Federal Grant Aims to Protect Elderly From Abuse and Violence (NY USA)

Federal Grant Aims to Protect Elderly From Abuse and Violence (NY USA)

By Matt Gryta
NEWS STAFF REPORTER
October 02, 2009
Erie County District Attorney Frank A. Sedita III and Rep. Brian Higgins joined other county officials this morning in touting the need to protect the growing elder population from abuse and violence.
And they also announced a $150,000 grant from the U.S. Justice Department will help them do that locally.
Sedita said the new federal grant will fund continuing efforts to train prosecutors, social workers and victim advocates to assist victims while their cases are pending in the local courts and afterward.
During a mid-morning news conference at Sedita’s downtown headquarters, Higgins said the Justice Department’s money will help Sedita and other local officials grow their “proactive and coordinated approach to detecting and preventing abuse targeting older residents.”
© 2009 The Buffalo News.

Abridged
SOURCE:    The Buffalo News

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Elderly Abuse Victims Urged to Come Forward (New Zealand)

Elderly abuse victims urged to come foward
28/09/2009
Wellington police say most abuse of the elderly goes unreported due to the stigma associated with such offending.
Hemant Kumar was deported to Fiji over the weekend for defrauding a 94-year-old woman of $127,000 between 2004 and 2006.
Detective Mike Stone says the case highlights the fact that there are people looking to take advantage of the elderly, but he says many victims are reluctant to take action.
“The difficulty in crimes of this nature is that it is very difficult for the victims to come forward. There’s a degree of shame and embarrassment that they’ve been taken advantage of.”
Margaret Guthrie, the president of Age Concern Wellington agrees that elder abuse goes unreported due to embarrassment, the vulnerability of the victim, or fear.
“Sometimes they’re afraid they may do themselves more harm than good. They’re just not sure whether they’re actually going to make the matter worse by bringing it to attention.”
Police are encouraging anyone who thinks they may have been a victim of similar abuse to come forward and Ms Guthrie says it is important to do so, otherwise the abuser is simply encouraged.

SOURCE:    NewsTalkZB, Auckland, New Zealand

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Brothers Sentenced for Attacking and Urinating on Their Grandmother (UT. USA)

Brothers sentenced for attacking and urinating on their grandmother
October 5th, 2009
Story compiled with contributions from Sandra Yi and Randall Jeppesen.
Two brothers will each spend a year in jail for assaulting their grandmother. They will also be on probation for a year.
Christopher and Michael Hansen pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor charges of abuse of an elder adult, lewdness and domestic criminal mischief. Their attorneys asked the judge to give them probation, so they could work and get counseling, but the victim’s sister-in-law said the men deserve to go to prison because they had mistreated their grandmother for a long time.
After the hearing, Rita Avery declined to do an interview, but in court she told the judge she loved her grandsons and forgave them for what they did.
The victim’s sister-in-law Joy Allen said, “She still says, ‘I love them and they’re my family,’ and I just keep trying to tell her, ‘Rita, you don’t want a family who treats you like that.'”

The judge ordered they have no contact with their grandmother until their probation officers allow it.

Abridged
SOURCE:     KSL TV

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Public Urged to Report Senior Abuse (NB. CANADA)

NBers urged to report senior abuse
October 2nd, 2009
Seniors’ advocate calls for independent agency to investigate and prosecute cases of abuse

By Alan Cochrane
Times & Transcript Staff
New Brunswick senior citizens are routinely abused and neglected by their families and spouses but most cases are never reported, but the provincial government is hoping new resources unveiled in Dieppe yesterday will help inspire more people to come forward to protect them.

“We’ve got to make sure that the public is aware that these problems do exist, but without reporting it how do we know how many cases there are? It’s a matter of picking up the phone. If you know something is going on, there are places to call,” Minister of State for Seniors Brian Kenny said yesterday at the launch of a booklet called “Preventing Abuse and Neglect of Seniors,” which was compiled by the Public Legal Education and Information Service of New Brunswick.
The new booklet was compiled after several months of research with a goal of providing good information for seniors, their families, friends and others who might be aware of abusive situations. The bilingual booklet says seniors suffer from abuse in their own homes, nursing homes and special-care homes. There are many kinds of abuse that can range from sexual assault and physical violence to messing with prescriptions, financial fraud and theft of pension cheques to outright neglect.

Abridged
SOURCE:    The Times Transcript

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How to Spot and Stop Elder Abuse (ON. CANADA)

Ontario Association of Social Workers
Oct 06, 2009 
How to Spot – and Stop – Elder Abuse: New Handbook Available!
Why are as many as one in ten older adults in Ontario living with abuse?

Attention: Assignment Editor, Health/Medical Editor, Lifestyle Editor, News Editor, Government/Political Affairs Editor

TORONTO, ONTARIO,

NEW PUBLICATION ON ELDER ABUSE
Oct. 6, 2009
 Why are as many as one in ten older adults in Ontario living with abuse? Dr. Sandra Loucks Campbell of the Ontario Association of Social Workers (OASW) asserts this troubling number is a consequence of age bias – a deplorable reality.
“The monumental social and emotional toll inflicted on older adults, their families and communities should not be tolerated”, states Sandy Campbell, Chair of the OASW Committee on Issues of Aging. To counteract this unacceptable reality, the Committee is launching an updated, leading-edge handbook focusing on the physical, psychological and financial abuse and neglect of older persons. “Elder Abuse: A Practical Handbook for Service Providers, Second Edition”, promises to be helpful to an extensive network of care providers such as the police, health care professionals, community workers and others across the province.

Abridged
SOURCE:     MarketWire.Com
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2 Sons Arrested On Suspicion of Elder Abuse of Mother (USA)

2 sons arrested in Morgan Hill on suspicion of abuse of mom bitten by ferrets
Bay City News Service
09/30/2009
Two Morgan Hill men have been arrested on suspicion of elder abuse for allegedly failing to care for their mother, police said today.
One of the sons brought his 70-year-old mother to Kaiser Permanente Medical Center San Jose’s emergency room at about 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, and hospital staff notified Morgan Hill police of a possible elder abuse case.
Officers went to the hospital and to a home on Burnett Avenue in Morgan Hill where the woman lives with her two sons. Officers found two ferrets, and a large amount of feces and urine inside the home, police said.
Copyright © 2009 by Bay City News, Inc. 

Abridged
SOURCE:    Bay City News

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The Abused and Abandoned: Who Cares (INDIA)

International Day for the Elderly
By Shivani Vig, TNN 30
September 2009

Sitting under a tin-shed, Urmila Devi (65) and Mala (90) consider themselves a few of the luckier ones, for they at least have a roof over their head- a bedroom in the Swaraj Vridha Ashram

Their wrinkled faces, vacant stares, fading sight and weak bodies speak of an alarming trend– that in many family homes, there’s no longer room for old people. On the eve of the International Day for the Elderly, The Times of India visited a shelter home for the aged in Panki and noted that Urmila and Mala were not alone in their plight.

A common thread of battering, abuse, neglect, harassment and even abandoning binds the 28-odd inmates of this shelter. And, although, there may not be a ‘Munna Bhai’ to bring solace to the dull lives of these elderlies, as was with those staying in ‘Second Innings Home’ in ‘Lage Raho Munna Bhai’, efforts of a few godsend individuals for opening up a shelter home for elderly surely seems to fulfil the purpose of making these elderly lead a respectful life.

“They are people whom no one wants. They were either refused by their family or were found on the streets. And there are those who fell victim to the busy lives of their families,” says Manju Bhatia, who has opened the Swaraj Ashram in 2007.

A few of them even do not remember where they come from. “Mala devi is one such inmate who can’t even recall the name of his son. The school staff where she used to work had brought her here,” says Rani Bhatia, who looks after all the elderly in the ashram. 


Abridged
SOURCE:   Times of India

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Man Charged With Abusing Parents (FL. USA)

Man charged with abusing parents
Staff report
September 29, 2009

A 50-year-old man recently released from prison has been jailed on charges of abusing his elderly parents.
Julian Howard Parker began mistreating his parents after his release from prison in April on drug charges, police said. Parker had moved into their Milton Avenue home.
He was first arrested on Aug. 10 and charged with elderly abuse for throwing a pack of cigarettes at his 79-year-old mother- hitting her hard enough to leave a visible mark that was still there when police arrived, according to an arrest report.
Last Thursday, Parker was charged with aggravated battery of a person over 65, false imprisonment, exploitation of an elderly person and possession of cocaine after he banged on the front door at 2 a.m., awakening his father.
A short time later, Parker pulled his 81-year-old father out of bed, dragged him into another room and demanded money, an arrest report states. When his father refused to give him money, Parker became enraged and threw his father against a wall, then dragged him back into the bedroom and held him against his will, the report states.
Parker was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail, where he remained Tuesday with bail set at $15,500.

SOURCE:    The News Journal Online
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