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‘How can this happen in America?’ New guardianship legislation aims to stop system abuse

Posted at 7:30 PM, Apr 04, 2023
and last updated 2023-04-05 14:48:58-04

LANSING, Mich. (WXYZ) — The 7 Investigators have been exposing problems in Michigan’s guardianship system since 2017. Now new laws are being proposed yet again in the wake of 7 Investigator Heather Catallo’s reporting.

7 Action News has learned from multiples sources that there’s a plan coming from the Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force to create a new state position called the Office of the State Guardian. That will provide more oversight over the guardianship industry.

Meanwhile on Tuesday, some state senators launched some legislation to bring reforms.

“This is elder abuse and it's a systemic problem,” said Christine Abood, who says a professional guardian kept her mom from her before she died.

“I have PTSD from losing my mom and I just want justice. There is not a price you can put on losing your mother,” said Olivia McDavid, who says her mother died while under the care of a court-appointed guardian.

“My own father was almost kidnapped from our Livonia home,” said guardianship activist Tina Lindsey.

The families all allege they’ve suffered at the hands of court-appointed guardians and conservators who stripped their relatives of their rights and cost them thousands of dollars.

“There is today still over $500,000 unaccounted for,” said Jamie Bint, who alleges a court-appointed guardian drained her aunt’s $1.6 million estate.

During a press conference Tuesday, the families spoke in favor of guardianship reforms that were reintroduced by state Sens. Ruth Johnson and Jim Runestad.

“How can this happen in America,” Johnson asked. “This is a giant hole in our system. This isn’t liberty and justice… I think that if these people are exploiting others, taking advantage of them stealing their money, stealing their souls — if they can get away with it, they’ll continue to.”

“Michigan's guardianship process is broken,” Runestad said.

For years, the 7 Investigators have been exposing abuses in Michigan’s guardianship system: in one brief hearing with very little evidence, you can be declared legally incapacitated, and all of your rights can vanish.

Tuesday’s bills mirror the bipartisan legislation from the Attorney General’s Elder Abuse Task Force that was introduced in 2021. Those new laws would have mandated:

Certification for professional guardians

Judges would have to better explain on the record why they’re appointing a professional guardian instead of a family member

They would have increased the number of times guardians have to visit their wards.

But the Michigan Guardianship Association pushed back and the bills from 2021 failed.

“The Guardianship Association, especially, kept moving the goalposts. So, whenever they would bring up a point and it seemed like legitimate point and that point would get addressed, they would say, ‘Well, that's not good enough. What about this other thing,’” Attorney General Dana Nessel told Catallo in January.

Now the state senators are introducing the same task force reforms in the hopes that this time they will pass. They’re also adding a bill that would require all videotaped court proceedings to be made available to the public and they want to ban certain professional guardians from taking on wards.

“Someone who has been removed as a public administrator by the attorney general for cause would be banned,” Runestad said.

The proposed legislation comes just days after the U.S Senate held hearings about the need for reforms across the country to help the 1.3 million people affected by guardianship.

“Harrowing tales were sent to this committee of rights being taken away by a single stroke of a pen,” U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, R-Indiana, said during the hearing in Washington.

“These are the statements: 312 statements from 40 states and territories,” U.S. Senator Bob Casey, D-Pennsylvania, said holding up a stack of complaints from people across the country.

Casey has now introduced legislation to create a national Guardianship Bill of Rights.

Families say change is long overdue.

“I'm hoping this law is passed. I'm hoping that they're criminally charged for what they did,” said Steve Harmony, who was put under guardianship.

Meanwhile, additional new reforms will be announced soon from the attorney general’s task force.

This proposed Office of the State Guardian will give families a place to go to report abuses and they can potentially ask for intervention in their cases.

Changes to the power of attorney rules are also being planned, as well as other guidelines for people who become temporarily medically incapacitated.

If you have a story for Heather, please email her at hcatallo@wxyz.com.