State House Moves to Toughen Elder Abuse Laws

By Karen Bouffard, Detroit News Lansing Bureau

                                               June 29, 2009

House Democrats today unveiled comprehensive legislation to combat the rising tide of elder abuse in Michigan. 

Highlights of the 19-bill package include laws to disinherit adult children convicted of neglecting, abusing or exploiting their elderly parents. If approved by the Senate and signed into law by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, the package would tighten up penalties for those convicted of elder abuse, and create new safeguards -- particularly in the area of financial exploitation, a growing trend. 
The bills are based, in part, on the findings of an elder abuse task force appointed by the governor, lawmakers said. 

"Our senior citizens are people who have worked hard their entire life, and it's time for us in the House and Senate to stand up for these people who have made Michigan the great place that it is," said Rep. Sarah Roberts, D-St. Clair Shores, who sponsored one of the bills. It would make obtaining a signature from a senior by coercion or fraud a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a fine of $15,000 or up to three times the value of property stolen. 
"Many people think of elder abuse as physical abuse," Roberts said. "(But) there are many situations of financial exploitation taking place, and we need to crack down on these predators." 

Elder abuse can include abandonment and neglect, financial exploitation, and emotional, physical or sexual abuse. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, the crime is vastly underreported. The House Democrats' plan seeks to address elder abuse by: 

• Increasing penalties for cheating or defrauding seniors, including establishing felony charges and banning abusers from inheriting the estate of their victim. 
• Empowering concerned citizens to file criminal complaints to stop and prevent abuse cases in nursing homes and elsewhere. 
• Strengthening consumer protections by requiring financial institutions to do more to disclose the rights of seniors and create new safeguards against fraud. 
• Creating an alert system -- similar to the "Amber Alert" for missing children -- to notify the public in cases of missing seniors. The "Mozelle Alert" would be named in honor of Estella Mozelle Pierce, a senior who died after wandering from her southwest Detroit home. 

Roberts said that according to the Michigan Department of Human Services, reports of elder abuse have increased 40 percent since 1998. Michigan's Adult Protective Services received more than 16,300 reports of adult mistreatment in 2008. Based on estimates of how often abuse goes unreported, this suggests that more than 73,000 of Michigan's adults are abused every year. 

The package was rolled out today in press conferences in Lansing, Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties and other locations statewide. 

To report a suspected case of elder abuse, residents can contact the state's 24-hour hotline by calling (800) 996-6228. 

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