http://nasga-stopguardianabuse.blogspot.com/
http://www.stopguardianabuse.org/
http://www.sac-now.com/index.html
Thousands of adults are currently under Conservatorship. In California there are over 500 Conservators overseeing 4.5 BILLION DOLLARS in assets and 5,600 Conservatorship petitions filed each year. In 2000, the number of people in California who were 65 years of age or older was 3.7 million. By 2020, the number will have grown to 6.3 million. SAC, NOW is dedicated to the individuals who neither need nor require such drastic action and is working to protect everyone from abusive Conservatorships.
THE TOUGH BATTLE: FIGHTING CONSERVATORSHIP
In November of 2005, Robin Fields, a reporter for the Los Angeles Times, ran a four part series on the ramifications of seniors placed under Conservatorship. The stories of rampant abuse, neglect and outright theft were shocking. Assemblyman Dave Jones asked for tighter restraints on professional Conservators, realizing that 4.6 BILLION DOLLARS and the lives of Conservatees were at risk. Assemblyman Jones' bills resulted in new legislation by the California Legislature, known as the Omnibus Conservatorship and Guardianship Reform Act of 2006.
The Omnibus Act made new provisions in an attempt to protect Conservatees, which requires a review of a Conservatorship after six months, education for Judges and Court Investigators, licensing for Conservators, new procedures regarding the sale of the Conservatees residence and investigating Conservators if the Court finds it necessary.
The Omnibus Act DOES NOT PROVIDE for the protection of your Constitutional rights, individual freedom, how your money is spent, where you are to live, the right to make your own medical decisions and a standard for the Courts to follow defining "clear and convincing evidence" for Conservatorship.
In 2006, the Judicial Council, the policy making body of the California courts, formed a 29 member "Probate Investigator Task Force". After eighteen months, the Council provided 85 recommendations for the Courts and the State. Patricia McGinnis, a member of the Council, was quoted in the Task Forces' final report as saying "We had a number of consumers to address this task force. Unfortunately all of the consumers that I talked to were afraid to testify. They were either fearful of being caught up in the system again or being sued." During a press conference, Administrative Presiding Judge Roger W. Boren, who heads the Los Angeles Appellate Court and the Task Force was quoted as saying "the elderly have a target on them, and that target is their estate." The Judicial Council acknowledged that it may take years, if at all, along with increased funding to implement their recommendations.
To read the articles in the Los Angeles Times, please visit www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-conservators-series
To read the Omnibus Act in it entirety, please visithttp://ceb.com/lawalerts/guardianshipconservatorships.asp
For their Judicial Council's full report, please visitwww.courtinfo.ca.gov
For more information on Conservatorships, please visit www.retirementnightmare.com
Requirements For a License
All Conservators must be licensed with the Statewide Registry, which is a division of the Department of Justice. The requirements for a license with the Statewide Registry is a fee and college education. The Statewide Registry has no authority to take any action against an abusive Conservator. Many Conservators belong to the Professional Fiduciary Association of America. They do not make membership mandatory nor do they have jurisdiction to investigate abusive Conservators. In July of 2008, the Department of Consumer Affairs will take responsibility from the Statewide Registry and will oversee and license Conservators.
If a family member agrees to become the Conservator, the only requirement is to be bondable, with no criminal history. According to the Professional Fiduciary Association, 60% of all abuses against Conservatees are by family members. Using the professional Fiduciary Association's statistics, does this mean that 40% of abuse is performed by professional Conservators? When is it ever acceptable for anyone to be abusive? When is someone going to step up and make a difference? When is someone going to stand up for the rights of beloved family members?
SAC, NOW knows that little has changed and people are as vulnerable today as they were prior to the new laws. All the previously mentioned abuses STILL EXIST TODAY.
SAC, NOW believes it is hypocritical that neither the Assembly nor the Judicial Council addressed any of the major issues; the Constitutional Rights, civil liberties and freedoms of Conservatees are still seized by the Court. It is a fact that convicted felons have more rights than those under Conservatorship. The Conservatee is still required to pay ALL attorneys' fees and Court costs. The Courts still allow testimony against the Conservatee without any proof or evidence.
If our elected officials won't seriously address these issues, it is incumbent upon SAC, NOW to inform the people that the new laws CHANGE NOTHING. If you believe this could never happen to you, think again. Once a Conservatorship is started, it's already too late.
Is Conservatorship Fair?
Don't let someone you love become the next victim of unwarranted Conservatorship.
If you support SAC, NOW please join us in our fight. The time for waiting is over.
What your tax deductible donation will do:
Please join us in our fight against unwarranted and abusive Conservatorships
Your donation will help SAC, NOW continue the fight to protect the rights of all, or.. you can wait for the day when you may become the next victim of Conservatorship.
Please contact us at info@sac-now.com
Send donations to: SAC, NOW 4968 Calvin Avenue Tarzana, CA 91356
If you wish you may call us at (818) 345-4339
Don't wait for your elected officials to have more committee's and debates.The time for change is NOW.
SAC, NOW is dedicated to our Mother, who was unjustly placed under Conservatorship
http://www.elderabuseadvocate.blogspot.com/
http://www.estateofdenial.com/
Links and Sources
IRA web sites and related content:
UNDUE INFLUENCE: There Oughta Be a Law (or Two)
PLEASE VISIT LISA NERENBERG'S WEBSITE
When undue influence was “discovered” as a significant factor in elder abuse a decade ago, it immediately struck a chord with advocates and service providers who'd been seeing the phenomenon for years. They may not have had a term for it, but they knew it when they saw it.But translating undue influence into law, or more specifically, translating it into an infraction of the law, hasn’t been easy. See Undue Influence is Not a Crime (Nov 20, 06), Postscript on Undue Influence is Not a Crime (Dec 4, 06), PPS on Undue Influence: The Civil Side (Dec 14, 06), and Long Distance Undue Influence (June 20, 06). For links to these postings and more on undue influence, visit my Web site at Prevent Elder Abuse. This year, advocates in California are tackling the problem full force. The California District Attorney's Association has teamed up with California Senator Bob Margett to broaden the definition of financial abuse used in California’s penal code (PC 368) to include “undue influence upon an elder or dependent adult for financial gain.” The bill, SB 1259, came largely in response to the criminal case against Ronald Brock that I described in “Elder Abuse is Not A Crime.” In that landmark case, Brock was convicted of theft based on undue influence, but an appeals court overturned the conviction on that grounds that obtaining money by consent is only theft if the defendant uses coercion or misrepresentation and that the judge had erred in allowing a conviction for conduct that was "little more than overpersuasion." See SB 1259. SB 1140, sponsored by State Senator Darrell Steinberg, would amend sections of the state’s Welfare and Institutions code pertaining to financial abuse to allow elders to recover property (and lawyers’ fees) when property is taken from them through undue influence or when they lack full mental capacity. See SB 1140. Drawing the lines between persuasion, overpersuasion, and unlawful acts clearly isn’t going to be easy. It requires rethinking old assumptions and reevaluating deeply held values. Our society reveres and rewards the ingenuous and entrepreneurial who succeed in anticipating and responding to both real and fabricated needs and desires. Enticement and seduction are a fact of life. But as we come to understand the vulnerabilities engendered by advanced age, we need to balance our commitment to personal freedom and choice with our obligation to protect and defend. In short, we need to define the point at which society has a responsibility to step in and call foul.
Posted by Lisa Nerenberg, Consultant, Speaker, Trainer at 10:53 AM
Labels: Bernard v. Foley, criminal justice, Financial Abuse, Undue influence
Learn About Elder Abuse Undue Influence PLEASE VISIT LISA NERENBERG'S WEBSITE (click HERE) http://lisanerenberg.com/whatsnew.html#emerging
Learn About Elder Abuse Undue Influence
PLEASE VISIT LISA NERENBERG'S WEBSITE (click HERE)
http://lisanerenberg.com/whatsnew.html#emerging
The "discovery" of undue influence as a significant factor in elder abuse has revolutionized thinking about how people fall prey to "artful manipulators" and what service providers can do help prevent exploitive relationships. The resources on this page provide an overview of undue influence and how it is being addressed by the criminal and civil justice systems.
