ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Financial Predators Steal To Gamble
Danger Of Access To Senior’s Money
Spotting Financial Elder Abuse
According to a recent State Gambling Commission report, there is a real connection between financial exploitation of seniors and the gambling habits of their financial predators. We have seen that in cases brought to our office where a dishonest caregiver steals from a senior in order to gamble. Whether because of a gambling habit or not, whenever a dishonest caregiver gains access to any confidential financial information of an elderly person, there is a risk that they will use that information to take as much money from the senior as they believe they can get away with. This may extend to redirecting monthly Social Security and pension and IRA benefits and distributions to their own accounts. We have seen cases where greedy caregivers do just that. Redirecting benefits is taking a senior’s property. Any taking of a senior’s property, or any assistance in that taking, is a crime and grounds for civil liability of the person doing the taking and anyone assisting him or her. California Penal Code § 368 and Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 15610.30 (definition of financial elder abuse). California broadly defines what constitutes financial elder or dependent adult abuse:
(a) “Financial abuse” of an elder or dependent adult occurs when a person or entity does any of the following:
(1) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(2) Assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(3) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains, or assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining, real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult by undue influence, as defined in Section 15610.70.
If you or a loved one is a victim of elder or dependent adult abuse or neglect in San Francisco, call us today at (415)441-8669. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
The Financial Elder Abuse/Gambling Connection
According to one State’s Gambling Commission. when a financial perpetrator uses funds stolen from a senior for their own gambling habit, it becomes easier for the commission to litigate as gambling provides no benefit to the vulnerable adult victim who rarely participates in the gambling activity. According to the commission’s report, its investigations have led to several prosecutions. In many cases, the commission reported, the victim is bed-ridden or living in a nursing facility and not a gambler. Oftentimes, the perpetrator is a trusted family member or friend who has a power of attorney over the victims’ financial affairs and uses that position to withdraw funds from the accounts and spends the money gambling at a casino. The report noted that the commission has dealt with cases involving dementia and physical disabilities where the perpetrator depletes the victim’s accounts, sometimes to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars. Sometimes caregivers and family friends may be provided with more financial access than warranted, and when no one is watching, there is the issue of temptation and greed to use someone else’s bank account. Evidence such as video footage may only be kept for a certain amount of time, which can make the case complicated; however, investigators have other investigative records that are kept by casinos. In some cases, the victim is not a reliable witness due to their degenerative cognition.
The commission’s report included a short list of things to look for when considering elderly financial abuse:
- Is a caregiver being provided with too much trust over someone else’s debit or credit cards?
- Are loved ones frequently taking out their elderly companion to gambling establishments when the elderly companion has no interest beyond human attention?
- Is there a large sum of money debited from retirement funds with questionable origins, such as a house-banked card room or casino ATM?
Contact Us
Keep confidential financial information out of reach for any caregiver in your older loved one’s home. Never let a caregiver know Social Security numbers, bank account numbers, PINs or any other confidential financial information of any kind. Regularly monitor all a senior’s accounts – not just the household checking account. Start your due diligence even before you get to the account monitoring stage. Always do a background check on anyone you hire as a caregiver; get references and call them. Never, ever give a caregiver a Power of Attorney, credit card, or a blank check. Stay involved in any senior loved one’s life so a stranger does not have the opportunity for this kind of theft and exploitation. If you sense any kind of abuse of an older loved one in San Francisco, call us right away. Ingrid M. Evans has years of experience in representing seniors and their families against abusers of any kind, including in-home caregivers. You can reach us at (415) 441-8669, or by email at info@evanslaw.com. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
