Articles Posted in San Diego Elder Abuse

California lawmakers are locked in an interesting situation with elderly people who require in-home support and the individuals charged with providing the in-home care. The “In-Home Supportive Services Program,” is the government program designed to provide at-home care for low-income elderly, blind and disabled people so they may remain in their homes as an alternative to institutional care. Yet, the program is under scrutiny as additional evidence of lax employment requirements by the Program and abuse or fraud by employees continues to surface despite legislation intended to curb such actions. Our San Diego elder abuse attorneys understand the concern, as the senior community remain the number one target of abuse and neglect—it is critical that their caregivers be willing and capable to ensure proper treatment at all times.

A story from California Watch recently discussed the issue. In 2009, legislation enacted by then Governor Schwarzenegger sought to exclude anyone who had committed a felony in the last decade from the program–expanding the previous scope of the ban that barred only those convicted of child abuse, elder abuse or defrauding a government health care assistance program. A Superior Court Judge later did not agree with this expansion and so the legislature responded with a milder version in 2011 that expanded the scope of convictions to include more types of felonies but did not go as far as originally intended.

The current requirements eliminate individuals with particular criminal convictions, but still allow individuals to work in positions of trust with the elderly or disabled who would not be employed in similar positions in other fields that require such trust. In other words, there are convicted felons who would be otherwise unemployable to a certain extent working to provide in-home care to elderly or disabled people getting compensated an average of $1.50 over minimum wage.

The obvious concern is that the situation is ripe with opportunities for theft, fraud or abuse and that the program does not adequately screen applicants to prevent such crimes. Screening is a difficult part of the program especially since it took over one year to complete the initial background checks in 2009 on the over 390,000 caregivers in the program. Over 800 individuals were disqualified from continuing their jobs; a number that can be interpreted as good or bad. The predicament gets even more complicated because the patients can sign waivers allowing individuals who would otherwise be disqualified from the program due to previous convictions to continue to provide in-home care. This highlights the often overlooked issue of the lack of quality, reliable caregivers available for the program. This issue has not been addressed because of the heavy focus on screening applicants and eliminating abuse within the program.

Despite legitimate fears of fraud and abuse within the program based in part on actual incidents, the number of reported crimes does not suggest that incidents of such crimes are widespread. Yet, as San Diego elder abuse lawyers, we know that only a fraction of mistreatment is ever reported—most seniors suffer in silence and accountability is few and far between.

In any case, proponents of heightened restrictions regarding past convictions point to the numbers and say that they could be lower and there is more they can do to reduce that number. A “statewide task force” comprised of “district attorneys, fraud investigators and other government officials” is working to monitor the In-Home Supportive Services program and develop policies designed to combat fraud within the program. As a result, certain “protocols” may be put in place this Fall that will hopefully reduce incidents of fraud.

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A Pasadena assisted living facility recently suffered a tragedy when a resident allegedly assaulted and killed a fellow resident. The 61-year-old victim was found dead several weeks ago under suspicious circumstances, according to the Pasadena Star-News.

Unfortunately, as our Los Angeles elder abuse lawyers know, resident-on-resident abuse is not uncommon. Bullying, physical or sexual abuse, or any other form of peer-on-peer abuse should not be tolerated. Yet peer-on-peer abuse is a growing problem in custodial settings that needs be prevented with proper care planning, appropriate staff training, and adequate staffing.

The alleged aggressor at the Pasadena assisted living facility was 38-year-old Paul Lopez. Mr. Lopez was a resident at the facility for the mentally ill. He was arrested and booked on suspected homicide of a fellow resident, George Schatford, at the Pasadena Residential Care Center. According to reports, Mr. Lopez confessed to police officers present at the scene who were conducting an investigation of the elderly man’s death. Pasadena police Lt. Phlunte Riddle stated that Mr. Lopez claimed to have murdered the elderly man. Further investigation indicated that his statement was credible. Although it is not entirely clear how Mr. Schatford died—and it will not be apparent until the coroner provides his report—Lt. Riddle did note that the victim had marks around his neck. Therefore, the senior may have been strangled.

Despite high numbers of substantiated patient abuse cases at California institutions caring for disabled adults, a recent article in the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that there are very few subsequent prosecutions. This disparity came to light after California Watch, a watchdog agency that frequently focuses on issues such as the public’s health and welfare, blew the whistle. The agency published a series of reports about flawed investigations conducted by a police force responsible for scrutinizing instances of potential abuse or death at state institutions for disabled adults. Our San Diego elder abuse lawyer has handled several cases against state-run facilities for the developmentally disabled, so our firm understands the unique and complex issues that such cases raise. For example, in cases involving dependent adults, many victims may not be able to adequately describe the abuse they have suffered making it crucial for their advocates to investigate all issues suggesting a pattern of neglect or abuse.

The Office of Protective Services (OPS) is a police force dedicated to investigating patient deaths and suspicious injuries at state-run facilities in California. However, since 2006 there have been 327 substantiated patient abuse cases and 762 unexplained injuries at five state-run institutions, yet few of those cases have led to prosecutions. The board-and-care institutions—located in Sonoma, Los Angeles, Riverside, Tulare, and Orange counties—are home to approximately 1,800 patients with cerebral palsy, severe autism, and intellectual disabilities. The relatively few prosecutions, as well as suspicious circumstances in certain cases, suggest that the OPS investigations are seriously flawed.

In one instance, a 50-year-old patient at Fairview Developmental Center in Orange County was found on his bedroom floor with a broken neck in 2007. The man died six days later. In spite of the suspicious circumstances, including the man’s relatively young age, police at the institution did not collect physical evidence from the scene while investigating the Orange County suspicious patient death. They also waited five days before beginning to interview potential witnesses. No arrests were ever made in the case, and it is possible that it will never be clear exactly what happened due to the shoddy investigative work.