Announcing the Guardianship Convention Against Torture Project

by Janet Phelan 

While in Geneva, Switzerland recently I met with a number of disability rights oriented groups. It was suggested to me at that time that the guardianship victims bundle together our complaints and submit under the United Nations Convention Against Torture. The U.S. has both signed and ratified this international treaty and thus is bound to its conditions. Most of us who have faced off the guardianship system have come to the realization that there is no domestic recourse for us. The C.A.T. ofers an international venue which seems to be tailor made to our experiences and concerns.

Here is the link to the C.A.T.: http://www.hrweb.org/legal/cat.html
Please read it carefully to determine if your guardianship situation qualifies under the terms of the Convention. One thing to keep in mind is that the complainant must have exhausted his or her domestic remedies. Another thing to keep in mind is that the C.A.T. is about torture, not about loss of inheritance. So—if you have contacted the FBI or the US DOJ concerning your situation, you would qualify. As probate is a state issue, those who have contacted their State AG may also submit to this effort, per my understanding.
Please email me your submissions at writejanet@live.com This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Please keep your statements concise. All submissions will be confirmed so if you do not receive a confirming email, please re-send.

We Will Not Forget What We Witnessed: Elizabeth Faye Arnold and William Harold Arnold (Part 3-B)

-by-Angela V. Woodhull, Ph.D. © AV Woodhull, 2011

In Part “A” of Elizabeth Faye Arnold, I ended the factual story by posing a question: “What would a person be charged with for running a red light and hitting someone on a motorcycle who later dies?”

I have now called a few police departments and posed this as a hypothetical question to them. “It depends on the circumstances” was the
typical answer. “It could be anything from negligence to manslaughter.”

“Would the typical investigation by traffic homicide investigator be closed out completely within four hours?”
“Oh, no, ma’am” a Miami front desk officer stated. “To complete such an investigation would take at least a couple of months.”

*************************

On the surface, this factual story, so far, appears to be nothing more than an “unfortunate situation.” It’s early on a Sunday morning. William Harold

Arnold is off on his motorcycle, probably on his way to his church where he plays the piano. He’s sitting on his motorcycle at a large intersection in Orlando and when the light turns green, he takes off, when suddenly, from out of nowhere, a woman in a Mustang hits him broadside. The motorcycle skids to a dirt area on the side of the road. Tina Holland, allegedly remorseful, apologizes to the police officer for being distracted from eating a doughnut. The officer closes out the investigation within four hours. No further investigation is ever conducted. Holland is issued a ticket for “running a red light” and given a court date.

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A careful look at the file, however, reveals some curious information.

It turns out that William Harold Arnold, a 53-year-old spinster who has been living with Mama his entire life, is well hated by his neighbors. There are several police reports where he has called law enforcement on the neighbors, and they, in turn, have filed reports on him. This has been an ongoing battle for many years. One report states that the neighbor children were trespassing onto his property. Another report states that the neighbor children were spraying a chemical on his car. The officer notes that the kids were allegedly spraying only water onto his car.

There appears to be another file of an emergency guardianship proceeding commenced several years ago on Elizabeth Faye Arnold. Elizabeth, it turns out, has gone to the hospital emergency room on several occasions for swollen legs and feet—poor circulation.

While at the hospital, Rebecca Fierle steps in and becomes the emergency temporary guardian. She then places Mrs. Arnold in a nursing home.

The son, however—enraged-- somehow is able to bail Mom out of these emergency temporary guardianships and bring her back home. The emergency temporary guardianships expire. This back and forth scenario goes on for a number of years, about three years.

************************
A background check on Tina Holland reveals that Holland has actually been in jail on several occasions for DUI, possession of crack cocaine, and
prostitution. On the morning when she hits William Harold Arnold, however, she is merely eating a doughnut.

A background on her work history reveals that she used to own a dumpster business with her ex-husband—the type of business that professional guardian Rebecca Fierle would hire when she needs to clean out a house.

The records further show that Tina Holland’s court date was changed on several occasions over the next two years, with the officer always being the one who requests a change of the date.

When the hearing finally comes about, no one is present at the hearing except for the officer. The judge asks if the man hit on the motorcycle is all right and alive. The office responds to the judge that yes, indeed, William Harold Arnold is well and alive.
The judge therefore, based on the officer’s testimony, institutes a $400
fine on Tina Holland for running the red light, and also mandates that she attend traffic school.

The paperwork in the file shows that William Harold Arnold—who was actually deceased—was served a subpoena of notice of the traffic hearing.

The subpoena was, however, returned to the court, undelivered—the process server noting that the house appears to be vacant and that there is a “For Sale” sign on the residence.

A further investigation into the file shows that Rebecca Fierle entered a
death certificate into the record on the date that the accident occurred.

That death certificate is then voided out and a new death certificate was created for another date—approximately two months later—when William Harold Arnold actually dies. Furthermore, the court records show that Fierle placed William Harold Arnold on Medicaid, even though she sold his home for $190,000.00. Fierle then was appointed as personal representative and there are outstanding medical bills that come forward as claims against William Harold Arnold’s estate. However, Fierle’s attorney states that the claims are too old, were not timely filed, and therefore don’t have to be paid. Fierle places the “Notice to Creditors” in an obscure little newspaper rather than the Orlando Sentinel.
****************************
We visit Elizabeth Faye Arnold in person. She is alert and appears to be
as mentally competent as a person can be. She has been tucked away in a marginal nursing home for quite some time now and she, too, has been trying to figure out just exactly what happened to her. “They came with an ambulance to my home the day that my son was hit on his motorcycle—even though I had not called for an ambulance.” Elizabeth, removed from her home by ambulance, was rushed to the hospital and then placed in the nursing home, where she has remained ever since.

She removes the blanket that is covering her feet. “Look at my feet,” she says. Her feet are so red and so swollen that there are stretch marks on them. “I’ve met Rebecca Fierle,” she states, “and she does nothing for me and does not give me any answers. I’ve looked out the window and I see her nice Mercedes that she drives. Can you get me out of here? Can you find out what has happened to my possessions, my furniture, my photographs? I don’t have even one picture of my son.”

“Would you be guardian? I want you to be my guardian,” she whispers to me, squeezing my hand.

************************

After much searching, I finally track down the only two witnesses who were allegedly at the accident scene when Tina Holland was eating her doughnut. The one witness just happens to be a city council member and his wife is the secretary for the state attorney’s office in Orlando. He appears to be extremely defensive when I ask him to recall what he witnessed at the accident scene. “Whatever it states on the report. That’s all I remember,” he states. “Read the report.” And he walks off hurriedly.

The other witness is a real estate broker. He, too, appears to be extremely defensive when I knock on his door and attempt to interview him. “How did you find me!?” he inquires. “I don’t remember what I saw,” he states.

“It was too long ago.”

*************************

I interview more neighbors. It turns out that the neighbor across the street is also well connected to city officials. “They were real problem people,” he states. “The yard and the house were always a mess. Nobody liked them.”

*************************

I track down a former landlord of Tina Holland’s but I was never able to actually locate Tina Holland herself. The landlord tells me that everyone in the neighborhood was aware of the motorcycle accident. “She killed a man on a motorcycle and got away with murder,” he stated. “It was the talk of the neighborhood.” “She’s a real problem person—a drug addict. Didn’t pay her rent.”

***********************

Elizabeth Faye Arnold’s house has been repainted. The yard is tidy.

The neighbors no longer call the cops. Everything is now happy and tidy on Silver Drive.

*********************
Related Post: We Will Not Forget What We Witnessed: Elizabeth Faye Arnold and William Harold Arnold (Part 3-A)*Note: Dr. Angela V. Woodhull, a licensed private investigator, spent more than two and a half years investigating court records in Seminole and Orange Counties, Florida and interviewing family members and victims in order to compose this story. All court records that verify the contents of this article were submitted as attachments to the editor of the F.B.I. journal as verification of accuracy. Woodhull can be reached at (352) 327-3665 or (352) 682-9033.

We Will Not Forget What We Witnessed: Part 6 Wade McNalley and his Father, Bruce McNalley

-by-Angela V. Woodhull, Ph.D. (Part 6)

Wade McNalley and his Father, Bruce McNalley*

Back at the probate court files in Seminole County, things were heating up. Rebecca “Fierle’s” attorney in my mother’s case (Reverend Attorney Anthony Nardella) actually began billing my mother’s estate every time I was observed reading the court files. Imagine that.

“Phone call from probate clerk stating that Woodhull is reading the probate files once again.” Charge: $58.”

The next file I began assessing was yet another veteran. By now, we clearly understood that Rebecca “Fierle” had quite an appetite for veterans, since she automatically receives five per cent of their monthly income—no matter what is done or not done during the course of a month.

Another veteran, Carlisle Bosworth, we noticed that $250,000.00 of his assets had been spent in a very short period of time.

What about Bruce McNalley, a veteran? First of all, becoming increasingly savvy at ascertaining the court records more quickly, we noticed that “Fierle” had placed McNalley in a regular nursing home, rather than a veteran’s nursing home. There is a “reason” for this. A veteran’s nursing home is free. Therefore, there would be nothing to bill for. However, if “Fierle” places a veteran in a non-veteran’s nursing home, not only can she bill, but she can also GENEROUSLY bill. I called the nursing home where McNalley was staying and posed as a concerned daughter looking to place my father somewhere in an upscale nursing home. The administrator told me that a top-of-the-line private room, with all the bells and whistles, would cost about $6,000.00 per month.

And what was “Fierle” claiming to the court? “Fierle” was claiming that she was spending $12,000.00 a month in McNalley’s care. We wondered: Where is the other $6,000.00 per month going?

Because of the exorbitant and completely unnecessary spending (to reiterate, McNalley is a veteran—between his monthly income and the fact that he could be placed in a veteran’s nursing home for free, McNalley should have had enough money to sustain himself indefinitely), “Fierle” had initiated a lawsuit against Wade McNalley, Bruce’s son. Wade was facing

being evicted from his homesteaded residence if he could not find the money to purchase his father’s half of a trailer home. The title was “joint tenancy with right of survivorship” but that hadn’t stopped Rebecca “Fierle” for attempting to make Bruce’s son homeless. It was time to visit Wade McNalley.

************************

How can I describe Wade McNalley? The words that come to mind are “fun” “vivacious” “opinionated” “strong willed” “straight shooter.” Wade likes to drink beer, kick back, tell a few jokes, and use a lot of colorful language, especially when describing his feelings toward Rebecca “Fierle.”

After introducing ourselves at his door, one of his first comments were, “Oh, don’t even get me started talking about that c---.” We knew we were in for an interesting evening.
Wade and his father had lived together quite amiably on several occasions. He described Dad as a “skirt chaser” and somehow he ended up in an expensive retirement center due to that fact where he could flirt with all the gals. There were some health problems and soon he had been transferred to a nursing home. Wade had been out of town when he learned, upon his return, that a woman named “Rebecca Fierle” was now his father’s guardian.

“What the hell was that sh-- all about!? You tell me. It’s gotta be about his money! The b---- just wants his money. Don’t even get me started talking on that subject. Then she moves Dad so far away that I can’t even get to go see him. I’m on a very limited budget and I suffer from arthritis.

How the hell am I supposed to go clear across town to visit my dad?

As far as that lawsuit against me, she can go f--- herself! I have an attorney on it and she ain’t gonna get a g—d---m dime outta me!”

Wade told us how his attorney had been very good to him. Wade had recently been released from a hospital and his attorney had actually been paying for groceries and delivering them to Wade’s door. “What a fantastic guy! I couldn’t ask for better.”

Truthfully, an attorney going out of his way THAT much for a client just didn’t sound right. We wondered what it all meant. We were soon to find out. Wade was in the middle of suing someone, a personal injury case.

The “nice” attorney was actually pre-spending the few dollars that Wade would end up with from the settlement. In the end, there wasn’t much left for Wade out of the settlement money, and at that time, “Fierle” just happened to want to “settle out” with Wade. She offered to let him stay in his homesteaded home if he would simply turn over $10,000.00 to her—the same, exact amount of money Wade was about to get in a settlement. (How ‘bout that there.)

We asked Wade, after he cooked us supper and gave us a few beers, if he would like to drive to the neighboring town and see his father. “Would you like to go see your dad this evening?”

“Hell, yeah, I’d love to go see my father! I’m going to get him the hell out of there once I get my settlement money and then I’m going bring him back home. I’m going to be the guardian! I mean, what the hell, I am his son! Who ever heard of some f------ c--- stranger being my dad’s guardian?! Who ever instituted this crazy f---ed up shit?! I was doing one hellofa job taking care of my dad and I know he was happy here. He needs to come home. There’s nothing mentally wrong with him. You’ll see.”

The three of us piled into my van and Wade directed us to the nursing home. It was late at night and we found his father laying in bed, this tall man who seemed very similar natured to his son. The hugs and tears between these two macho men brought tears to the eyes of both David and me. We were ecstatic to have brought them together. “Honey, let’s videotape this because I see no mental incompetence whatsoever.”

Bruce seemed a little startled at first that were videotaping him. “Don’t worry about it, Dad. These are my new friends. They’re here to help you.

I wanna get you back home, Dad, and this can help.”

Bruce was then all right with the videotaping. He stated on many occasions that he would like to come home, that he wanted his son to definitely stay in the trailer home and he was definitely upset to learn that Rebecca Fierle was in the process of trying to make his son homeless.

“When you bail me out of here, we’re going to sue the hell out of her.

Oh, yeah, just you wait and see,” Bruce declared adamantly.

Staff workers, not used to seeing visitors in Bruce’s half of the room, kept peeking into the room. We would hide the phone camera every time a staff worker appeared.

Soon, it was time to leave. “I don’t see any mental incompetence with your dad,” David stated. “Neither do I.”

“See? I told you so!” Wade responded. “We got to get him the hell out of there. I’ve never seen him in such bad physical shape. This place is killing him. I want my dad home.”

************************

The following day, Rebecca “Fierle” found out that Wade had managed to go see his father.

Her response? She had Bruce Baker- acted—put into a straight jacket and medicated on psychotropic drugs. She then contacted her attorney and they wrote a Petition to the court asking the judge to NOT permit Wade McNalley to see his father any more. “Fierle” claimed that it upset the father so much to see his son—and whom he “didn’t really want to see” according to “Fierle”—that she had to Baker Act him. Little did “Fierle” know that we have video footage of the father that is so contrary to these claims that it is rather surrealistic to even fathom that such a statement would be written in the court records.

Lo and behold, at the court hearing, Judge John D. Galluzzo actually decided he would not go along with “Fierle’s” petition. He denied the motion and stated that Wade was free to see his father any time he wanted.

However, Galluzzo’s decision did not stop Rebecca “Fierle” from wielding her unlimited authority. Her response? She simply moved Bruce McNalley to yet ANOTHER nursing home so far away that Wade would have to spend the entire day taking a series of buses just to get to the new location.

***********************
Wade never saw his father alive ever again.
**********************

The next time we saw Wade, he told us hold his attorney was planning on having “Fierle” removed as the guardian—a motion serious enough, that if awarded, “Fierle” could lose her license as a professional guardian.

“I thought we were moving ahead. Next thing I know, I’m getting a call from one of ‘Fierle’s’ staff members. The b---- didn’t even have the nerve to call me herself. Fierle’s employee stated to me, ‘Where do you want us to drop off your father’s ashes?’”

“What!?! My father died?! When did my father die?”

“More than a month ago,” the staff member responded in a flat tone.

“You mean to tell me my father has been dead for more than a month and this is the first time you’re even telling me about it! What the f--- bull---sh-- is this!?”

This big, warm-hearted man, a true man’s man, stood there in front of us and wept. He broke down and he literally wept.

“Oh, there’s a special place in hell for people like Rebecca ‘Fierle,’ Wade stated. “I didn’t even get to say good-bye to my father. My dad had a pre-paid burial plot. He didn’t ever want to be cremated! What the f--- kind of sh—is that?!” “Oh, believe you me, there’s gonna be a payback time!”

Wade could not stop weeping.

************************

Shortly thereafter, Wade became seriously ill – to the point of almost dying. He was hospitalized on several occasions and needed extensive home health care. “I can’t focus on any of this Rebecca ‘Fierle’ bullsh—any further,” Wade told us. “It literally ruined my health. At least that b---- wasn’t able to get a f------ dime out of me. At least I have my home.”

************************

*Not their real names.

***********************

*Note: Dr. Angela V. Woodhull, a licensed private investigator, spent more than two and a half years investigating court records in Seminole and Orange Counties, Florida and interviewing family members and victims in order to compose this story. All court records that verify the contents of this article were submitted as attachments to the editor of the F.B.I. journal as verification of accuracy. Woodhull can be reached at (352) 327-3665 or

(352) 682-9033.

We Will Not Forget What We Witnessed Lawrence Long - Part Four

-by-Angela V. Woodhull, Ph.D.

The next victim that we visited was a man in his early sixties living in an assisted living facility, Lawrence Long. Long was in the process of being sued by professional guardian, Rebecca Fierle.
Long’s crime? Rebecca Fierle had lost in her bid to become Long’s guardian. She was now suing Long for the unwarranted attempt at becoming his guardian—and charging Long for the cost of her hiring an attorney and pursuing an involuntary guardianship against Long.

Her attorney, Karen Goldsmith, who had assisted Rebecca Fierle in her quest to become Long’s unnecessary and unwanted guardian, had been sending threatening letters to Long. Using their favorite judges in Seminole County, Rebecca Fierle and Karen Goldsmith had managed to obtain a court order demanding that Long pay thousands of dollars to Goldsmith for their foiled attempt at taking away Long’s civil rights. A judgment had already been entered against Long—even though he had never been successfully served or appeared in court.

It was time to meet Long and ask him how he had managed to become victimized by this precarious and frightening situation.

We found Long alive and well and living in an upscale assisted living facility. He had his own efficiency apartment and seemed quite happy and fine in his surroundings. He enjoys playing on the internet, driving his car, and going shopping. It turns out that Long had suffered a stroke, which is what put him on Fierle’s “radar” but had now fully recovered.

Fierle seems to enjoy taking involuntary guardianships against veterans she finds in hospitals--probably because she is guaranteed, by Florida law, five percent of their monthly income—for doing practically nothing. Although “five per cent” does not seem to be a lot, multiply five per cent times 20 veterans every month and you have a pretty nice income for very little work.

Long was aware that Rebecca Fierle had sued him for the money she had spent in her foiled attempt to become his guardian.

There were stacks of unopened mail from Fierle and her attorney, Goldsmith, piled up in a corner of his small living room. Long said he didn’t want to open the mail because it was “too stressful” to deal with and he didn’t really know what else he could do except ignore the situation.

How was Long lucky enough to get out the unwarranted guardianship? Luckily for Long, he had been seeing his own personal psychiatrist for most of his adult life and his personal psychiatrist went to bat for him and wrote a letter to the court stating that he would not go along with the assessment that Long needed to be placed into an involuntary guardianship and have all of his civil rights removed.

However, the unpaid bill “owed” to Rebecca Fierle is actually an omen of what is to come. Banking on the “fact” that Long is getting older, it’s just a matter of time. Fierle can always re-apply at a later date to become Long’s guardian, having her favorite doctors declare him incompetent. At that time, the unpaid money for the first foiled attempt will be reimbursed to her out Long’s lifetime savings, since there is already a recorded judgment against Long.

We enjoyed the afternoon visiting with Long, sharing a pizza with him. We opened, with Long, the stack of unopened threatening letters Fierle and Goldsmith had sent to him, which confirmed what I had already read in the court files.

“Let her go f--- herself,” Long said, looking over the bills from Fierle and Goldsmith that increased in price every month, due to interest. Fierle’s attorney was adding interest for each month that Long had ignored the bills.

Long showed us websites that he likes to visit. Between surfing the web and driving around in his car, he has managed, for the moment, to escape the realty that his freedom will be short lived.

Long seemed to realize that he is a “marked man.” Even though she didn’t win the first round, it’s just a matter of time before Rebecca Fierle steps back into Long’s life to become Long’s “guardian.”

“I try not to think about it,” Long said. Long has been “marked for destruction.”*
___________________________________

“Marked for Destruction” is a term coined by John Caravella who became involved with yet another victim of a predatory guardianship. His book, Adele’s Diary, can be viewed at www.markedfordestruction.com

*Note: Dr. Angela V. Woodhull, a licensed private investigator, spent more than two and a half years investigating court records in Seminole and Orange Counties, Florida and interviewing family members and victims in order to compose this story. All court records that verify the contents of this article were submitted as attachments to the editor of the F.B.I. journal as verification of accuracy. Woodhull can be reached at (352) 327-3665 or

(352) 682-9033.

THE ROBING ROOM where judges are judged

I just found this website that every family victim and advocate can use:

THE ROBING ROOM where judges are judged

Click on this link: http://www.therobingroom.com/

Just click on your state (lower left) or on your region of the country. Then, follow the prompts! You may rate, post comments, and contact others who have posted.

I was doing a google search, to see if any of my postings were surfacing, for the judges who perpetrated the “guardianship” crimes against my, elderly, parents. One link opened, directly, to the rating page for the judge in Maryland who, first, took my parents into guardianship, Judge Louis Becker. He has, all, low ratings.

I’ve been behind the scenes, for awhile, but, my advocacy continues in the efforts to find justice for my parents, William and Ada Morris, who passed away, last year, still under this abusive and illegal guardianship. Their lives were stolen, under the guise of protecting them, by Howard County, Maryland, Circuit Court Judges, Louis Becker and Dennis Sweeney and continued with Timothy McCrone. This was, also, orchestrated by Ofelia Ross, caseworker from the Howard County Office on Aging and the “court appointed attorney”, Ria Rochvarg. When my postings went “viral”, last year, Ofelia Ross was replaced by Marcia Soergel, another caseworker. Here, again, are the links to my parents’ story:

1) Neglect & Abuse of William & Ada Morris: http://elder-abuse-cyberray.blogspot.com/2010/04/william-l-morris-and-ada-v-morris.html

2) Letter to Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley: http://elder-abuse-cyberray.blogspot.com/2010/06/racketeering-scheme-against-elderly-and.html

3) Intent to Murder (my father): http://elder-abuse-cyberray.blogspot.com/2010/06/intent-to-murder-by-howard-county.html

4) Condemned to Die (my father): http://elder-abuse-cyberray.blogspot.com/2010/07/condemned-to-die-real-death-squad.html

5) Even in Death, They Plague Us: http://elder-abuse-cyberray.blogspot.com/2010/08/what-nightmare-even-in-death-they.html

Time has not permitted me to write a full account of events that took place at Howard County General Hospital. Here is a, brief, summary: Corruption knows, no, limits. This was obvious with the “bait and switch” by one of the head doctors, “Intensivist”, Dr. David Nyanjom, in the HCGH Intensive Care Unit. He had a meeting/conference call with our family and he told us that he supported my father having a feeding tube. My father lay in his hospital bed, another week, while waiting for an “expedited” court hearing regarding the feeding tube. Dad had, already, told me he was in favor of the tube. But, his wishes were denied. Dr. Nyanjom’s peer (another intensivist), Dr. Fernando De Leon, was the doctor to show up in court. He testified, against, my father having a feeding tube. When I, later, confronted Dr. Nyanjom on the “bait and switch”, his unprofessional and uncaring demeanor validated his participation and complicity. The Howard County Office on Aging had, already, spent all of my parent’s money and Medicaid was, not yet, available, for them. Since my parents’ social security and pension income was not enough to pay for both of my parents, in assisted living, and as the Office on Aging was determined to keep control, they, no longer, wanted my father to live.

To keep other complicit social services, and attorneys, accountable, here are their names: Janis DiSibio, Shareese Kess-Lewis, Debbie Beares, Peggy Rightnour, Phyllis Madachy, Susan Rosenbaum, Sue Vaeth, Charlene Gallion, Beverly Heydon and Anthony Doyle. Administrative Judge Diane Leasure was, also, complicit as were, at the state level, former Maryland Secretary of Human Resources, Brenda Donald, Maryland Secretary Department on Aging, Gloria Lawlah, the Office of Health Care Quality and Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley. Assisted living owners, who gained thousands of dollars a month, from my parents’ estate, and who, willingly, lied against family members, are: Carmen Collandrea and Richard Collandrea owners of Bryant Woods Inn Assisted Living, Columbia, Maryland and William Singh and Elmira Singh, owners of Pfefferkorn Assisted Living, West Friendship, Maryland.

My mother’s birthday is this Saturday, August 13th. She would have been 91. Mom and Dad, rest in peace!

Barbara Morris

Daughter and Advocate for Justice

A Heartbreaking Story of Elder Abuse and Legal Thievery

by Jim Fargiano

Until relatively recently, I was unaware of how rampant elder abuse is within the legal court system. For almost the last two decades, my life has been consumed by helping as many people as I could in a different way than most give help. I have informally counseled and helped thousands of people through the publishing of my book, as well as in private sessions as a medium/psychic. It was not until my good friend started to share her story with me that my eyes were opened to something far more prevalent than I was cognizant of; at least on a conscious level.

I have been privileged to know Diane for over five years. During that span, she has never been anything but helpful, loving and compassionate to everyone. Doing what I do for a living generally makes me able to be a pretty good judge of character. Ironically, it is a judge and his decisions that prompted me to write this article. The choices and attitude he has expressed have been protected by legal statutes. While they might be legal, they are far from moral, ethical or compassionate.

This all began approximately two and a half years ago. Diane's mother had given her power of attorney and named her the healthcare proxy. Like many families, there were disagreements with the siblings. Diane was being told that her brother and sister wanted to sell their mother's home and place her in a nursing home. While this elderly woman, Dorothy, had some early dementia and knee problems, she was still a vibrant, cognizant person. She had no interest in being displaced so that those two could have her money. Diane's family suggested she file for legal guardianship to protect her home and to protect her mother's life as well. It seemed to make an abundance of sense.

To tell the events of what unfolded quickly is really an injustice to the elder abuse that has incurred since. The siblings contested the petition for guardianship.

Instead of reaching a mediated agreement, the judge listening to the case decided he would be better at making decisions for everyone. He assigned a law guardian and a healthcare manager. It appears these three have worked together before.

Diane was immediately removed from what her mother wanted; to have her take care of her needs if there was any reason for it. As it was, Dorothy would spend many weekends at Diane's house. It must be noted that Diane works from home and took care of her father in his last years. It would give Dorothy a change of scenery and much appreciated love and companionship. All of that was about to change.

Diane, rightfully, brought in a lawyer to help overturn the judge's decision. This attorney had handled her parents' legal needs in the past. Not only was he familiar with the family dynamics, but he had intimate knowledge of what Dorothy wanted. He was even going to represent Diane pro bono. All he wanted to see was that this aged woman was allowed to live happily at her own home, or with Diane.

The Supreme Court judge, based in Nassau County, New York, took it upon himself to unfairly disallow the attorney's generosity and right to represent Diane. It was the first step in a string of negatively prejudicial rulings against my friend.

The law guardian requested that a reverse mortgage be approved for $275,000 on Dorothy's home of six decades. In open court, opposed by some, this magistrate authorized the financial decision and stated that the money would allow Dorothy to remain in her home for at least five years. It is now only two years later and all of that money has been spent. In addition, social security and a couple of small pensions were still coming in. In a mere twenty-four months, more than $325,000 had been frittered away!

As of the writing of this story, the judge has ordered Dorothy into a nursing home. In his ruling, he admits this goes against Dorothy and the family's wishes. The law guardian, healthcare manager and another person showed up unannounced and told Dorothy they were taking her to the doctor to check on a problem she was having. Dorothy, now eighty-seven years old, willingly went with them. She was hustled to a nursing home that was a distance far from the only child who has been battling for her freedom. She is frightened beyond belief.

The lie to get her into the car is one of a long string of deceptive tactics used by the law guardian, healthcare manager and the judge himself. There has been hearing after hearing over the last thirty or so months where the three of them have waged a war of defamatory statements, incredulous lies and perjury against Diane. They have fought the only daughter looking to do the right thing for her mother, with their end game being a complete bleeding of Dorothy's modest estate.

Her health has been compromised, and from my outsiders view, it was done solely to line their own pockets. The tragic thing in all of this has been that the judge, elected to uphold the rights of all people, has spearheaded his attack on an elderly woman.

How I wish I could condense hundreds of pages of documents into a short article. There was the theft of over thirty thousand dollars of jewelry. Dorothy stated that her other daughter absconded with it and she has been asking to have it returned. The supposed law guardian knows about it, but has refused to step in.

There was a sworn statement from another legal person stating that from all of the interviews she had with people familiar with the family, that Diane was seen as the most loving and giving child of the three. It states that her brother is known to have a violent temper and would be a danger to his mother. In court, the very same woman stood before the judge and said that this same man would be the best person to have Dorothy live with. In my opinion, these egregious actions of Diane's siblings has been overlooked in exchange for their support in allowing all of this to go on without their objections.

As I sum this up, I would share with you that there was a previous time that Dorothy was locked away for thirty days in another facility. She was denied the chance to be taken out by Diane for Thanksgiving, nor was she allowed to attend her only great granddaughter's christening; something that she wanted very much to be a part of. In trying to support Diane in whatever limited way possible, I have found that elder abuse is a much broader problem than I was aware of.

The National Association To Stop Guardian Abuse (NASGA) has stepped in to help with this case; one of a multitude they are bringing to the attention of Congress and other law related committees. It seems like power-hungry people who are trusted to protect the rights of our senior citizens run amuck and take advantage of them, their families and so forth. Justice is supposed to be blind, yet it is those in society who need not be blind to the fact that this goes on far too often. If you find yourself in a position to make a difference by correcting the wrongs of these judges and guardians, make sure you do not wait for someone else to fix it. What would you do if this was your Mom or Dad; if it was your family faced with this?

About the Author

Jim Fargiano is a student and teacher of spirituality and universal awareness. He has shared his ability to communicate with Spirit with thousands of people. There is a daily blog for like-minded people who are willing to improve their lives. Jim can be reached at http://www.JimFargiano.com.

Follow Jim Fargiano's daily blog at http://www.JimFargiano.blogspot.com

Source=>>here

Matricide—The Gift that Keeps on Giving

Ray Fernandez

On May 9, Judy Phelan got another installment of the pay-off money for her involvement in the death of her own mother. Amalie Phelan had been a clinical psychologist and widow of controversial investigative reporter and best-selling author, James Phelan.

The ongoing saga of the Phelan murder, intended to be a hush job, ended up spilling into the independent media when Judy’s sister, Janet Phelan, survived the attempt to silence her, an attempt botched by the Long Beach Police Department. Janet was unconscious for several days in a Long Beach hospital but ultimately survived the attack, which she states was spearheaded by LBPD Officer Loren Dawson. She has since left the U.S.

If Janet had succumbed, her sister Judith would have been the sole beneficiary of the Phelan estate, valued at around $1 million dollars.

According to the available records, Amalie nearly died in June of 2002, while under the “care” of her daughter, Judith and conservator Melodie Scott, who acted in concert with Redlands attorney J. David Horspòol and a shadowy agent for an alphabet intelligence agency, who goes by the name of “Jack Smith.” (http://www.phillyimc.org/en/happy-birthday-agent-smith) Judy, who was living with her mother at the time, was the “hands-on” part of the operation.

Janet Phelan was alerted to her mother’s distress and rushed to Temecula from Los Angeles on June 11,2002. She drove her mother to the ER at Rancho Springs Hospital in Murrieta, where Amalie was admitted and emergency surgery was performed. On returning to her mother’s home, Janet Phelan states she discovered evidence at the scene and contacted the Temecula Police.

Two days later, she was served with notice that Melodie Scott has gone to court and obtained a Temporary Restraining Order blocking her from seeing her mother again. In the application for the TRO, Scott falsely states that Janet “unnecessarily” transported her mother to the hospital, thereby upsetting her.

The Restraining order never came to hearing. Instead, Judge Stephen Cunnison signed a permanent restraining order in chambers, violating the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Shortly thereafter, he issued a second Restraining order, blocking Janet from contacting any agency which could have possibly intervened and helped her mother.

“I was restrained from contacting the Department of Justice, the police, Adult Protective services and the Ombudsman for Nursing homes,” states Janet.

The records support Janet’s contention that she reported these events to every appropriate agency of record.

“I called the Temecula Police right after taking Mom to the ER,” she recalls. They came, they took a report which states it went to the D.A. for investigation. The D.A. denied receiving it. I then filed a report with the Special Investigations Unit of the District Attorney’s office, and the report “disappeared.” I filed a report with the California Attorney General. This went to Deputy AG Mark Geiger, who removed it from the system so that it couldn’t be investigated. I then filed a complaint with Geiger’s boss, Dane Gillette. Gillette failed to respond. I finally filed with the United States Department of Justice and got a letter back falsely stating that the statute of limitations had expired—on murder? I don’t think so—and that there was nothing they could do.

“I filed with the Commission of Judicial Performance, the State Bar, APS, the FBI and even with the California Professional Fiduciaries Bureau. There was a blockade at every juncture,” she says.

“I also contacted Internal Affairs at the LBPD after the cops tried to take me down and

I was told—incredibly—that I wasn’t “allowed” to contact Internal Affairs. They cited that second restraining order as a reason not to take my report and threatened me with arrest if I called them again.”

Amalie died shortly thereafter under suspicious circumstances. Janet Phelan was not informed that her mother had died until weeks after she had been buried.

In a concerted effort to reward Judy for her crimes, Melodie Scott first cut Janet off the Trust for a protracted period of time and utilized one of Amalie’s accounts at Bank of America to funnel money to Judy, an account she never reported to the court in the conservatorship proceedings.

The estate has dwindled, due in part to the pay- offs and also to the fact that Janet , who is a beneficiary, survived against all odds. The Trusteeship passed on to the Riverside Public Guardian’s office and in another effort to make sure that Judy is amply rewarded, the Deputy Public Guardian Elizabeth Aquarian recently made false declarations to the court concerning prior accountings in order to tap into Janet’s share and turn it over to Judith. On May 9, Riverside Superior Court Judge Thomas Cahraman signed the order approving this.

“My sister keeps reaping the benefits of attempted murder. It’s all about money for Judy,” she says. “I want her behind bars. But not only is justice being denied, these people are actually padding her pockets with blood money.

“I can hardly believe that this is happening in our country,” declares Janet. “If people are murdering their parents for money, with the full approval and sanction of the State, what does that say about our way of life? What does that say about our values and our system of justice?”

“We have a great system—on paper. In actuality, what we have is utter lawlessness and courts of privilege, abuse and pursuit of the Almighty dollar.”

Judith Phelan could not be reached for comment. Court records indicate that she is living in the San Francisco Bay area under an assumed name.

"I Want Your House! "

By Janet C. Phelan

It seemed that the struggle over the conservatorship of Jean Tanaka couldn’t get more bizarre. Well, it just did.

On June 2, 2011, Tanaka conservator Linda Cotterman asked the court to have Mrs. Tanaka’s daughter, Jeannie, declared to be in contempt of court, an action which may involve jail time and will most likely cost Jeannie her job (Jeannie is an attorney with the State).

Cotterman is apparently steaming that Jeannie Tanaka, who is the Trustee for the Tanaka Trust, has asserted her rights as Trustee and is cleaning up the Westwood house which was left vacant when her mother, Jean Tanaka, was forcibly removed in the summer of 2010.

Jean Tanaka is under a conservatorship and Linda Cotterman is, peculiarly, the conservator, even though the Tanaka Trust documents clearly list Jeannie Tanaka as the person to assume that position.

The fact that Jeannie Tanaka was adhering to advice of her counsel, Robert Canny, in asserting her rights to clean up the property does not seem to concern Linda Cotterman. Jeannie and Jean had been residing together in Mrs. Tanaka's large Westwood home until Cotterman went to court to have Jeannie evicted and her mother taken forcibly from the house. Per the court orders, Jeannie was given three hours to remove her belongings. She moved out in February of 2010.

Upon her return to the house in May of this year, Jeannie found a terrible disarray, which she alleges was the result of Cotterman sacking the house. This is how she describes what she found:

“All of parent’s dresser drawers were emptied! Pictures torn off the walls, paint torn off, many damaged areas requiring painting of especially kitchen and stairway walls. Curtains in bedroom drawn, refrigerator light bulb was put in the ceiling, replacing the 100 watt bulb Mama’s large bathroom trashed clothes, papers, trash thrown all over the counter and floor. All of her expensive perfumes, colognes,cosmetics, toiletries, etc. removed.

Dining room trashed: parents personal belongings pulled from all over the house and piled in the dining room. When attorneys had a meeting in fall 2009 (creutz, reed, lodise, carol white) the room was of course neat and clean.

2 cabinet doors torn off hinges: one in kitchen, one in laundry room.
Expensive carpets in kitchen and laundry room removed and replaced with tile. Told the carpets were dirty and instead of cleaning, were removed. Flooring under the sink had been ripped out and I had to have it replaced. All kitchen pots and pans missing, cabinet shelves emptied, pantry emptied, all recipe books removed. Boxes and boxes of photo albums pulled into the kitchen and stacked All of Mama’s nick knacks removed from the living room. Mama’s 3 mink coats missing, chinchilla coat missing.

Large box of Japanese swords, including numerous national treasures worth millions missing. Upstairs bathroom door frame pulled off wall by someone who locked themselves out of the bathroom. Garage piled high with black trash bags of parents’ personal belongings,
unprotected clothes-moth eaten. Garage trashed: once neatly packed and stacked boxes were rummaged through contents thrown in heaps. Piles and piles of unwashed sheets and clothing found thrown in piles upstairs closet and living room.

Up until Mama was taken to the basement unit, I was not allowed to enter other rooms when I visited Mama. It was when we changed the locks and went in beginning May that I could see the full extent of what the temporary conservators and christine (ed. note—Christine Tanaka, Jeannie’s sister) were doing.”

Jeannie Tanaka then hired a couple of helpers and began spending her weekends trying to clean up the mess. The contempt of court pleadings claim that Jeannie is now living on the property, which a court order last year denied her from doing. Jeannie maintains she lives in her condo in West L.A.

The conservatorship of Jean Tanaka will probably go down in the annals of legal abuse of the elderly in pursuit of their money with the apparent goal here being the Westwood house, valued at several million dollars. The elderly Tanaka, a Japanese American, was detained during WWII in the Death Valley detention center, along with her then infant daughter, Jeannie. The conservatorship was launched in a hearing wherein Tanaka siblings made allegations demonizing Jeannie’s care of her mother, with whom she had been residing for eight years. The court ignored evidence to the contrary and discounted the legal documents, which named Jeannie as conservator and Trustee.

This reporter has reviewed letters and cards previously sent to Jeannie Tanaka by her sister, Christine, congratulating her on the wonderful care she was giving her mother. But things changed abruptly when Mr. Tanaka passed on, leaving the mother more vulnerable. Almost immediately upon his demise, Christine Tanaka filed for conservatorship, attacking her sister Jeannie for the very efforts she had so highly praised her for.

Jeannie must now pay $100 an hour in monitoring fees to see her mother and is restricted to three visits a week. Ironically, one of the allegations hurled at Jeannie in an attempt to wrest the conservatorship from her was that she was isolating her mother.

A medical doctor, Dr. Laura Moire, became concerned that medical care was being withheld Jean Tanaka by her conservator. The doctor then called Adult Protective Services and the police to make a complaint.

In a Kafkaesque maneuver, Judge Reva Goetz then slapped Dr. Moire with a restraining order, prohibiting her from making further reports about the welfare of Jean Tanaka. The fact that Dr. Moire is, as a physician, a mandated reporter of elder abuse didn’t seem to bother Judge Goetz, who seems intent on isolating Mrs. Tanaka from anyone and everyone who might be concerned for her welfare.

Dr. Moire’s report detailed numerous concerns that Mrs. Tanaka’s health was being negatively impacted by Cotterman’s care. Of special note was the discontinuation of physician prescribed supplements which had previously stabilized Mrs. Tanaka’s blood pressure, normalized her cholesterol levels, built bone density, and strengthened her immune system and cognitive functioning. Dr. Moire noted that this discontinuance has been followed by several back -to- back urinary infections, at least four collapses and several hospitalizations where she was transported unconscious by ambulances none of which were brought to the attention of a cardiologist. Mrs. Tanaka has reportedly further suffered weight loss, lack of basic dental care, isolation and restrictive monitoring of highly limited visits with her daughter, Jeannie.

Dr. Moire was also concerned about the apparent placement of Mrs. Tanaka on “comfort care” in the absence of any terminal condition or diagnosis, which has resulted in not only the continued withdrawal of care (such as supplements) which were deemed beneficial to the ninety-five year old woman but the denial of care for other medical problems, including her now painfully swollen hands, extreme fatigue, and erratic blood pressure.

The Tanaka Will and Trust had left all the property to Jeannie, including the Westwood home, located in a prime real estate location. The actions by Cotterman, supported and endorsed by Judge Goetz, have effectively nullified the Will and the Trust.

According to a couple of the helpers who have been assisting in cleaning up the Tanaka residence, Cotterman has lately been hanging around the house, showing up early in the morning and late at night, taking pictures and verbally accosting the helpers. One of the helpers, Nahid , quit the job this past weekend. She told this reporter that Cotterman confronted her on a couple of occasions recently outside the house, demanding information from her and snapping her picture and pictures of her vehicle. Nahid reported she was “frightened” by Cotterman.

In the pleadings to the court to have Jeannie deemed in contempt of court, Cotterman’s attorney made a statement which may reveal Cotterman’s real interest in this case.

Attorney Scott Schomer writes; “If respondent’s position (that all conservatee’s assets belong to the Trust) is correct, then there are no assets in the conservatorship and there is no conservatorship of estate.”

And if that were true, Cotterman and Schomer wouldn’t be able to charge a dime. Conservatorships are very expensive, with legal bills running in the tens of thousands a year and conservatorship fees running a close second.

Calls to Mr. Schomer were not returned.

Janet Phelan is an investigative journalist whose articles have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The San Bernardino County Sentinel, The Santa Monica Daily Press, The Long Beach Press Telegram, Oui Magazine and other regional and national publications. Janet specializes in issues pertaining to legal corruption and addresses the heated subject of adult conservatorship, revealing shocking information about the relationships between courts and shady financial consultants. She also covers issues relating to international bioweapons treaties. Her poetry has been published in Gambit, Libera, Applezaba Review, Nausea One and other magazines. Her first book, The Hitler Poems, was published in 2005. She currently resides abroad. You may browse through her articles (and poetry) at janetphelan.com

“Dancing Around the Beast”

“Dancing Around the Beast”

(Guardianship “Reform” Legislation is Failing to Address the “Beast”)

-by-

Angela V. Woodhull, Ph.D.

(licensed private investigator)

(352) 327-3665
(352) 682-9033

If you’re unfamiliar with the saying, “Dancing Around the Beast,” then perhaps a definition of that saying is where I should begin. Yet, according to a search in Almighty Google,

there is no definition for “Dancing Around the Beast.” Likewise, a few books on colloquialisms does not produce any reference to “Dancing Around the Beast.”

Okay. We all know what it means. It’s the “elephant in the room” Or put another way, it’s “skirting the issue.” It’s talking about a “problem” and addressing all of the peripheral issues but never tackling “the problem,” better known as The Beast.

You may be asking, “Well, who is the Beast?” And if you haven’t guessed by now, The Beast, by all means, are attorneys—the primary vultures when you or your loved
one have been placed under an involuntary, predatory guardianship.

What can be done about the Beast?

Those of us who are Civil Rights Guardianship Reform Activists have done several things to confront the Beast.

We’ve:

· Gone to court

· Hired attorneys to fight the Beast (other attorneys)

· Contacted law enforcement (to no avail)

· And, finally, contacted our local legislators, crying, “You need to change the laws! We need guardianship legislative reform!!”

Guardianship Attorneys Are “The Beast”

In a nutshell, The “Beast” is predatory guardianship attorneys who set off to covert all of your assets into attorneys’ fees. And as we saw in the Marie Long case, it doesn’t take long for a team of vulcher-like guardianship attorneys to deplete a $1.3 million estate leaving the victim subsiding on welfare and Medicaid. The “solution”, from public outcry in Arizona, was to demand legislative reform. But that main goal was quickly forgotten.

HR2424 quickly evolved into a pro-guardianship bill.

As guardianship victims go round and round from legislator’s office to legislator’s office looking ways to reform the law, everything is address except for The Beast. Take a look at some of the reforms that all of our efforts have gotten us so far:

· New Law, state of Washington: A guardianship should only be commenced with “clear and convincing evidence.”

The Beast doesn’t care about this law. This law will not stop The Beast. Why? Because there are always medical professionals who will write reports of “clear and convincing evidence” so that a guardianship can be commenced upon anyone.

Take the case of Debra Skulls, for example. When her mother died, she inherited about $250,000.00 and thought she would move in with her brother and his wife. But Skull’s sister-in-law did not like that plan. The solution? Skull was declared by “clear and convincing evidence” mentally incompetent placed under the “care” of a professional guardian who allowed Skull to live in a filthy half way house in the downtown Miami area while Skull’s

“guardian” and the guardian’s attorney feasted for two years on Skull’s inheritance. When the $250,000.00 was completely spent, Skull was found by “clear and convincing evidence” to be re-capacitated. Yep. As soon as the guardian and her attorneys spent all of Skull’s money, they found three medical doctors to say that Skull no longer needs a guardian. The Beast therefore continues his dance.

· New California law: Professional guardians are now “monitored” once every two years. Does The Beast care about this law? Not in the least. The Beast will continue to rake up exorbitant attorney’s fees while, at the same time, a new industry has been created—private companies that are hired to monitor professional guardians! And guess who pays for this new level of investigation—The Ward! So, meanwhile, The Beast will continue to happily dance.

Let’s take a look at other passed legislation:

California Bill AB 1363--Enhances court review & expands duties of court investigators

(This bill dances around The Beast by adding another layer to the problem. The court investigators may find that an attorney charged $375 for an item that the court should have paid only $350 for. Therefore, the “Beast” still gets to devour the assets of the elderly person, but it may take a little longer.)

In fact, any of the following bills simply “dances around the beast”:

California SB 1116--Increases court oversight of ward moves & sale of
home.

California SB 1550 --Establishes licensing & disciplinary scheme for
professional fiduciaries.

California SB 1716-- Allows court to take action in response to informal
ex parte complaints & communications.

Florida HB 457-- Enacts recommendations of Guardianship Task
Force.

Florida HB 191-- Enacts amendments concerning less restrictive
alternatives, guardian modification of ward trusts, and court monitors.
because the end result, at the end of the day, is that no one is monitoring or examining The Beast.

The Beast Continues—Unfettered--Despite Any and All

Guardianship Reform Legislation

Does The Beast really care if there is:

· A Guardianship Task Force? (The Guardianship Task force compiled a “report” in 2006. Did this report inhibit the Beast? Not in the least.)

· Increased court oversight regarding the selling of the “ward’s” home? (Does this additional oversight inhibit The Beast? Not in the least. At the end of the day, the attorney is still paid whether the home of the “ward” was sold at fair market value or below market value and then laundered by the guardian and her friends.)

· Increased licensing requirements of professional guardians

(No. At the end of the day, the Beast is still turning in exorbitant fees that the Judge is rubber stamping. It’s just “another day in court” for The Beast.)

And yet another new law was just passed in the state of Kentucky regarding “financial exploitation” of the elderly. Does it sound like a beneficial law that will prompt an investigation of attorneys who convert nearly the entire estate of a “ward” into attorneys’ fees? Of course it does! But what the new Financial Fraud Act of Kentucky actually accomplish? Incredibly, it states is that if a named heir has ever been convicted of a felony, the heir
cannot become a guardian or collect his or her share of the estate!

The new Financial Fraud Act of Kentucky actually benefits professional guardians and their attorneys by making it easier for them to exploit the elderly. Once again, The Beast dances away.

HR 2424—

Most recently, in the state of Arizona, Representative David
Smith (R) stopped dancing around the Beast and decided to tackle the Beast directly with HR 2424 which, in its original form, stated that attorneys would be limited to taking only $10,000.00 in fees to defend a challenged guardianship. Guardianship associations, however, quickly opposed the bill, and instead introduced their own bill that gives more power and authority to professional guardians. HR 2424 was soon almost dead in the water and instead incorporated into a pro-guardian bill that, of course,eliminated the $10,000.00 cap of attorneys’ fees.

The Beast—at this point—is so experienced at circumventing guardianship legislative reform that you’ll soon see him on

Dancing with the Stars.

California Reform of Financial Exploitation of the Elderly and Nursing Home Abuse (CANHR)

Which led me to stumble upon the California Reform of Financial Exploitation of the Elderly and Nursing Home Abuse non-profit organization in California. “Now here is something exciting!” I thought! “An organization that is actually addressing attorneys financially exploiting the elderly!” I couldn’t wait to speak with the director, Pat McGinnis, who claimed in a brief phone conversation with me, that she’s been “fighting the fight”

for 27 years. Even though nothing much has been accomplished,

according to McGinnis, at least she’s been out there writing grants and her staff attorneys address the California legislature on a regular basis. It was Don Quixote with a law degree and I wanted to speak with him.

Prescott Cole, Staff Attorney, California Reform of Financial Exploitation of the Elderly and Nursing Home Abuse (CANHR)

When I received a call back from CANHR staff attorney,

Prescott Cole, I was eager to see what he would suggest as far as authoring legislation that would kill the Beast, or at least tame him dramatically.

I asked Cole, “If I am an elderly person, and my daughter and a professional guardian are battling over whether or not I should be placed under guardianship, why should I be paying for this?”

But Cole had no answer for me. Even though he specializes in “financial exploitation” of the elderly, his investigations into legislative reform never include examining the Beast. Instead,
Cole is the Attorney White Knight who investigates fraudulent insurance companies and shady “reverse mortgage” schemes.

But when I suggested that attorneys are exploiting the elderly by converting a lifetime of savings into attorneys’ fees, this was not a subject that Mr. Cole was interested in pursuing in the least.
The Beast dances again.

Cole suggested that I speak with yet another attorney at CANHR who specializes in guardianship reform.

Alas! I would be put in touch with the “right person” who could tame the Beast!
Disturbing Phone Conversation with Staff Attorney Tony Chicatelle, CANHR
I explained to Chicatelle that I was looking for legislation, similar to what had died in the water in Arizona, where attorneys could be paid no more than a “mere” $10,000.00 in attorneys’
fees for “defending” a guardianship, using the “ward’s” money.

I told him that Norman Lawson, head of the Kentucky Legislative Judicial Committee, stated that there could be a bill that simply states that the “’ward’s’ funds cannot be used for the criminal or civil defense of a guardianship.” End of story.

Chicatelle, however, felt that would be a terrible bill.
And why is that? Because, Chicatelle, in his capacity as the attorney for a non-profit organization, actually is hired to get people out of unnecessary guardianships. “Capping attorneys’ fees,” Chicatelle stated, “would provide a disincentive to fully litigate their rights.”
Yes, you heard me correctly.

So, if someone decides tomorrow to file a guardianship proceeding upon you that you did not ask for, request, or even need, then you might find yourself having to spend your lifetime
of savings on getting yourself OUT of that unwarranted guardianship.

Chicatelle, the non-profit extraordinaire, saw absolutely nothing wrong or out of the ordinary with this scenario. Said Chicatelle, “It’s no different that anyone suing you over anything. I can start a frivolous lawsuit over anything on you and you’ll have to spend money to defend yourself. Or, if you are charge with a crime, you’ll have to hire an attorney to defend yourself.”
Chicatelle added, “My freedom means enough to me that if I had to spend my entire lifetime’s savings to get out of a guardianship, I’d do it.”

Chicatelle saw nothing wrong with this scene, which, in actuality, amounts to, more or less, a legalized form of kidnapping and ransom. After all, he is the “non-profit guy” trying to get you “out” of the guardianship that you shouldn’t have ever been placed under in the first place.
And so, The Beast continues, dancing away, unfettered.
*****************
Tomorrow is another day. There will be other civil rights guardianship reform advocates calling up legislators and visiting their 22-year-old legislative side kicks, their eyes glazed over as they feign interest in the subject matter of guardianship reform. There will even be a smitten of legislators taking their own phone calls, some vowing to “’reform’ the guardianship laws.” Some will get a bill or two passed, and there will be a new “tightening” on the restraints of what professional guardians can and cannot do. But the “dance around the beast” will remain, unaddressed.

And the Beast will continue his dance—unfettered--until the federal government seriously steps in and takes the Fourteenth Amendment (life, liberty, and property cannot be removed without due process) seriously. Converting one’s entire lifetime of savings into attorneys’ fees is the dancing beast that needs to be seriously addressed by our federal legislators.
**********************************
Angela V. Woodhull, Ph.D.
licensed private investigator
(352) 327-3665
(352) 682-9033

Government Corruption - Guardianship Abuse - Puppets Acting Out a Probate Guardianship Court Hearing

Another 'How could this go on in America?' Story

"Under Colorado law, the courts are supposed to follow a hierarchical list when choosing a guardian: Spouses, adult children and family friends all rank higher on that list than professional guardians. . . . Stewart followed none of these procedures . . . . 'It's criminal what they've done to me and my son,' Letty said. 'How could this go on in America? All my rights have been taken away. . . . They've taken my money and keep me from seeing my son when he's done nothing wrong.'"

Read it all here =>>BlondJustice.0rg

Reports of elder abuse result in Restraining Orders...But Not How You´d Think...

Illustration by Dees

by Janet Phelan as originally reported on Salem News

In an unparalleled action in an ex parte hearing on April 1, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Reva Goetz issued a Restraining Order against a local physician, Dr. Laura Moire, blocking her from taking further action or making more reports in regards to conservatee Jean Tanaka.

Dr. Moire, who is considered an expert in elder abuse, is a founder of the Geriatric Division of the American College of Emergency Medicine, a founding member of the American College of Forensic Medicine as well as a member of the White House Conference on Aging, among numerous other honors and affiliations. Dr. Moire took a sole action of calling both Adult Protective Services and the police on the evening of March 30, 2011, in an attempt to alert these agencies as to her concerns of abuse being inflicted upon Mrs. Tanaka through the auspices of conservator Linda Cotterman.

In an interview last week Dr. Moire stated that she had testified during the conservatorship trial of Tanaka on March 3 and was concerned to learn that no action had been taken to address her concerns as to Mrs. Tanaka's care.

Moire's testimony dealt with a number of specific areas wherein she stated that Tanaka's health was impacted by the type of care being delivered by Cotterman. These included concerns that Mrs. Tanaka was forcibly removed from her spacious Westwood home and subsequently confined in a small basement apartment, as well as the discontinuation of physician prescribed supplements which had previously stabilized Mrs. Tanaka's blood pressure, normalized her cholesterol levels, built bone density, and strengthened her immune system and cognitive functioning. This discontinuance has been followed by 5 back -to- back urinary infections,4 collapses and several hospitalizations where she was transported unconscious by ambulances none of which were brought to the attention of a cardiologist. She has reportedly suffered weight loss, lack of basic dental care, isolation and restrictive monitoring of highly limited visits with her daughter, Jeannie.

Of specific concern to Dr. Moire was the placement of Mrs. Tanaka on “comfort care” in the absence of any terminal condition or diagnosis, which has resulted in not only the continued withdrawal of care (such as supplements) which were deemed beneficial to the ninety-five year old woman but the denial of care for her now painfully swollen hands, extreme fatigue, and what has been reported as sudden inability to stand up on her own and walk, brainfog and erratic blood pressure.

The Salem News has obtained a copy of the ex parte notice, written by attorney Margaret Lodise, in which she advises that “we will be making an ex parte application tomorrow morning at 8:30 a.m. In Room 258 (Dept. 9) seeking an order restraining either Jeannie or Dr. Moire or either of their agents from making any calls to the police, the paramedics or any similar agency reporting elder abuse regarding Mrs. Tanaka until further order of the court.” Lodise's office has declined to comment on this matter .

At the April 1st hearing, Judge Goetz chose to also restrain Jeannie from any further contact with her mother. According to witnesses, Jeannie showed up at her mother's dwelling that evening after Dr. Moire had made the phone calls to APS and police and was not involved in Dr. Moire's actions. Goetz subsequently reversed this decision on April 13th, allowing Jeannie a total of three hours per week of paid monitored visitation with her mother.

Dr. Moire states she was not served with a notice of hearing and calls the efforts to restrain her “ludicrous and illegal.” She has previously typified the efforts to separate mother and daughter as follows: “The isolation from daughter Jeanie is sorrowfully self expressed by Mrs. Tanaka and deprivation from the company of her daughter Jeanie is cruel and abusive to them both.” Jeannie Tanaka has been ordered to pay hundreds of dolllars per visit to a monitoring company.

The use of Restraining Orders to restrict family members from their ability to oversee the care of conservatees has become epidemic. In a case involving conservatorships and the rich and famous, Goetz also approved a temporary restraining order against singer Courtney Love that bars her from seeing or contacting her daughter, Frances Bean Cobain. Love had protested that her daughter, who is under a guardianship, had been molested by Jamie Spears, who is the father (and conservator) of another famous conservatee, singer Britney Spears. In a less publicized case, retired peace officer Willliam Horspool was restrained from his father, conservatee Raymond Horspool, after taking photographs which allegedly demonstrated the poor care being received by his father. San Bernardino Court Judge Michael Welch said he “didn't believe” the photos, which apparently showed the elder Horspool lying in soiled bedclothes, and ordered the photos destroyed. William Horspool was subsequently restrained from his father without a hearing, a violation of the due process clause of the U.S. Constitution.

The use of a restraining order to block a physician, who is a mandated reporter of elder abuse, from reporting elder abuse may be groundbreaking. According to Jeannie Tanaka's attorney Robert Canny, the decision by Judge Goetz effectively overturns the First Amendment to the US Constitution and Article 1, Section 2 of the California Constitution.

Last June, conservator Linda Cotterman called the police and told them that Jeannie had violated a Restraining Order by visiting her mother. Jeannie Tanaka, who is an attorney with the State of California, was hauled away in handcuffs in full view of her mother. She was released from custody prior to booking when the police discovered there was no Restraining Order in place. Jeannie Tanaka has filed a complaint with the Los Angeles police, stating that Cotterman knowingly made a false police report. The State of California deems false police reports to be a misdemeanour punishable by jail. At the time of going to press, Cotterman has not been taken into custody.

Both Mrs. and Jeannie Tanaka, who are Japanese American, are survivors of the World War II detention camps. President Roosevelt had ordered all Japanese Americans to be rounded up and herded into detention facilities, as potential enemies of the State.

Police 'Involvement' in Conservatorship Issues?

Janet Phelan Salem-News.com

Police arrests in fragile environments, usually involving seniors, violate everything from moral sense to the UN Human Rights Declaration...

(SAN BERNARDINO) - I stood at the Probate clerk's window at Redlands court, craning my neck to read the top sheet of a thick stack of papers which faced away from me. The page was stamped in large, bold letters “CONFIDENTIAL.” That alone was enough to get my attention.

And the clerk was in the back, digging through boxes to find a file I had requested, and had left me alone with the documents, albeit somewhat out of my reach. As I read upside down, I realized that this was a police notification concerning escaped “human property,” a conservatee. A conservatee is someone with no legal rights, and one had just escaped the confines of his genteel prison and was on the loose.

I read on. The conservatee in question was fifty seven years old, a bit young for dementia, I thought, and was described as wearing a baseball cap, T-shirt and shorts. An APB had been put out on the escapee.

For those who are unaware of the gaping legal loophole in “equality and justice for all,” a conservatee (in some states referred to as a ward) is someone who has been stripped of all his rights and all his assets through a legal proceeding.

Conservatorships are generally launched through an action in probate court, when there are allegations that a person may be becoming forgetful or otherwise demonstrating that they are lacking capacity. Often these are ex parte hearings and the person under scrutiny may not even be in the courtroom.

Upon the initiation of a conservatorship of estate, all the person's assets are transferred to the care and protection of the conservator or guardian. A conservatorship of person transfers the personal decisions of the alleged incapacitated person to the conservator.

As many conservators have both powers delegated to them, the potential for financial exploitation becomes of grave concern. In many cases, a capacity hearing never takes place and a conservatorship is established on allegations alone. Conservatorships are very expensive, often requiring the services of multiple lawyers as well as mandating a high rate of recompense for the conservator.

Marie Long

Police intervention in conservatorships is not only restricted to capturing a runaway ward. Increasingly,the police are becoming involved in restraining or incarcerating a family member who is trying to contact or protect a ward. Upping the ante, the police have now involved themselves in jailing someone who was speaking out critically against probate judges.
Robert Gettinger was nearly asleep, he recalls, when a light illuminated his bedroom and he heard a police bullhorn ordering him to come out with his hands up. It was winter in Frazier Park, California and Gettinger, a former police officer himself, came out of his house dressed only in a T-shirt and underwear. It was just before midnight on February 7, 2011.

Gettinger recalls at least ten officers in tactical gear, with guns drawn surrounded his house that night, including Sheriff's officers and Pasadena Police. He put up no resistance and was taken into custody and transported to the Pasadena Jail, where he was booked.

It was not until he was taken from his cell for the initial interrogation, several hours later, that he discovered what he had done to receive this elevated level of attention.

A few months back, when Katie Couric ran a special report on national television revealing problems in the guardianship system, Robert Gettinger had posted a number of criticisms of local judges on the CBS website.

Couric's report focused on the plight of Marie Long, a conservatee in Arizona and revealed that the Government Accountability Office had recently released a report stating that there were reports coming in from across the U.S. alleging criminal misconduct by conservators.

While a Los Angeles Superior court judge, Terry Smerling, had reviewed the posts made by Gettinger on the internet and had signed a search warrant, the District Attorney did not find that the evidence against Gettinger was sufficient to file criminal charges against him and after a couple of days in jail, Gettinger was released from custody.

He states that he had waived his Miranda rights and was cooperating with the police as he did not believe he had committed any crime. His certificate of release, which was obtained by Salem News, states that he was never arrested, only “detained.” The release papers cite California Penal Code 849, stating that the police may release an individual from custody and term his arrest to be a detention when the police are “satisfied that there is no ground for making a criminal complaint against the person arrested.”

A review of the comments made by Gettinger on the CBS website has left this reporter baffled. An obviously passionate Gettinger was highly critical of a number of local judges, including Candace Beason, Aviva K. Bobb and David Yaffe, and made repeated pleas that they be brought to justice and punished for their crimes against U.S. citizens. The expression of such opinions is protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and does not violate the law.

In an attempt to ascertain the cause of action against Gettinger, this reporter obtained the initial police report. No crime or penal code number was indicated, and the report only stated that there were “suspicious circumstances.” A section which presumably contained a written complaint about Gettinger was completely blacked out.

According to Gettinger, his mother, Gertrude Gettinger, was placed into a conservatorship without notice to the family and on false statements by his sister, Sylvia Schmidt. Gettinger alleges that Schmidt had been estranged from both of their parents and is solely motivated by greed.

Gertrude had accumulated property and assets in excess of two million dollars which are now under the control of Schmidt, who, according to Robert Gettinger, has hidden numerous bank accounts and stolen property belonging to Gertrude.

He alleges that Sylvia has exaggerated, if not completely confabulated, reports of Gertrude's “mental illness” and provided evidence to this reporter that Schmidt was coaching doctors as to what kind of letters to produce to substantiate Schmidt's statements of Gertrude's diminished capacity. Per records reviewed by this reporter, Gertrude Gettinger has been drugged with powerful mind altering drugs without her agreement.

Bob Gettinger states that his mother's wishes have been ignored, that she has been removed from her home against her best interests and has been conned out of her property by Schmidt, who now will not allow Robert to see his own mother.

Gettinger has not been shy about voicing his concerns. Last year, when the United Nations received a report maintaining that conservatorships constituted a significant human rights problem inside the United States, Bob Gettinger's twelve page report on the conservatorship of his mother was included as an example of serious human rights concerns. His statement to the UN included his specific allegations that a number of bank accounts belonging to his mother had gone unaccounted for, thus indicating what could be a powerful motive for the conservator.

Gettinger also states that after achieving conservatorship over Gertrude, Sylvia Schmidt stopped working, as the income from the conservatorship is ample to cover her own needs.

While Gettinger maintains that these abuses were visited on his mother by his sister, he directly posits responsibility with Judge Candace Beason in allowing the abuses to continue. He cites a number of decisions issued by Beason at junctures in which the course of events could have been altered but were not, due to what he sees as malfunction of the court.

He also implicates Judge Aviva K. Bobb, head of Probate in the Los Angeles Superior court system, for creating a judicial culture in which laws are flaunted and ignored and conservator abuse is allowed to run rampant.

In his posts on the CBS news site, he also referred to the case of conservatee Lee Peters, whose death appears to be directly tied to Judge Bobb's refusal to give weight to the family's repeated pleas that the conservatee was developing phlebitis and needed appropriate medical intervention. Peters died of a clot that migrated to her heart.

While Robert Gettinger was released from jail on February 10, his computers remain impounded by the Pasadena Police. Numerous requests as to when his equipment(which Gettinger needs for his work in the computer field) will be released have met with delay after delay, as the Pasadena Police have spent now well over a month examining his computer files to see if they could find additional evidence against Gettinger.

In a recent conversation with Lt. Tracey Ibarra of the Pasadena PD, she suggested that Gettinger may need to obtain a court order to have his belongings returned to him.

In another ongoing conservatorship battle in Los Angeles, the Beverly Hills police were recently called and requested to arrest Jeannie Tanaka, whose mother is under a conservatorship with local conservator Linda Cotterman. Jeannie Tanaka, who is herself over sixty five years old, was taken into custody during a visit with her mother after Cotterman called the police and told them that there was a Restraining Order in place against her. Tanaka, who is an attorney with the State of California, was taken to the Beverly Hills police station and subsequently released after the police realized there was no such order in existence.

Cotterman did not return phone calls from this reporter.

Joseph Quattrochi, whose father was successfully released from a conservatorship under Southern California conservator Melodie Z. Scott, was arrested by the Redlands Police while waiting for other activists to show up for a demonstration in front of Scott's office.

The police arrested Quattrochi after an employee of Melodie Scott's alleged that he threatened him outside of the office. All charges were subsequently dropped against Quattrochi. The demonstration took place without further incident.

Ricky Ritch, a non-practicing J.D., was cited with contempt of court and ordered into custody by Judge Aviva K. Bobb for failing to file an accounting which was physically in the file before her at the time she ruled that he had failed to do so. Ritch was the son in law of conservatee Marshall Stern, who had nominated Ritch to be his conservator. Instead, Bobb overrode Stern's wishes and appointed a "professional conservator" who, according to Ritch, misappropriated considerable sums of money.

In Ritch's own words: “On January 23, 2006 I paid the $1000 fine and submitted myself for incarceration. On that date Sheriff Astorga hit my head against the car that he was using to transporting me to the jail while I was handcuffed. Sheriff Astorga stated as he was battering me, “That was a message from the Judge.” Or words to that effect. He then kicked me into the car wrenching my broken back in the process. During the next day and a half I was denied my medication for my broken back or the concussion I received from Sheriff Astorga's attack on me. I was told, “That's what you get for messing with a Judge.” That message was repeated several times during my incarceration.”

In a written statement by his lawyer, Albert Sterwerf, he affirms the following: “When Mr. Ritch was released, I personally saw the bump on his head. I drove him directly to a hospital where he was reunited with his wife. I remained with him at the hospital until the initial diagnosis was finished by the doctor. They said that Mr. Ritch had a concussion.” He also confirms that the accounting in question was filed and in the court file when Bobb ordered Ritch into custody.

Robert Gettinger wonders why the police are so eager to step in. He recalls being told by one of the arresting officers Detective Kevin Okamoto, that there is a special squad of officers whose job it is to protect the judges. As he wrote on the CBS website:

"We need to tell anyone and everyone. We need all victims to come forward, even for cases from years ago as this crime has been going on for many years. If the police or government won't help us then we need to take justice into our own hands. IF THE POLICE WON'T INVESTIGATE then we have a right to justice.

"Those who protect these judges and lawyers need to be informed about what kind of monsters these people are. They're just like Adolph Hitler, they're putting our seniors in prison, stripping them of their rights, stealing their belongings, drugging them and sending them to a legal GAS CHAMBER. The Holocaust is back, right under your nose.....Please email your friends, share this story which is just an example, the woman in this story lost everything, at least she has her life as many victims are dead. Post the names of the lawyers, judges and names of the agencies you contacted who did nothing. Put their names in public light."

Since being released from jail, Gettinger has been networking with other court victims on a Facebook site.

Sylvia Schmidt did not respond to phone calls or emails from this reporter.

Janet Phelan is an investigative journalist whose articles have appeared in the Los Angeles Times, The San Bernardino County Sentinel, The Santa Monica Daily Press, The Long Beach Press Telegram, Oui Magazine and other regional and national publications. Her poetry has been published in Gambit, Libera, Applezaba Review, Nausea One and other magazines. Her first book, The Hitler Poems, was published in 2005. She currently resides abroad.

You may browse through her articles (and poetry) at janetphelan.com