District Attorney Vance also announced the creation of New York City’s first Elder Fatality Review Team, a team of experts that will evaluate elder deaths in which abuse or neglect may have played a role. The fully operational team is comprised of members from the Elder Abuse Unit of the District Attorney’s Office, Adult Protective Services, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, the Office of the NYS Attorney General, the Department for the Aging, the Department of Health, New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and Mt. Sinai Medical Center.

 

“We cannot let our seniors suffer in silence,” District Attorney Vance said. “Elder Abuse encompasses both the physical abuse and financial exploitation of older victims by family members, companions, caretakers, con artists, accountants, bankers and others. Often, this abuse happens behind closed doors, but it should never go unreported. If you or someone that you know has been a victim of elder abuse, I urge you to call the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s Elder Abuse hotline at 212-335-9007. It is my hope that through the continued collaboration between my Office, the Weinberg Center, Citymeals-on-Wheels, and other agencies, we will help New York seniors lead safer, better lives.”

 

The New York State Elder Abuse Prevalence Study, published in May 2011, estimated that nearly a quarter-million older New Yorkers are suffering from some form of abuse, and that financial exploitation is the most common form of abuse. According to a March 2009 study conducted by the MetLife Mature Market Institute, financial abuse of the elderly costs older Americans more than $2.6 billion dollars each year. In November 2010, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office charged a man for exploiting a 98-year-old wheelchair-bound man suffering from Parkinson’s disease with whom the defendant shared an office. After the victim broke his hip and was admitted to a nursing home, the defendant illegally accessed the victim’s bank account information and stole $400,000. Last year, the Office filed an indictment against a man for stealing $1.5 million dollars from his elderly stepmother and father. Earlier this month, the Office recovered $15,000 for an elderly woman who was financially exploited by her maid. Additionally, the Office recently charged a man for stealing than $50,000 from a woman in her eighties and secured the conviction of a woman who stole more than $9,000 from her elderly employer.

 

Hebrew Home at Riverdale President and CEO Dan Reingold said: “Elder abuse is an extremely serious problem that increases every year at holiday time when families get together. We also see a spike in cases because of hardships created by the tough economy. This is a joint effort that raises awareness and could save lives.”

 

Human Resources Administration Commissioner Robert Doar said: “The abuse and financial exploitation of elderly New Yorkers is tragic, and all too often goes unreported.  At HRA, our Adult Protective Services cares for the city’s most vulnerable adults. Working with the District Attorney’s office, our fellow City agencies and partners in the community, we can make a difference in the lives of these vulnerable New Yorkers and help them live safely in their communities.”

 

Department of Aging Commissioner Lilliam Barrios-Paoli said: “I would like to thank District Attorney Vance and all our community partners here today for their efforts to train our home delivered meal drivers and deliverers to recognize the signs and symptoms of elder abuse. This builds on the initiatives of our Elderly Crime Victims Resource Center and our training unit to educate senior center and case management staff and the community at large about this largely underreported crime.”

 

Citymeals-on-Wheels Executive Director Beth Shapiro said: “Teaching the dedicated and compassionate individuals who deliver meals to frail, homebound aging New Yorkers how to recognize signs of elder abuse will help save lives. Citymeals is proud to collaborate with DA Vance and The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Center for Elder Abuse Prevention at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale on this important initiative.”

 

New York Law School’s Elder Law Clinic Co-Director Peter Strauss said: “The prevention of elder abuse, whether by strangers or family members, has long frustrated elder law attorneys who have limited tools available to combat it.  Students and faculty at New York Law School as well as the Elder Law Section of the New York State Bar Association applaud this exciting initiative to use Citymeals-on-Wheels as an early warning system and a practical and effective program to stop many tragedies from occurring.”

 

In addition to prosecuting the financial exploitation of the elderly, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has worked with banks to help them develop systems and protocols to monitor seniors’ accounts and stop criminal schemes before their funds are lost for good. Please call the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s Elder Abuse hotline at 212-335-9007 if you or someone that you know has been a victim of elder abuse.