ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
$82,000 In Jewelry Allegedly Stolen In First Month On Job
Video Footage From Pawn Shop
Protecting Seniors From Caregiver Fraud
Whenever a stranger enters a senior’s home, there is a chance that valuables may go missing. If the stranger is there for a substantial amount of time, as in the case of an in-home caregiver, several valuable items may go missing as a recent case discussed below illustrates. 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.
Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 15610.30.
Whatever the “form” or frequency or size of financial elder abuse, under this broad statutory definition, 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. In one reported case, discussed below, a caregiver has been arrested and accused of stealing $80,000 in jewelry from the elderly patients she cared for. If you or a loved one is a victim of elder or dependent adult abuse or neglect in Contra Costa County call us today at (415)441-8669. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
Caregiver Arrested
In a recently reported case, [1] a caregiver has been arrested for stealing jewelry from the home of her elderly patients. Police said that a spokesperson for the elderly patients reported that several pieces of valuable jewelry, estimated to be worth about $82,000, had gone missing from the residence. The spokesperson identified the couple’s caregiver as the person they thought responsible for the missing items. The caregiver had been providing in-home care for the elderly patients since June. Detectives said they were shown multiple photos of the missing jewelry. According to investigators, they found that the caregiver had recently pawned the jewelry in question on dates that included June 9, 14, 21 and 30. After also seeing video footage of the caregiver selling the jewelry and obtaining a purchase agreement from the pawn store, the caregiver was arrested.
The reported case illustrates just how risky it is when a dishonest caregiver or other person has access to the checks of an elderly person in their home or in a nursing home room. For this reason, we always recommend that you keep all cash, credit and ATM cards and checks in a safe place, far from the reach of any caregiver or nursing home staff member or other stranger. Have the statements mailed to your home so others cannot open a senior’s mail and obtain confidential information that way. Also, you may want to put other valuables like jewelry and silver in a safe place too as those valuables can be quickly taken and pawned before an elderly victim is even aware they are missing.
Protecting Seniors
Always do a background check on any caregiver before he or she is hired. Ask for references and check them. Once the caregiver is on the job have the timecards sent to you so you can verify their accuracy. There are other important steps to follow as well to prevent more elaborate schemes of financial abuse. Careful monitoring of a senior’s checking account – and close review of cancelled checks – may have caught the reported fraud in this case sooner than eight or nine months. Always monitor a senior loved one’s checking account; take a look at it online every day if you can. 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.
Contact Us
If you sense any kind of abuse of an older loved one anywhere in Contra Costa County, 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).
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the case in any way.
