DA unit targeting elder abuse
June 28, 2009
A little more than a year ago, Montgomery County prosecutors set their sights on exposing abuse of the elderly, and the effort is bringing renewed scrutiny to those people and institutions entrusted to care for the aged.Recently, the District Attorney's Office charged a woman for scalding an elderly man with hot cereal and a second woman pleaded in court of stealing her 86-year-old stepfather's Social Security checks and changing the deed on his home.
District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman created the Elder Abuse Unit in 2008 to address a rise in reported crimes against the elderly, which included physical and sexual assaults, neglect, theft and other financial exploitation.
The unit's first case was that of a nursing home employee, Henrietta Sprual, who pleaded guilty last year to assaulting an Alzheimer's patient in 2007. The Upper Darby woman beat a patient with a belt buckle while working at an Upper Merion nursing home. She has yet to be sentenced for the crime.
In the past, some deaths at nursing homes or assisted-living centers may have escaped scrutiny given the advanced age and medical condition of residents.
"Now that we have the Elder Abuse Unit, we're looking in a much more comprehensive way at these kinds of deaths," Ferman said.
Ronald Meyers' death was one such case. The 79-year-old Alzheimer's patient was allegedly force fed scalding hot cereal last October at Cambridge-Brightfield Assisted Living Facility in Hatfield by a resident assistant.
After suffering severe burns to his lips, mouth, tongue and throat, Meyers was unable to eat and died two weeks later, prosecutors allege.
"There's nothing natural about this death," Ferman said.
The 55-year-old aide, Alvador Thompson, was charged with involuntary manslaughter and neglect of a care-dependent person for the man's death.
The task force, which includes all county agencies charged with protecting senior citizens, reviews individual cases to determine if the believe abuse has occurred.
Richman was told at an elder affairs seminar that having a group of professionals to confer and vet individual cases is essential.
To develop people's ability to recognize telltale signs of abuse, the DA offers training to police, nurses, nursing home employees, hospice workers — even funeral directors.
In another case, an 86-year-old man's stepdaughter allegedly served as his power of attorney back in 2003. The Lansdale woman victimized the elderly man, who had dementia, authorities said.
Eventually the 62-year-old stepdaughter, Alice Holloway, was arrested and charged with stealing Samuel Rines Sr.'s money and illegally transferring the deed to his house, according to court papers.
Holloway allegedly filled out a change of address form last August and had Rine's mail forwarded to her home. She then began receiving his Social Security checks, convincing the Social Security Adminstration in Jenkintown that Rines was unable to handle his own affairs.
With money in the bank, the woman made regular cash withdrawals, according an affidavit.
Last October, Holloway, her husband and Rines went to the Lighthouse Land Transfer office in Norristown, and after telling an official the elderly man was a stroke victim, she allegedly transferred Rines' deed into her name for $1.
Holloway has pleaded guilty to a felony theft charge and was sentenced to 11½ to 23 months in prison, according to court records.
To contact the DA's Elder Abuse Hotline, call (800) 734-2020.
Abridged
SOURCE: The Reporter Online
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