By Sarah Mansheim
During the first week of December, a Monroe County jury found a former bank executive liable in an elder abuse case. Betty B. Brown, former senior vice president at First National Bank of Peterstown was ordered to pay her 98-year-old victim, Isadora Beavers, more than $325,000 in damages.
According to Beavers’ attorney, John Bryan, Beavers came to his office with the suspicion that Brown, who was serving as Beavers’ power of attorney, was stealing from her. Bryan looked into the case and discovered all of Beavers’ assets had been moved into Brown’s name.
The civil case was a win for Beavers, who now lives in a nursing home in Virginia, and for Bryan, and he says there is an ongoing criminal investigation into Brown’s actions. He says the U.S. Attorney’s office has also asked for information on the case.
Luckily for Beavers, she was able to recognize and report the abuse herself. Brown, meanwhile, was relieved of her duties at First National Bank after the elder abuse accusations came to light.
Unfortunately, such abuse is far from uncommon. Last February, a Greenbrier County man was arrested after allegedly convincing an elderly couple to sign over a $300,000 property deed and write him a $120,000 check. The charges were dismissed completely.
Those instances may be newsworthy due to the large amounts of money involved, but elder abuse occurs on all levels of the economic spectrum.
According to Vicki Dove, a board member on the Elder Abuse Awareness Committee in Greenbrier County, that group focuses on the prevention of physical, financial, sexual and emotional abuse of seniors. Such advocacy is necessary to help curb abuse against the elderly.
According to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, the Senate Special Committee on Aging estimates that as many as five million older Americans may be victims of abuse, neglect and/or exploitation every year.
People who are caregivers can also find themselves overwhelmed by their duties. Those who are overwhelmed by the demands of caring for an elder can do the following:
• Request help, from friends, relatives, or local respite care agencies, so they can take a break, if only for a couple of hours.
• Find an adult day care program.
• Stay healthy and get medical care for themselves when necessary.
• Adopt stress reduction practices.
• Seek counseling for depression, which can lead to elder abuse.
• Find a support group for caregivers of the elderly.
Others should look for signs in their elderly friends and neighbors such as:
• Unexplained signs of injury such as bruises, welts, or scars, especially if they appear symmetrically on two side of the body
• Broken bones, sprains, or dislocations
• Report of drug overdose or apparent failure to take medication regularly (a prescription has more remaining than it should)
• Broken eyeglasses or frames
• Signs of being restrained, such as rope marks on wrists
• Caregiver’s refusal to allow you to see the elder alone
• Threatening, belittling, or controlling caregiver behavior that you witness
• Behavior from the elder that mimics dementia, such as rocking, sucking, or mumbling to oneself
• Unusual weight loss, malnutrition, dehydration
• Untreated physical problems, such as bed sores
• Unsanitary living conditions: dirt, bugs, soiled bedding and clothes
• Being left dirty or unbathed
• Unsuitable clothing or covering for the weather
• Unsafe living conditions (no heat or running water; faulty electrical wiring, other fire hazards)
• Desertion of the elder at a public place
• Significant withdrawals from the elder’s accounts
• Sudden changes in the elder’s financial condition
• Items or cash missing from the senior’s household
• Suspicious changes in wills, power of attorney, titles, and policies
• Addition of names to the senior’s signature card
• Unpaid bills or lack of medical care, although the elder has enough money to pay for them
• Financial activity the senior couldn’t have done, such as an ATM withdrawal when the account holder is bedridden
• Unnecessary services, goods, or subscriptions
If you know of or suspect that an incapacitated adult is being/has been abused or neglected you should immediately report this to the Department of Health and Human Resources. You may report abuse or neglect of an adult by calling the statewide hotline at 1-800-352-6513. If you request, your name as a reporter of adult abuse or neglect will remain confidential and will not be shared with others. Reporters are also protected by law from civil or criminal liability when a report is made in good faith.