January 31, 2010
Brooke Astor’s Son Found Guilty
In a depraved scheme to defraud his centenarian mother, Anthony Marshall was found guilty in a classic case of elder abuse.
Famous philanthropist Brooke Astor died in 2007 at the age of 105. But before the long-reigning matriarch passed away, her son had been systematically defrauding her, and had schemed to steal tens of millions of dollars while she suffered from Alzheimer’s disease in the waning days of her life.
Her son, Arthur D. Marshall, 85, was convicted on October 8, 2009, after the elaborate scheme was uncovered, revealing a monstrous and classic case of financial elder abuse. Mr. Marshall was convicted of first degree grand larceny for giving himself a retroactive lump sum of about $1,000,000 for managing his mother’s finances. He was found guilty of 14 of 16 counts against him. He was acquitted of a separate first-degree grand larceny charge for selling a Childe Hassam painting that his mother owned for $10 million and keeping a $2 million commission on the sale. The other acquittal was on a lesser charge of falsifying business records.
This recent verdict by a Manhattan jury is like a “highlight film” spotlighting the all-too-pervasive abuse of our elders. While child and even animal abuse grabs all the headlines, elder abuse tends to escape media scrutiny. The wealthy are not the only victims. The National Center for Elder Abuse reports that “between 1 and 2 million Americans age 65 or older have been injured, exploited, or otherwise mistreated by someone on whom they depended for care or protection.”
Financial abuse of elders is generally under-reported in our culture for a number of reasons. While shame and fear of losing final shreds of personal dignity are often involved, the most significant reason for its hidden nature is that such abuse is invisible - leaving no obvious scars to alert caring friends and family. “Caring” is a key adjective here, as in most cases of financial exploitation the perpetrator is a family member, often the victim’s own son or daughter.
Financial elder abuse or exploitation can be prevented. Make your own decisions about choosing physical and financial caretakers. The best way to achieve this is by executing a nomination of conservator, health care directive, and durable power of attorney. These three simple documents can allow you to select the best person to care for you and manage your finances - when the time comes when you can’t. These three documents can also give you the most important intangible of all: peace of mind.
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Gene Osofsky is an East Bay elder law attorney in California. Gene Osofsky specializes in Medi-Cal planning, wills, probate, trusts, nursing home issues, special needs planning, and disability planning. To learn more about elder law and The Law Offices of Osofsky & Osofsky, visit Lawyerforseniors.com.
Source: http://www.articletrader.com
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