Collaborative Elder/vulnerable adult Investigations NCP3A 2019 Conference Collaborative Elder/vulnerable adult Investigations APS Administrator Mario Wawrzusin Lieutenant Jordan Satinsky Montgomery County, Maryland Welcome Quick outline of today’s presentation Mario’s Introduction (brief) Jordan’s Introduction (brief) COLLABORATIVE INVESTIGATIONS is NEXT

Presenters Mario wawrZusin Jordan Satinsky Administrator, Montgomery County APS/Adult Services 25 years APS experience NAPSA member, presenter 2018 NACO Award to APS and EMS/FRS, Mobile Integrated Health Lieutenant, Montgomery County 20 years of law enforcement Developed sex assault unit Re-started DV, elder/vulnerable unit

Agenda Where should we be? The mistakes we made Case examples Where we are now

Collaboration between APS and law enforcement Why is this important? Collaboration between APS and law enforcement

Where should we be?

Where should we be? Elder/Vulnerable Adult population is growing Growing population means more casework Are we receiving more personnel?

North Carolina APS Investigations

North Carolina APS Investigations 2008 to 2018 NC APS more than doubled 73% of Victims are sixty and older -similar to Montgomery County Most common was neglect (88%) 24% of those committed by caretaker and/or relative Exploitation occurred in 14% of cases

MCPD and MC APS 2013

MCPD Response to APS prior to 2013 Alert if case was major Supervisor would review and assign Investigators would attempt to solicit information from APS Little was shared between MCPD and MC APS

APS Response to MCPD prior to 2013 Police will not help They do not understand these cases Police are not empathetic No clear line of communication or contact between agencies All will fade in Mario, discuss the previous process

Collaborative Investigations Began One Case Changed Everything

Donald’s Home Single family home Patrol Officers responded for deceased Donna, Sylvia, and Ashaka were all in the home Unused pills all over home Odor eliminators all over house Bugs in home

MCPD Elder Abuse Unit The person is deceased Not our investigation Area of specialization and have contacts to assist Did assist later with paperwork

MC County Code Not something for us Will not come out

MC APS On-call agent was not responding What about Sylvia? There was nowhere to house Sylvia

Scene Response MCPD Crime Scene Responded Medical Examiner MCPD Elder Abuse Unit MC APS MC County Code Responded Did not respond

No communication Agencies did not work together No one knew each other No one trusted each other Lots of frustration Change had to happen

How did we make this happen? Collaboration Begins How did we make this happen?

Police 2013: took over DV/Elder Unit Moved to Family Justice Center APS Visit APS and MCPD Elder decide to work together Child abuse style investigations Investigators and Agents train together Break down barriers

Adult protective services What would you do if local Police Sergeant visited your APS office? How did he get in? Elder Abuse prevalence is about 10% Tip of the iceberg. APS Social Worker Investigators typically investigate alone How can we help each other?

APS Local Trends APS growth rate = 15% last 2 years; 46% over last 5 years Number of Abuse/Neglect cases increase by 61% Financial Exploitation cases nearly Triple – 286% increase # of suspicious deaths increase: Natural versus Neglect/Abuse

Elder/Vulnerable Adult Abuse Task Force What is ideal? Elder/Vulnerable Adult Abuse Task Force EVAATF

Collaborative Investigations Who is at the table? Adult Protective Services Family Justice Center Domestic Violence/Elder Abuse Unit State’s Attorney’s Crimes Against Seniors and Vulnerable Adults Homicide Unit Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service Ombudsman Office of the County Attorney Discuss briefly what each does…flip flop between Mario and Jordan each line

EVTAAF

The Multi-disciplinary approach Members of the group have various backgrounds Complimentary experiences, knowledge, and qualifications Skills that advance the investigation and assist the victim(s)

Actions Taken APS and Police Leadership on speed dial Commitment to 24x7 assistance MOU with Local Multi-Disciplinary Elder/Vulnerable Adult Abuse Task Force Safety Training @ Police Academy

What Police can expect from APS Investigator Investigation of abuse, neglect and/or exploitation and a safety plan Evaluation of client risk and mental capacity Emergency Psychiatric Petition if required Develop a client centered plan of care including resource linkages Follow NAPSA guidelines for investigations Ongoing support to client

What can APS expect from Police? Secure the scene, keep victim/APS Investigator from harm, preserve evidence Observe if a crime committed, arrest as warranted Develop a comprehensive criminal investigation Separate victim from alleged abuser Notify appropriate agencies i.e. access EMS if hospitalization needed

Do we need to work together? Why? Hold perpetrators accountable when interviews and evidence properly gathered for prosecutor Reduce victim re-traumatization with joint interviews and investigations Learn and stay in our professional lanes Document spontaneous utterances

Case study how we investigate now Kirkland Case

WARNING: The next photographs may be disturbing Victim: Kirkland WARNING: The next photographs may be disturbing

Kirkland Case Victim’s son was caretaker Brought her to hospital Large wound on back APS/MCPD Elder Unit responded Coordinated Investigation

James Kirkland TRIAL Charged with: Convicted of: Sentenced to: Involuntary Manslaughter and Vulnerable Adult Abuse Convicted of: Vulnerable Adult Abuse Sentenced to: Ten years and three years probation

Coordinated Response APS and police responded to hospital and scene Relatively seamless coordination between agencies Evidence transferred between agencies to further each side of case Victim was removed from custody of son and eventually passed due to her lack of care Son, arrested and charged

Case Summary Coordinated responses work The first case took several years and resulted in minimal prison time The second case from start to conviction was approximately two years with a ten year prison sentence Both agencies benefit from this working relationship

APS/PD Joint Joint Training

MCPD/MC APS Joint Safety Training Noted that APS Agents travel to homes alone Backup not always near APS Agent injured in an event Coordinated safety training was implemented

Joint Training SAO, MCPD, MC APS conduct yearly training on various topics Assist in training new APS agents, investigators, and prosecutors Conduct case reviews

Summary Collaboration works APS Agents and Law Enforcement Investigators learn from each other Re-victimization is lessened by working together Victims receive better outcomes Perpetrators are held accountable

Thank You! Montgomery County PD Montgomery County APS Lieutenant Jordan Satinsky 240-876-0477 Chief Administrator Mario Wawrzusin 240-777-3851