Elder Abuse is Everybody's Business

Page Ulrey, King County Prosecutor's Office

If you suspect it, report it!

E.B. was 85 years old and lived in her own home in Seattle. Her husband had died several years ago, but her three children and grandchildren lived nearby. Before her husband's death, E.B.'s children hired a caregiver named Roya Sardarpour to provide care for him. Later, the family decided to keep Roya on to provide care and companionship to their mother, who was unable to drive or handle her own finances.

As the years passed, the family's trust in Roya grew. And eventually, they entrusted her to pay E.B.'s bills. The children checked on their mother's finances occasionally, and though they sometimes wondered about Roya's expensive new handbags, jewelry, and new Mercedes Benz, they believed her explanation that these were gifts she had received from her husband. They loved Roya, and they trusted her.

Then, their mother had a stroke and was hospitalized. At that point, going over their mother's finances while she was in the hospital, they noticed that her account balances had dropped dramatically over the past year. With an accountant's help, they found that 25 of E.B.'s checks had been written out to and endorsed by Roya, totaling over $38,000. All of these checks, and the check register, were in Roya’s handwriting. In reviewing their mother's credit card accounts, they also discovered countless unauthorized charges for jewelry, clothing, and restaurants, totaling over $64,000.

When she learned of Roya's betrayal, E.B. was devastated. Her health declined even further. She was moved into a nursing home. And a few months later, she died. Roya Sardarpour was ultimately charged with financial exploitation of E.B. and convicted at trial. She received 18 months in prison for her crime.

Unfortunately, what happened to E.B. is not unusual. Each year, countless numbers of elders in King County are financially exploited. Though we most often think of elder financial exploitation as perpetrated by identity thieves and internet scammers, the vast majority of it is in fact committed by the elder's own family members, caregivers, holder of the person's powers of attorney, and friends. And, though we hear most frequently about financial abuse, the truth is that many seniors are also the victims of neglect, and physical and sexual assault. These crimes, too, are most often committed by trusted family members, friends, and caregivers of the elder. But no matter what the type of crime against elders, the victimization is devastating. According to a definitive study, seniors who are the victims of any type of abuse are 300% more likely to die a premature death.¹

Although the crime Roya Sardarpour committed was not unusual, the fact that she was charged and convicted of it was unusual. The vast majority of these cases are never reported, investigated or prosecuted. Victims of elder abuse are often ashamed, embarrassed, and afraid of reporting the abuse. They may be afraid that the abuser will retaliate against them, that they will lose the abuser from their life, or that their vulnerability will be exposed and they will end up in a nursing home. All of these fears are legitimate. However, the alternative is worse. Elder abuse is rarely an isolated incident. Typically, it continues as long as it goes unchecked, growing more and more severe over time. Had Roya Sardarpour's actions not been discovered, she would have eventually drained all of E.B.'s bank accounts, leaving her with nothing. In the same way, a caregiver who neglects an elder tends to provide less and less care as time passes, until the neglect is discovered, or the victim dies. And the actions of a physical or sexual abuser grow more violent over time. Because this is the case, we cannot look the other way when we suspect that abuse or neglect is occurring.

So what do you do about it?  Reach out. Talk to the senior you're concerned about. Get involved with his life. Ask him questions. Ask him how he is, whether he is eating well, sleeping well, who is handling his finances. If she has dementia, ask her who is paying her bills, whether she's going to the doctor, who's helping her take her medications, whether she's being left alone for long periods of time. If he has a new "friend" in his life that you have concerns about, talk to him about that friend—who she is, how he met her, whether she encourages him to see his family and friends, to go to the doctor, to church. If the answers to any of these questions raise more concerns, then make some phone calls:

• If the senior is in need of referrals for services, call Senior Information and Assistance at 1-888-435-3377.
  
  
• If the elder is living in her own home and you fear that she is neglecting herself or being abused or neglected by someone else, call Adult Protective Services (APS) at 1-866-221-4909.
  
  
• If the senior lives in a long-term care facility and you fear she is being abused or neglected, call Residential Care Services (RCS) at 1-800-562-6078.

It is the job of APS and RCS to respond to your report, to visit the senior and make sure he is safe, to offer him services if needed, or, if he is no longer able to make good decisions for himself, to seek a protection order or a guardianship on his behalf. If you believe that the elder is in danger, that her finances are being drained, or that some other crime is occurring, call 911 and report it. If the elder stops leaving her home or returning your calls and you are concerned about her safety, call 911 and ask the police to conduct a welfare check. If you're wrong, there is no harm done. If you're right, you may have saved her life. 

Page Ulrey is a Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the King County Prosecutor’s Office, where she prosecutes cases of elder abuse and neglect

     
¹ Lachs et al., The Mortality of Elder Mistreatment, 280 JAMA 428, 428-32 (1999).

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