know Janna Dutton is well aware of the problem by her online video.

Strengthening Efforts to Combat Elder Financial Exploitation

What GAO Found


We found that state and local social services, criminal justice, and consumer protection agencies face many challenges as they work to prevent and respond to elder financial exploitation. For example:

•Officials in each of the four states we contacted cited the need for more safeguards to prevent exploitation by financial services providers, power of attorney agents, and paid in-home caregivers;

•Officials told us that older adults need more information about what constitutes elder financial exploitation and how to avoid it, but social services and law enforcement agencies do not always have the resources to promote public awareness in this area;
•Banks are well-positioned to recognize, report, and provide evidence supporting investigations in elder financial exploitation cases; however, many social services and law enforcement officials we spoke with indicated banks do not always recognize and report exploitation or provide the evidence needed to investigate it; and


•According to experts, collaboration between the social services system--which protects and supports victims--and the criminal justice system--which investigates and prosecutes crimes--can be an effective means of combating elder financial exploitation. However, officials in three of our four states noted that this collaboration can be difficult to achieve. These two systems do not respond to exploitation or carry out their work in the same way, so there can be difficulties communicating across disciplines and different views regarding limits on information sharing.

In many of the locations we contacted, state or local agencies are actively pursuing solutions to at least some of these challenges and there are some federal initiatives as well that could help address them. When it comes to preventing the sale to older adults of unsuitable or fraudulent investments, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB), have each taken steps to help older adults avoid being exploited. SEC and CFPB have conducted research related to investment fraud that targets older adults, and there is a link on SEC's website to Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) information consumers can use to check a financial services provider's qualifications and to understand the many designations used by securities professionals. CFPB also plans to issue a report in early 2013 addressing how information about financial advisors and their credentials should be provided to older adults. To prevent exploitation by power of attorney agents and paid in-home caregivers, 13 states have adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act in its entirety, and Napa County, California, now requires paid in-home caregivers to submit to a background check and obtain a permit before they can be hired.  (What I have enlarged and underlined was requested the most by everyone.  That financial institutions be required to prove credentials not just in regard to bank trustees but because of mortgages.)

We found that law enforcement authorities in some locations have devoted resources to promoting public awareness of elder financial exploitation. For example, the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office has published a guide on how seniors can avoid scams and fraud, and in Cook County, Illinois, the Senior Law Enforcement Academy within the Sheriff's Department instructs older adults in how to prevent elder financial exploitation. In addition, each of the federal agencies we reviewed independently produces educational materials that could help prevent elder financial exploitation.

We also identified state, local, and federal activities encouraging banks to work with social services and law enforcement, and activities to promote and support collaboration between the social services and criminal justice systems. Illinois, for example, requires bank employees to receive training in how to report exploitation.  (It's my personal opinion that it's not working or some banks are being overlooked in the program.)

Why GAO Did This Study

This testimony presents some of the results from the latest study in our body of work on elder justice issues. According to experts, the illegal or improper use of older adults' funds, property, or assets is reaching epidemic proportions in this country and has far-reaching effects on its victims and society, in general. The money older adults lose in these cases is rarely recovered and this loss can undermine both the health of older adults and their ability to support and care for themselves. One study estimated that financial exploitation cost older adults at least $2.9 billion in 2010.

Older adults can be exploited by family members and friends, home care workers, legal guardians and other fiduciaries, as well as those in the financial services industry. They also often fall prey to mail, telephone, and internet scams that offer substantial lottery or other winnings in exchange for so-called taxes or fees. Because elder financial exploitation can take many forms, combating it involves state and local agencies, and their federal counterparts, across social services, criminal justice, and consumer protection systems.

This testimony today is based on our November 2012 report, which is being released to the public today. It describes the challenges states face in combating the many types of elder financial exploitation and the actions federal, as well as state and local agencies, are taking to overcome these challenges.

For questions about this testimony, please contact Kay Brown at (202) 512-7215 or brownke@gao.gov.

A link to this article and full report here.

I-Team investigates Santa Clara County public guardian

SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- It's a simple regulation - you get a reverse mortgage and you must live in the home. So how come one Bay Area county moved a 92-year-old woman out more than two years ago and then took a reverse mortgage out on her home?

It's an issue more and more baby boomers are facing, as their parents age -- a county's public guardian taking over a person's affairs, selling their home against the family's wishes. No matter the circumstances, the county is supposed to follow the rules. The ABC7 News I-Team found one case where they did not.

"My aunt loved that house, loved being home; it gave her memories of her husband," Montye Puma said.

Puma says her aunt -- 92-year-old Lillie Scalia would never want to move out of her house. Scalia suffers from dementia, but she and her husband, Sam, planned to live out their last days there. Sam died in 1995.

"My aunt would tell me that, 'Your uncle said, if anything should happen to him, live in this house, stay in this house,'" Puma said.

That's a promise Scalia has not been able to keep. Puma says Santa Clara County took her aunt from her home and eventually moved her into an assisted living facility.

"It started as a family quarrel and Adult Protective Services came in," Puma said.

Some members of Puma's family didn't like that she and her father were living with Scalia after her husband died. The Santa Clara County Public Guardians Office and Probate Court investigated and determined that Puma and her father, Scalia's brother, were taking advantage of her by living in her home rent-free, using her money and neglecting her medical needs. They are also accused of harassing the public guardian and Scalia's healthcare providers.

Puma and her father deny the accusations but the two still got evicted from the house and Scalia was conserved by the county.

"Our aim is to protect them from any financial or physical abuse that they might have been experiencing," Director of Santa Clara County Aging and Adult Services Lee Pullen said.

Pullen says the public guardian's office is the conservator for about 800 people -- making financial and healthcare decisions for the conservatees like Scalia.

"We want to ensure that they have a comfortable lifestyle to the degree that their able and that we can make the decisions that they are not able to make for themselves," Pullen said.

One questionable decision the public guardian's office made for Scalia was taking out a reverse mortgage on her home in order to pay for her care.

Dan Noyes: "Is it proper in your mind to take out a reverse mortgage, the county to do that, when the person is not living in the home?"

Lee Pullen: "My understanding of the requirement a reverse mortgage is that you need to be in the home and be there in order to have a reverse mortgage."

Pullen is right. According to the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development, a person getting a reverse mortgage must live in the home, and if the borrower is gone for more than 12 consecutive months, the loan becomes due.

Scalia has been out of the house for two years now.

"We certainly wouldn't want to violate any HUD or banking regulations," Pullen said.

It appears the county is in violation. The reverse mortgage was taken out in November 2010. Scalia was moved out of the house in October 2010 and she hasn't been home since.

When the ABC7 News I-Team first visited the in September, faded tags over the doorjambs indicated no one had been inside for a while.

The I-Team has also learned HUD is reviewing the case.

"You're telling me is in your conversations with HUD there's been some violation of procedure or process or regulation that I absolutely want to look into," Pullen said.

"She said I want to go home from Day One," Scalia's court-appointed attorney James Sullivan said.

Sullivan says he objected to the reverse mortgage and doesn't believe Scalia's brother abused her. Even more important, a year ago, a probate judge order states talks to begin to move Scalia back into her home. Sullivan claims he reached out but the county didn't act.

"The county doesn't listen; you know, the judge can't micro-manage these people, the judge leaves it to the professionals and the professionals are supposed to do their job," Sullivan said.

"If a person or an organization chooses to ignore a court order they could be held in contempt and damages could be applied," Santa Clara Superior Court spokesperson Joe Macaluso said.

Macaluso points out someone would have to tell the judge an order isn't being followed before the court would act. No one has told the court the Scalia order has been ignored.

"I think that's fantastic," Puma said.

After the I-Team started asking questions, the public guardian's office has decided to move Scalia back into her home. Sources say she should be back by Thanksgiving.

Puma says she's heard it before.

"I'm very skeptical; when I see it that she is here at home, then I will believe it," Puma said.

The I-Team will stay on this story and tell you if the public guardian keeps its word and moves Scalia back home. If HUD finds a problem with the reverse mortgage, the loan may come due and that could lead to her being forced out of her home again -- through no fault of her own.

Dan Noyes , Chief Investigative Reporter

Power of Attorney v Guardianship

I counsel a lot of people in regard to guardianship and I thought when it came to a disabled child, guardianship was mandatory and it’s not.  There is a law that an outsider needs to be appointed (and report to the court) if a child receives settlement money from a medical malpractice lawsuit.  This is a large sum of money and I don’t know the dollar amount.  Other than that, guardianship is the last resort.

The most common reason for the elderly in guardianship is the lack of planning on their part.  They may get sick and their loved ones need access to their money to pay their bills or they just didn’t think about writing a will until later in life. Unfortunately, this opens the door for unscrupulous lawyers who financially plan the elders’ entire estate so they inherit.  These attorneys trap the elder in guardianship then find excuses to petition the court pretending to earn their clients’ money.  Everything is fake; the will, the trust, the Power of Attorney, etc.  These attorneys never had any intention of allowing the families to inherit.

The most common reason a young adult is in guardianship is probably drug abuse as in Brittney Spears case.  And that poor young lady is just going through the motions of her life as her attorney racks up 900K in legal fees each year hoping the conservatorship never ends.

In regard to a minor, guardianship can be avoided by setting up a Power of Attorney (over health and medical) or Representative Payee.  These should be discussed with an attorney and if that attorney talks about guardianship, find another.  Obviously, the more unpaid people in your child’s life, the better.

In guardianship, you have to go to court once a year, report to the judges, pay an attorney and all that money is better spent helping your child build a life addressing their personal needs.  The attorney who suggested Guardianship is addressing their personal needs of getting paid for the lifetime of your child.  Any expense to a law firm, care manager, guardian ad litem, private paid guardian, etc., is taking away from your child and allowing them live a fulfilled and happy life.  You also may have to hire an attorney to represent you which is very expensive and less money you can leave to your child/children when you pass away.

Not only that, you give your power away in guardianship.  With a Power of Attorney over health and finances, you make the decisions.  You say no and it’s no.  If you’re Guardian, you have to ask the judge’s permission.  This is probably the most difficult aspect when I’m court watching or counseling someone who has a child in guardianship.  They don’t understand why they have to ask a judge and say, “I’m their parent.”  Biologically but legally the judge is their mother and father.  The parent gave their rights away and can only make suggestions in regard to their child’s care but if the judge doesn’t like what’s suggested, they can refuse.  

Sadly, this opens the door to abuse from doctors, nursing home employees, bank trustees or anyone else who doesn’t think you know what’s best for your child and wants to report you to the judge.  So, there is an enormous difference between saying that you’re Power of Attorney or merely your child’s Guardian.  Everyone knows the Guardian has to ask the judge permission.  The parent who is coerced into putting their child in Guardianship is the last to find out how little control they have over their own child’s life.  The attorney who suggested guardianship looks forward to the fights and hassles (even instigates them) so they can go to court in order to get paid since profit is the name of the game.  A lot of times the doctors, nursing homes, guardian ad litems and so on know each other and cause problems so they can all get paid at the expense of your child.  This is a painful reality.

You also need to think of things from the judges’ perspective if you opt to put your child in Guardianship.  You’re asking them to step in, make decisions for you because you’re not capable of managing your child’s affairs alone.  That’s how they see you and some parents are angry that the judge is involved in their lives when they were the ones who invited them in.

Therefore, if you have a disabled child, you do NOT have to put them in guardianship at the age of 18.  Medical Power of Attorney and Representative Payee is enough.  I haven’t met a good parent yet that is happy about being duped into putting their child in guardianship or having to pay the attorney fees that come with the deception.  Quite the contrary, they make it a point to get the attorney involved as little as possible.  I also have the misfortune of meeting parents after they’ve been misled and the guilt of what they did to their child overwhelms them.  If they had POA, they could make medical, financial and living decisions in order to get their child out of harms way but instead have to take it to court while their child puts up with the abuse.  In some cases, doctors’ order medication that a parent knows isn’t healthy and gets into power struggles with them that they have to take into court.  In other words, Guardianship means power struggles with everyone which the attorney loves since they get paid.

I can tell you horror stories about the dishonest ways elder law attorneys profit using our most vulnerable citizens’.  They have no shame and somehow believe that they’re doing their clients a favor by financially exploiting them.

Lastly, there are some people that opt for guardianship because they can’t make decisions and need a lot of hand holding.  I’m sure there are other reasons guardianship is necessary and it’s probable that the disabled person will be in guardianship with a stranger at some point in their life.  Parents hope that they can find someone honest that will treat their child as their own family member but we live in a society that preys on the weak and vulnerable.  It’s sad.

Guardianship is the last resort.  Alarm bells should go off if it’s mentioned by your attorney.  As a loving parent, you want what's least restrictive and least expensive to give your child the most opportunities and the happiest life.  I genuinely feel badly that you were mislead into believing you were doing the best for your child, loved one, parent, aunt, etc., when a “trusted attorney” or “trusted friend” betrayed you into Guardianship.  Educating each other or trying to stop it from happening to someone else is the only way we’re going to get this to end.

Property Poaching by Probate

BY: LOU ANN ANDERSON

Laurie Roberts’ recent Arizona Republic column updating the status of Marie Long, a 90-year-old widow who has become Arizona’s symbol of probate corruption, illustrates the culture of corruption rampant within legal systems across this country. Estate of Denial® was created in 2007 to educate an unsuspecting public as to how probate instruments (wills, trusts, guardianships and powers of attorney) are increasingly used to loot assets of the dead, disabled and incapacitated as well as often positioned to obstruct the inheritance rights of these targets’ legitimate heirs and beneficiaries. With that, let’s talk “property poaching by probate,” actions that happen in communities across the U.S. They most likely happen in yours, I know they happen in mine.

The case of Marie Long has been in the media for nearly three years. Before 2009, she was worth $1.3 million. In 2005, she had a stroke and her family couldn’t agree on her care and living arrangements. The probate system saw opportunity and stepped in. Today, her money is gone and she’s on welfare. The reason: she was targeted by the Arizona legal industry for “property poaching by probate.” The legal industry usually comprises lawyers, judges and court-related personnel or select associates. Read the column – it can happen to anyone!

It also brings to mind two important points – one about lawyers, another about judges. On lawyers, get ready to start seeing a lot of them sued. Legal abuse targets are learning how Bar associations or other attorney oversight entities are generally impotent when it comes to disciplinary actions as their main function more appears that of a protectionist role – however, the protection is for their members, not the public at large. Criminal prosecutions are rare relegating targets to the pay-to-play civil court system. With this, abuse targets with financial means can (and more often) are suing – just don’t count on much luck there as we’ll discuss in the next point. And by the way, abuse targets without financial means have no recourse. Harsh, but reality.

Second important point. Know your judges. None of us can any longer afford to not vote in judicial races or to blindly vote for “that nice man from church.” Today’s candidates unashamedly sport long-running and by-any-standards ugly custody battles, DWI’s, malpractice, negligence and incompetence lawsuits along with public corruption allegations. Even questionably discharged grand jury indictments no longer serve to deter pursuit of a judgeship.

All these issues speak to a candidate’s past conduct and may be an indicator of future performance. You tell people this happens and they laugh or don’t believe you. But folks, it’s time to wise up. Try a review of public records. It’s amazing what you’ll find in your backyard. And when these are the people making decisions about your future or your loved ones, it ceases to be so funny. Also understand that as too many lawyers upon becoming judges never “cut the cord” with their legal brethren, beware candidates who are the lawyers’ choice. It often doesn’t bode well for the public at large. Just ask Marie Long!

Long was targeted by the full force of Arizona’s legal industry. Despite intense media scrutiny and widespread attention, the estate looting perpetrators have been defended or otherwise propped up by prominent Arizonans as too many powerful people can live on image and protect their interests despite the potential harm such actions can bring to average citizens. As her case heads to the Arizona Supreme Court, Marie Long's case will again exemplify a new step in what’s being sold as justice.

Meanwhile, America beware! Marie Long could be you!

Klobuchar Legislation to Protect Seniors Passes

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar’s legislation to protect seniors from neglect and abuse by guardians passed the Senate Judiciary Committee today (Thursday, July 12) with a 15-3 vote, paving the way for a vote in the full Senate.

The Guardian Accountability and Senior Protection Act, co-sponsored by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX), would protect seniors and persons with disabilities from neglect and financial exploitation by improving oversight and accountability for court-appointed guardians and conservators.

“While most court-appointed guardians are undoubtedly professional, caring and law-abiding, there is mounting evidence that some guardians use their position of power for their own gain,” Klobuchar said. “This is a positive step forward for this critical legislation that would help increase accountability and oversight of guardians and protect those who are most vulnerable.”

Klobuchar’s legislation would provide support to states to implement programs to increase oversight of guardians and conservators. Specifically, the bill provides funding for state courts to assess the handling of proceedings relating to guardian and conservators, and then make the necessary improvements to their practices. The bill sets aside a portion of the funding for states seeking to implement or improve systems for conducting background checks on potential guardians and conservators. It also authorizes state courts to implement an electronic filing system in order to better monitor and audit conservatorships and guardianships.

A 2010 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified hundreds of allegations of physical abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation by guardians in 45 states and the District of Columbia between 1990 and 2010. The report reviewed 20 of these cases and found that guardians had stolen, or otherwise improperly obtained, $5.4 million from 158 incapacitated victims, many of whom were older adults.

Klobuchar chaired a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts focusing on the issue of abuse by guardians. During the hearing, Klobuchar called for more accountability and oversight of court-appointed guardians to ensure that seniors are safe and receive the services they deserve. Klobuchar also invited the Minnesota State Ombudsman for Long-Term Care, Deb Holtz, to testify at the hearing. Holtz highlighted the challenges facing court systems that lack the resources to effectively oversee guardians and conservators.

Request for Information Regarding Senior Financial Exploitation

This is about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that I posted here.

You can find this page here.

ACTION

Request For Information.

SUMMARY

Section 1013(g)(1) of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“Dodd-Frank Act”) requires the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (“Bureau” or “CFPB”) to facilitate the financial literacy of individuals aged 62 or older (“seniors”), on protection from unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices and on current and future financial choices, including through dissemination of materials on such topics.Show citation box

In furtherance of this mandate, the CFPB's Office for the Financial Protection of Older Americans (“Office for Older Americans”) seeks information on consumer financial products and services, financial literacy efforts, and fraudulent or deceptive practices impacting the lives of older Americans and their families.Show citation box

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• DATES:
• ADDRESSES:
• FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
• SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
• Evaluation of Senior Financial Advisor Certifications and Designations
• Providing Financial Advice and Planning Information to Seniors
• Senior Certification and Designation Information Sources
• Financial Literacy Efforts
• Financial Exploitation of Older Americans
• Financial Exploitation of Older Veterans of the Armed Forces

DATES:Back to Top

Comment Due Date: August 20, 2012.Show citation box

ADDRESSES:Back to Top

You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CFPB-2012-0018, by any of the following methods:Show citation box

• http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.Show citation box
• Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Monica Jackson, Office of the Executive Secretary, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20552.Show citation box

Instructions: The CFPB encourages the early submission of comments. All submissions must include the document title and docket number. Please note the number of the question to which you are responding at the top of each response (respondents need not answer each question). In general, all comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov. In addition, comments will be available for public inspection and copying at 1700 G Street NW., Washington, DC 20552, on official business days between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time. You can make an appointment to inspect the documents by telephoning 202-435-7275. All comments, including attachments and other supporting materials, will become part of the public record and subject to public disclosure. Sensitive personal information such as account numbers or Social Security numbers should not be included. Comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information.Show citation box

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:Back to Top

For general inquiries, submission process questions or any additional information, please call Monica Jackson at 202-435-7275. For specific questions on senior financial exploitation, please call James Miner at 202-435-7953.Show citation box

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:Back to Top

In support of its statutory mandates under Section 1013(g)(1) and (3) of the Dodd-Frank Act, the Office for Older Americans will monitor certifications or designations of financial advisors who serve seniors and alert the SEC and state regulators of certifications or designations that are identified as unfair, deceptive or abusive. The Office for Older Americans will also make legislative and regulatory recommendations to Congress on best practices for disseminating information to seniors regarding the legitimacy of certifications and designations, and methods through which a senior can identify the financial advisor most appropriate for the senior's needs.Show citation box

Pursuant to Section 1013(g)(3)(D), the Office for Older Americans is also conducting research to identify best practices for educating seniors on personal finance management. The office for Older Americans intends to use this research to develop goals for programs that provide financial literacy and counseling to seniors.Show citation box

The Bureau is therefore seeking comments in response to the questions posed below. The questions are grouped into the following categories: (a) Evaluation of senior financial advisor certifications and designations; (b) providing financial advice and planning information to seniors; (c) senior certification and designation information sources; (d) financial literacy efforts; and (e) financial exploitation of older Americans, including veterans of the Armed Forces. Please feel free to respond to any or all of the questions but please be sure to indicate in your comments on which questions you are commenting.Show citation box

Please note that the Bureau is not soliciting individual borrower complaints in response to this Notice and Request for Information. Nor is the Bureau seeking personally identifying information regarding borrower complaints, from the parties to the complaint or any third party. Responses to this subsection should not contain account numbers, Social Security numbers or other personal information that could be used to identify the complainant or another party identified in a complaint, or in any way otherwise reveal personally identifiable information.Show citation box

Evaluation of Senior Financial Advisor Certifications and DesignationsBack to Top

1. What resources do seniors have for determining the legitimacy, value, andauthenticity of credentials held by their financial advisors and planners? What sources have been found most helpful, accurate, and thorough? Among other things, comments could address issues such as state or organizational level review standards, evaluation practices, or selection criteria to determine the validity of proposed senior certifications or designations.Show citation box

2. How effective are the existing sources at maintaining the legitimacy, value, and authenticity of credentials held by senior financial advisors and planners?Show citation box

3. How effectively do existing accountability controls deter the misuse of senior advisor credentials? Examples of accountability controls include revoking credentials, public notices of disapproval, or other disciplinary actions.Show citation box

Providing Financial Advice and Planning Information to SeniorsBack to Top

4. What resources are available to explain the subject matter expertise presented or implied by specific certifications and designations? How effective are the publicly available sources at disseminating thorough, up-to-date information? How effectively are seniors able to use the available resources to select a financial advisor with appropriate knowledge to address their specific financial needs?Show citation box

Senior Certification and Designation Information SourcesBack to Top

5. What sources of information on the fraudulent or misleading uses of senior certifications and designations are available? Comments could include, among other things, references to publicly available research or data sets, suggestions for other potentially available research or data, or other information on enforcement, civil, administrative, or criminal cases.Show citation box

Financial Literacy EffortsBack to Top

6. What financial education, counseling, or personal finance management programs are tailored to the unique financial needs of older Americans and their families or caregivers? Among these programs, what are the best practices in providing seniors financial literacy and robust, practical information on personal finance management? Possible comments could address methods for improving recognition of unfair or deceptive financial practices; means for helping seniors plan for retirement, long-term care, and economic security; or approaches to consumer credit counseling and other financial literacy or financial protection practices.Show citation box

Financial Exploitation of Older AmericansBack to Top

7. What types of fraudulent, unfair, abusive or deceptive practices target Americans age 62 and over? Comments could include unique types of financial exploitation or additional information concerning the examples listed below.Show citation box

a. Power of Attorney or Guardian Abuse, whereby an agent under power of attorney or a court-appointed guardian uses his/her fiduciary authority (or a forged power of attorney instrument) to misappropriate the older person's assets and uses them for personal gain rather than for the support of the incapacitated older person; andShow citation box

b. Affinity fraud, in which the characteristics of a trusted advisor such as a member of the clergy or government official are impersonated by those attempting to extract payments or personal information from an older person.
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Financial Exploitation of Older Veterans of the Armed ForcesBack to Top

8. What types of fraudulent or deceptive practices target older veterans and/or military retirees? Comments could include unique examples of financial exploitation or additional information concerning the examples listed below.Show citation box

a. VA Aid and Attendance fraud, whereby veterans are advised to transfer retirement funds into irrevocable trusts that cause them to lose access to the funds and also become ineligible for Medicaid benefits; or,Show citation box

b. Military pension buyout schemes, in which veterans are offered cash payments in return for their military pension payouts in a manner that could ultimately deprive the veteran of the majority of his or her pension.Show citation box

Dated: April 27, 2012.

Meredith Fuchs,

Chief of Staff, Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

I have to call my attorney and ask him if I can submit my report since this organization is asking that you not submit anything identifying anyone.  But Janna Dutton, Josh Mitzen, Richard Block and Devon Bank insisted on making everything they do public record.  I think I just have to explain to this organization that everyone knows all our business.  The whole lawsuit will be published on the Internet soon anyway.