The Guardian
A must see film.
This is happening to
others in America.​
An investigative documentary that examines the systemic abuse of elderly people in Las Vegas, Nevada exposing a cautionary tale where some of our society's most vulnerable citizens are robbed of their life savings and freedom.
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“Guardians, Inc.,” tackles abuses in the world of elder guardianship, a system that controls the lives of an estimated 1.5 million adults with estates worth more than $250 billion—and that is rife with financial fraud and elder abuse.
When older or disabled adults are found to be unable to manage their affairs, the state may step in and and assign them a legal guardian to control their finances and medical decision making. It’s designed to protect the assets and well-being of those who’ve lost the ability to make sound decisions for themselves, but it gives those appointed guardians near-total control over those in their care, and can leave elderly people vulnerable to those who don’t have their best interest at heart.
As Dirty Money revealed, in states like Texas, guardians are entitled to earn commissions on sales of their wards’ assets, on top of drawing wages for themselves, assistants, and lawyers. Abuses have been reported for decades; in 2001, the New York Times wrote of one lawyer who served as guardian for senior citizens. He brought a birthday cake to one ward’s nursing home and charged her estate $850 for the visit. On another occasion, he took her to buy an ice cream cone and charged her $1,275.
Journalist Rachel Aviv, who’s featured in the Dirty Money episode, wrote an in-depth examination of guardianship abuse for the New Yorker in 2017. Her story focused on Rudy and Rennie North, a retired Nevada couple who were married for 57 years before professional guardian April Parks arrived at their home in 2013 and forced them to move to an assisted living center. Parks, who’d won control of hundreds of wards over the years, had, without the Norths’ knowledge, filed an emergency petition to become their guardian, convincing a judge with the help of a letter from a physician’s assistant who had a single appointment with Rennie that the couple could no longer responsibly handle their affairs.​
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I Care Alot​
​ Marla Grayson is a con artist who makes a living by convincing the justice system to grant her guardianship over elders who she pretends cannot take care of themselves. She places them in an assisted living facility, where they are sedated and lose contact with the outside world. She then sells off their homes and assets, pocketing the proceeds. She and the court deny a man, Mr. Feldstrom, access to his mother after he attempts to force his way into the assisted living facility. He later threatens her outside the courthouse, saying that he hopes she is killed.
Dr. Karen Amos informs Marla about a potential case, a wealthy retiree named Jennifer Peterson with no apparent partner or close family. A judge appoints Marla guardian after she and Dr. Amos falsely testify that Jennifer suffers from dementia, confusion, and loss of mobility. Marla moves Jennifer into assisted living and immediately gets to work selling Jennifer's furniture, car, and home. While rooting through Jennifer's possessions, Marla discovers the key to a safe deposit box and finds that it contains a watch, gold bars, bank notes, and hidden, loose diamonds, which she takes and stashes away.
As Marla's girlfriend and business partner, Fran, oversees the renovation of the house, a cab arrives driven by Alexi Ignatyev, who says he is there to pick up Jennifer. Fran says that Jennifer has moved. Alexi returns to his employer, Roman Lunyov, greatly distressed. Roman, a crime lord, is revealed to be Jennifer's son. He threatens Alexi and orders him to find his mother and report back. Mafia lawyer Dean Ericson offers to pay Marla $150,000 in cash to release Jennifer but she refuses, willing to do it only if she is paid $5 million. He threatens Marla and takes her to court. The judge dismisses the case as Ericson cannot prove Jennifer hired him.
Fran discovers "Jennifer Peterson" is an identity stolen from an infant who died of polio. When Jennifer refuses to tell Marla her real identity, Marla teams up with property manager Sam Rice and withdraws filling many of Jennifer's basic needs. Finding his mother's safe deposit box rifled, Roman sends three thugs to Jennifer's facility to take her. This violent effort fails, and Marla helps police apprehend Alexi, who is one of the men. Fran's police contact tells them that Alexi is the sibling of two other mafia bosses who supposedly died in a fire. Having failed to rescue his mother, Roman has Dr. Amos killed at her office. After hearing this news,
Marla and Fran move into an unsold property of a previous victim. Jennifer is baited into attacking Marla when she visits the facility and is moved to a psychiatric ward.
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A Fall from Grace
Tyler Perry Movie​​
How quickly
elder abuse can happen.​
Grace tells Jasmine that she met Shannon at a gallery exhibit of his work. He charmed Grace and they married three months later. Grace says that Shannon soon became cruel and secretive. After he got her passwords and secretly stole from her accounts, he mortgaged her house with forged documents. Eventually, the bank fired Grace. The last night, Grace walked in on Shannon and another woman having sex in the marriage bed.
Watch this film to see what attorneys should look like in America!
To help the abuse and vulnerable.
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The Bad Guardian
on Lifetime​​​
The Bad Guardian is a riveting thriller about one woman’s fight to save her father from the clutches of a corrupt and greedy court-appointed “guardian”. When Leigh’s (Melissa Joan Hart) father Jason (Eric Pierpoint) suffers a fall while she’s out of town, the courts assign Jason a guardian, Janet (La La Anthony). At first Janet seems to be a big help to Jason, but things quickly take a terrible turn.
Janet is legally in charge of every aspect of Jason’s life, and doesn’t waste any time placing him in a nursing home, auctioning off his house, all worldly possessions, and using the excuse that the proceeds are needed for his care.
As Leigh continues to challenge Janet’s efforts, the guardian ultimately uses her power to prevent the family from visiting. In Janet’s care, Jason’s health deteriorates, to the point that he needs a life saving treatment which Janet decides is too expensive.
As the whistleblowers around Jason meet untimely ends, Leigh finds the strength to take down the guardian and the corrupt system that supports her.