Sign the petition: https://www.change.org/StopPredatoryG…
The popular Netflix movie I Care a Lot exposes exploitative aspects of the guardianship industry which may give you chills, but the real-life case of Dr. Lillie Sykes White is worse.
After spending eight years in a fraudulent guardianship in Florida and over four years isolated from loved ones, former Montgomery County Maryland school supervisor Dr. White died alone on December 30, 2020 of COVID-19. Her abduction and forced isolation by the court-appointed guardian and attorney ad litem silenced her voice, facilitated constructive fraud and put her in harm’s way. No official helped despite substantiated violations of Florida statutes by the court agents.
On February 25, 2021, there was a status hearing on the White guardianship case in front of Judge Terence R. Perkins of the Flagler County Court in the seventh judicial circuit of Florida. Conducted via Zoom, upwards of forty elder justice advocates and family members witnessed the proceedings much to the surprise of the judge and attorneys. All previous hearings were closed to the public. The optics were interesting: at least eight White attorneys preying on the over $4 million estate of a Black elderly woman they kept isolated from loved ones for 1585 days until she died—and the court allowed it. Now, they were in a feeding frenzy to divvy up her estate with their excessive billing and over 1,000 court filings.
In this video, Dr. White’s sister and only living sibling, Janie Sykes-Kennedy, gives her reaction to the status hearing immediately afterwards. At the end of the video, hear Dr. White’s comments on her victimization one month before she was abducted.
This type of guardianship exploitation is happening across the country. Dr. White’s family and other advocates have launched a petition for the U.S. Department of Justice and Senate Special Committee on Aging to investigate this predatory industry, aggressively prosecute and accelerate reform at the federal level. The petition can viewed at: https://www.change.org/StopPredatoryG…
The video was produced by Teresa Kay-Aba Kennedy.
To learn more about Lillie’s story and support the Civil Rights Fund, go to: https://gogetfunding.com/justice-for-…
For more on involuntary guardianships, watch The Deception of Protection: http://elderdignity.org/the-deception…
©2021 Power Living Enterprises, Inc. Produced on a volunteer basis on behalf of Elder Dignity.
www.elderdignity.org @ElderDignityNow
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