1. Hon. Joyce Cram, Ret. Contra Costa County Superior Court

3.  86 year old widow  Declining health—with early Alzheimer’s  Lives with son  Drug addicted, mental health issues  Verbally abusive, recently physical abuse  Financial abuse  Facing foreclosure/eviction  Unable to care for herself

4.  Criminal  Civil  Probate/Guardianship/Conservatorship  Restraining Orders/Orders of Protection  Different courts = different outcomes  Never makes it into the system

5.  Overall incidence rate nearly 24x greater than number of cases referred to social service, law enforcement or legal authorities  Psychological abuse was most common form of mistreatment reported by agencies, financial exploitation was most prevalent form of mistreatment reported by respondents

6.  Self-Reported  All forms:76.0  Financial:42.1  Physical/Sexual 22.4  Neglect 18.3  Emotional16.4  Agency-Reported  All forms: 3.24  Financial.96  Physical/Sexual 1.13  Neglect.32  Emotional 1.37

7.  Protect the perpetrator  Unaware of legal options  Unwilling/afraid to go to court  Fear of consequences:  Loss of control over finances  Fear of additional abuse if reported  Fear of losing one’s home

8.  Guardian/Conservator of Person:  Ward unable to provide for physical health, food, clothing or shelter  Guardian/Conservator of Estate:  Ward unable to manage own finances or resist fraud or undue influence  Can be full or limited  Process varies by state

9.  Powers of Attorney*  Trusts*  Statutes providing for authorization of transactions involving incompetent spouse  Statutes providing court order for health care decisions for persons without guardianship *Potential for abuse

10.  Con:  Expensive and time consuming  Complicated, may require attorney  Invades rights to privacy and self-determination  Potential for abuse  Pro:  Court supervision  Bond  Removal

11.  Sliding scale, depending on task  May fluctuate  Requires medical evaluation  Potential for conflicting opinions  Hard to evaluate in retrospect

12.  Purpose:  Ensure welfare of wards  Discourage and identify neglect, abuse or exploitations  Sanction guardians who demonstrate malfeasance  Significant cost to court  Lack of concrete data re open cases or prevalence of abuse

13.  Elder Abuse Restraining Orders  Available in your state?  Domestic Violence Restraining Orders  Civil Harassment RO’s

14.  Victim reluctance  Capacity  Ignorance of process to obtain  Transportation  Family dynamics  Consequences may expose victim to further abuse/neglect

15.  Courts must anticipate significant increase in cases involving elders:  Increased population  Expanded public awareness  Mandated reporting laws  Enhanced training  Specialized elder abuse response teams  Expanded legal protection

16.  Develop procedures to identify elder abuse cases  Schedule for times of day when elders are most functional  Expedite trial and hearing dates/minimize continuances  Consider specialized court or docket

17.  Site assessment: inventory your court for potential barriers  Large font forms/document readers  Assistive listening devices/amplification  Wheelchair/ramping  Shortened trial day  Alternatives to in-court testimony (non-crim)  More than just ADA compliance!

18.  Crafting effective orders (no-contact, bail conditions, sentencing, restitution, etc.)  Ensure availability of advocates, peer counselors, pro bono attorneys, self-help centers  On-site  By referral

19.  Comprehensive training for judges and staff  Basic law  Role of family dynamics  Capacity issues  Effect of aging on cognition, memory, vulnerability to abuse  Crafting effective orders to mitigate past abuse and prevent future abuse

20.  Contra Costa County, California, established November 2008  First in State to include all cases of physical, financial or emotional elder abuse:  Criminal  Civil  Probate (conservatorships and will/trust litigation)  Elder Abuse Restraining Orders

21.  Early and consistent resolution  Intra-Court coordination  Possibility of early global resolution  Collaboration with justice partners  Outreach

22.  Consolidation of cases resulted in flood of volunteer offers  Senior Peer Counselors  Pre-hearing consultation  Post-hearing reassurance call  Connection to other needed services  Senior Legal Services  Ongoing Senior Self Help Center  Local bar association

23.  “The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; and those who are in shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped” (Humphrey 1977)  Creating an elder-friendly court is neither favoritism nor condescension, it is simply providing elders access to justice