Elder abuse and embezzlement charges

FLINT, Michigan - According to ABC News, Anthony V. Cunturso, 47, has been arrested and charged with embezzlement and neglect of his 73-year-old mother. The woman, who is blind in one eye, partially deaf and has diabetes, was found on April 23 on a urine-soaked couch and wrapped in a tattered blanket crawling with roaches and maggots. She was found by sheriff's deputies following a tip from an MTA bus driver. Anthony Cunturso, who was also her caretaker, charged the woman mother $450 a month to live in an apartment with no heat or running water, according to police. According to the Flint Journal, Adult Protective Services workers apparently had gotten anonymous tips about the woman's living conditions in January and October of last year but got no answer when they knocked on the door to check. She also did not answer the door when his investigators went to house on two occasions earlier this month.

It wasn't until the third visit last week, when investigators found the back door open, that they were able to go inside.

The woman has been taken from the house and is living with her sister pending placement in an adult foster care home. Cunturso will appear in court on May 7. He faces up to five years in prison on the embezzlement charge; the abuse charge carries a maximum penalty of four years in prison.

Abuse against the elderly

The following are some of the cases of abuse against the elderly that have been in the news since December 1, 2008. In these cases, the abusers are both men and women, as are those who have been abused by them, though notably, the cases of abuse against women outnumber those against men by about 2:1 (according to a 2004 National Center of Elder Abuse Study, older women (67%) are far more likely than men (32%) to suffer from abuse and slightly more than half of the alleged perpetrators of elder abuse were female (53%). According to this fact sheet prepared by the National Centre on Elder Abuse (NCEA), between 1 and 2 million Americans aged 65 years or older have been injured, exploited or mistreated by someone they depend upon for care and protection. It is estimated that for every one case of abuse reported to authorities, about five more go unreported. One consistent finding, over a ten-year study period, is that reports have increased each year.

Have you seen the elderly people around you recently?

Port St. Lucie, Florida - A 65-year-old man faces charges of elder abuse after his emaciated 90-year-old mother was found wearing urine-soaked cloathing and sleeping on a waste-filled mattress. She had been wearing her shoes for so long, they had become attached to her feet. More here ...

Gainesville, Florida - A 49-year-old has been accused of stomping his 68-year-old mother while wearing work boots, breaking her foot and ankle, and then leaving her on the floor of home for two days without food or water. She was found by her two daughters and taken to a hospital. More here ...

Beaufort, North Carolina - The caregiver of an 80-year-old woman has been arrested and charged with leaving her lying on the floor of the bathroom in her own feces for more than an hour. She had fallen trying to get to the bathroom on her own because the caregiver had not come to assist her. More here ...

San Diego, California - A 34-year-old man is suspected of stealing thousands of dollars from a 92-year-old man he was hired to temporarily care for. More here ...

Visalia, California - A 62-year-old Visalia woman who took in a male relative on Christmas Day because she felt sorry for him spent the next week as his captive in her mobile home. He also beat her. More here ...

Richfield Springs, New York - The wife and two sons of an elderly man were charged with endangering his welfare after he was admitted to a local hospital with serious injuries. The three, aged 74, 47 and 41 respectively, were the man's caregivers. More here ...

Steger, Illinios - Authorities are investigating the death of an 86-year-old woman from severe deydration and multiple ulcers as a possible case of elder abuse. More here ...

Pittsburg, Kansas - Five Allegheny County employees were arrested and accused of assaulting and harrassing an 84-year-old woman with Alzheimer's at a county-run nursing home. One of the accused female caretakers has faced similar charges before. Full story here ...

Parkersburg - W.Virginia - A 74-year-old man with developmental disabilities died from malnourishment after the man hired to care for him moved him from his bedroom to the basement last year. The 48-year-old man has been charged with neglecting an incapacitated adult or elderly person. Full story here ...

Jackson, Mississippi - A 38-year-old female nursing home assistant has been charged with elder abuse in connection with the assault of elderly woman at a nursing home. More here ...

Talahassee, Florida - A 56-year-old male nursing assistant at a Veteran's Affairs Hospital has been charged with striking a 59-year-old male patient in the head two or three times and then tipping him out of his wheelchair. He later explained the incident by saying of the patient "He hit me and I just lost it." More here ...

Muskegon, Michigan - A 50-year-old male was charged with second-degree elder abuse after his 85-year-old mother was found on a couch covered in her feces and urine. More here ...

Two teen girls charged with abusing nursing home residents

Albert Lea, Minnesota - The Associated Press reports that two teenage girls who worked as part-time aides at a Good Samaritan Society nursing have been charged with abuse, accused of taunting, spitting on and groping residents who suffered from Alzheimer's disease. According to the criminal complaint filed on Monday, the girls, aged 18 and 19, laughed earlier this year as they spat in residents' mouths, poked and groped their breasts and genitals, and at times mocked them until they screamed. Both girls have been charged as adults. Four other teens who worked with them were charged as juveniles for failing to report the incidents. A total of eight teens were allegedly involved in the incidents, but there was no record of criminal charges being filed against two of them. If found guilty, the girls "most likely will face suspended jail sentences and probation." The Minnesota Department of Health released a report in August showing that 15 residents with Alzheimer's disease or other dementia disorders were abused at the facility between Jan. 1 and May 1. According to the complaint filed Monday, one of the aides said the group gathered at work or school to "talk and laugh about the incidents."


Full story here ...

Other recent reports about the abuse of adults with disabilities by their caregivers

Paso Robles, California - KSBY reported on September 25 that a Paso Robles caregiver was arrested and charged with elder abuse for illegally obtaining prescription drugs from adults with developmental disabilities. According to investigators, 57-year-old Larry Ulam was either enticing his clients into making false claims of medical problems in order to get the prescriptions, or he was paying them for the drugs. Mr Ulam is now unemployed, it is reported. An agency that he used to work for is helping detectives with their investigation.

Burlington, Vermont - The Burlington Times reported on September 28 that a 46-year-old woman had pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault in relation to the assault with injuries of an elderly person with a disability at a home in Burlington on August 5. In addition to being banned from working with elderly people, the woman received a suspended sentence of 75 days in exchange for her plea, and has been put on probation for three years.

Los Angeles, California - On September 18, the Los Angeles Times reported that a lawsuit alleging elder abuse and negligence was filed against the City of Angels Medical Center in relation to the disappearance of 76-year-old Lawrence Garcia, who is developmentally disabled. In the lawsuit, Mr Garcia's family said that Lawrence Garcia, who is described as being unable to care for himself, was visiting his doctor on September 11 and undergoing lab tests at the medical center as part of his treatment for cancer. When the lab work was completed, he was taken by employees to the hospital lobby and left alone to wait for his driver to pick him up. He has been missing ever since. The suit claims that the hospital is negligent for leaving him alone rather than assigning someone to stay with him until his ride arrived. The suit also alleges that in the week following his disappearance, the hospital has not tried to find him. FRIDA hasn't sighted any updates about Mr Garcia's whereabouts or the lawsuit since this September 20 press release by Justice News. Mr Garcia is reported to be 5' 7" tall and 150 pounds. He has grey hair that is thinning, and has trouble walking. He was last seen wearing a grey t-shirt, jeans, and sandles with no socks.