Neglect & Abandonment

Juliette, 87, lived with her daughter, Nanette, for the past three years. Nanette helped Juliette with daily activities, such as getting her meals, bathing, and cleaning the house. Nanette decided to move in with her boyfriend in another state and left her mother alone in the home. About a week later, Juliette’s niece happened to be in town and stopped by to visit her aunt. She saw that the inside of the house was in very bad condition and found Juliette in poor health. Juliette’s niece contacted Adult Protective Services (APS) and the State Area Agency on Aging. 

Kofi, 84, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and moved in with his daughter's family. Sometimes Kofi had trouble sleeping, had physical and verbal outbursts, and began wandering. His daughter and son-in-law were afraid that Kofi might wander out of the house if they left him alone. They locked the doors to the house so that Kofi could not get out and wander around when they left for work. A neighbor noticed Kofi trying to get out of the house. She contacted the local police and Adult Protective Services (APS). 

Tamara, 76, lived alone but had trouble getting around. Her son and his wife asked Tamara to move in with them. Tamara had her own bedroom on the second floor and stayed there most of the time. She could not use the stairs easily. Her son and daughter-in-law both traveled frequently for work and sometimes neglected to give her adequate food and water. They also failed to groom her or to clean her room consistently. One day Tamara became dizzy, weak and disoriented so her daughter took her to the hospital. The hospital staff discovered that she was dehydrated, disheveled and obviously unwashed. They asked about her care, but Tamara said she was well cared for.  Nevertheless, as required by law, the hospital staff reported suspected neglect to Adult Protective Services (APS).

Clarence, 79, invited his two adult sons to move in with him so he would not be alone after his wife died. The sons soon sent Clarence out to live in the shed and locked him out of the house. Sometimes his sons put food out for him. Occasionally they gave him a basin of cold water with a washcloth. When one of Clarence’s neighbors noticed that Clarence seemed to be living in the shed, she called Adult Protective Services (APS) anonymously and reported what she had seen. She then decided Clarence may need immediate help so she called the police to do a welfare check.

Henrietta, 88, required a court appointed guardian due to combined physical and mental disabilities that left her partially incapacitated. Her niece, Roberta, was appointed as Henrietta’s guardian. Roberta visited Henrietta in her home a few times but then never came back and made no further arrangements for her care. A neighbor noticed the lack of activity at Henrietta’s house. The neighbor knocked but couldn’t get Henrietta to answer door, so she called law enforcement for a welfare check and Adult Protective Services (APS).

June, 73, suffered a severe brain injury. At first, she was able to care for herself but as she got worse, a court appointed Sam as her legal guardian to assist her. He saw June two times in the first six months but did not return to see June and did not arrange for her care. He falsified reports to the court stating that he saw June every three months. As a result, no one knew that June was living on her own without Sam’s help. June was unable to remember to clean her house and the trash had not been taken out in many months. Due to the deterioration of her house, June received a visit from a county health officer who discovered that June was very frail. The county health officer was a mandatory reporter and called Adult Protective Services (APS). APS petitioned the court for a new guardian.