ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Caregivers and Physical and Financial Elder Abuse
Caregiver abuse and fraud on the elderly are real risks for seniors requiring in-home or institutionalized care. Caregiver abuse may include physical and emotional abuse and financial elder abuse or fraud. In a recent California case[1] of physical elder abuse by a caregiver, a 78-year-old dementia sufferer’s legs had to be amputated due to severe gangrene developed from months of neglect by a caregiver. A police search of the victim’s house found empty bottles of over-the-counter skin ointment and a filthy mattress that showed the victim had not been turned or properly cleaned for an extended period of time. The caregiver was arrested and charged with criminal elder abuse. The Marin County and California elder abuse attorneys at Evans Law Firm, Inc. represent seniors and their loved ones victimized by physical and financial elder abuse by caregivers and others. If you or someone you know is a victim of elder abuse in Marin County or elsewhere in California, call us today at 415-441-8669, and we can help.
Physical elder abuse such as occurred in the recent case can be deadly. Financial elder abuse can be devastating to an elderly person’s quality of life as well. Financial elder abuse includes unauthorized use of credit and ATM cards; access to bank accounts and identity information; undue influence to force gifts, Powers of Attorney, or Will changes; embezzlement; coerced transfers of property; changing a life insurance beneficiary designation, and more. Fraudulent and abusive caregivers take advantage of a senior’s dependence, isolation and vulnerability and use a senior’s weakness or forgetfulness to ingratiate themselves to the senior, gaining access to financial accounts, cash, important papers and personal records. In-home caregivers have time to hunt for cash, search through paperwork, forge checks and other documents, use phone or online connections to manipulate account information or add themselves as beneficiaries, pocket credit cards, sort and block important mail, and screen phone calls from family and friends.
Protecting Your Senior Loved One From Abuse and Fraud
The best protection for a senior is to stay active in his or her life and regularly visit and review statements, records and the mail. Always run a background check and contact references for any in-home caregiver before hiring them. Keep valuables and important papers like a Will or Power of Attorney in a safe place. Never grant a Power of Attorney to a caregiver; caregivers should be limited to providing care and have no involvement whatsoever in financial or other personal matters. Make an inventory of property in the home or with a senior in a care facility. Report suspicions of elder abuse to the police and Adult Protective Services immediately and call qualified elder abuse counsel. While official reporting is important, you should pursue all civil remedies available to senior victims under California elder abuse laws. Our lawyers handle elder abuse cases of all varieties and know the remedies and extra damages to which you and your victimized loved one are entitled. Bringing a timely civil action against abusers can secure justice for an injured senior. California courts award attorneys’ fees to victimized seniors in certain cases and this can ease the burden of bringing a suit.
Contact Us
If you or a loved one been the victim of elder abuse in Marin County or elsewhere in California, contact Ingrid M. Evans and the other Evans Law Firm elder abuse attorneys at (415) 441-8669, or by email at <a href=”mailto:info@evanslaw.com”>info@evanslaw.com</a>. We can help guide your case through investigation, discovery, through a jury trial or toward an equitable settlement. We handle cases involving physical and financial elder abuse, qui tam and whistleblower law, nursing home abuse, whole life insurance and universal life insurance, and indexed, variable, and fixed annuities.
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the case in any way.
