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The Context

‘ The Accidental Tourist’: A Personal Narrative of the Evolution of Elder Abuse in the Criminal Justice System Distinguished Lecture Candace J. Heisler cjheisler@aol.co m. The Context. “No place for a woman” Law school 8% women “65 Club” Feminism “Not me!”. “In the Beginning”.

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The Context

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  1. ‘The Accidental Tourist’: A Personal Narrative of the Evolution of Elder Abuse in the Criminal Justice SystemDistinguished LectureCandace J. Heislercjheisler@aol.com

  2. The Context • “No place for a woman” • Law school • 8% women • “65 Club” • Feminism • “Not me!”

  3. “In the Beginning” • The Early 1970s • The District Attorney’s Office • Law Enforcement Environment • Domestic Violence and Elder Abuse

  4. Domestic Violence • Political Environment • The Rise of Domestic Violence • Accidental Tourist, Part 1 • Legal Changes

  5. Domestic Violence • Legal Changes • Felony DV Battery with Injury (Penal Code 273.5) • Mandates and Training (Penal Code 13700, 13701, 13519) • Then What Happened?

  6. What does this all have to do with elder abuse?

  7. The Early Days of Elder Abuse • The Problem • No Voices Demanding Justice • Our Response • “Be careful what you wish for”

  8. Accidental Tourist, Part II • Aging Imperative • Basic Principles • Victim safety • Offender accountability • Domestic Violence Tactics and Dynamics • System Accountability

  9. Confronting Myths and Misconceptions • Victim “prosecutes” • Victims are poor and unreliable witnesses • Victims do not desire prosecution • Elderly offenders • “Not thrive in jail” • Can’t send grandpa to jail • Not dangerous

  10. Addressing Justifications for Elder Abuse • Stress • “It’s civil” • Victim’s fault

  11. Lessons Learned • Need for multidisciplinary response • Mrs. F • Value of specialized teams • Criminal Justice System must work with civil bar • Ms. D • Need for good laws

  12. Legal Changes • Elder Abuse Crime (PC 368) • Arrest authority (PC 836(d)) • Restitution orders roll into civil judgments (PC 1214(b)) • Trial setting priority (PC 1048) • Right to support persons (PC 868.5) • Admissibility of prior bad acts (Evidence Code 1109) • Conditional examinations (PC 1335-1345)

  13. Good Laws Are Not Enough • Training • Law Enforcement • Prosecutors • Advocates • Court Officials • Court Involvement and Awareness • Effective Court Practices for Abused Elders (2008) • Specialized victim-advocacy

  14. No Criminal Law? Borrow or Import • Child abuse • MDT and Information sharing • Framework for elder abuse (PC 368) • Reporting Law • Child Death Review Teams • Criminal Law • Strangulation • Civil Law • Restitution orders • Undue Influence • Depositions were model for conditional examinations

  15. Challenges • How big is the problem? • No national definition • Not in FBI’s NIBRS (National Incident-Based Reporting System)

  16. Challenges • Lack of specialized experts • Forensic centers • Medical examiners, geriatricians, gero-psychiatrists and gero-psychologists • Shrinking numbers of specialized law enforcement and prosecution units

  17. "The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped." -Senator Hubert H. Humphrey at the dedication of the Hubert H. Humphrey building in Washington, DC, November 4, 1977

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