Unfortunately, each year there are hundreds of thousands of elderly people who are abused, neglected, and mistreated. Seniors who are too frail or are in a vulnerable psychiatric state may be unable to speak up. In some cases, families are unsure of what the signs of elder abuse are and do not even realize it is happening to their loved ones.
Each of the fifty states has some form of elder abuse law in place. However, these laws can be complicated, and it may be challenging to navigate the legal terrain.
It is difficult to imagine how people can do such horrible things to elderly individuals, but it is an unfortunate reality. The best thing you can do to help prevent and reduce instances of elder abuse is to arm yourself with the knowledge, resources, and tools to make sure you become aware of instances of elder abuse and neglect and are able to take action. Below, you will find a list of common forms of elder abuse.
Emotional Abuse: This form of abuse includes verbal abuse, the infliction of emotional duress on another person, humiliating or intimidating someone, and also threatening an elderly person’s life or livelihood.
Financial Exploitation: Financial exploitation typically involves a caregiver abusing the elderly person’s trust to influence them to make financial decisions to benefit the perpetrator. Some examples of financial exploitation include influencing the elderly person to make changes to their will and stealing money or other assets.
Neglect: This form of abuse encapsulates many broad terms. Examples of neglect include the refusal of a caregiver to provide the elderly person with food, shelter, or necessary health care. This puts the elderly person in a dangerous and vulnerable position.
Health Risk Neglect: This type of abuse includes malnutrition, bedsores, dehydration, and chronic kidney or bladder infections, that occur due to a caregiver’s neglect.
Abandonment: Abandonment is an extreme failure to provide any necessary and proper care for an elderly person—to the extent that the elderly person has essentially been abandoned by their caregiver.
Physical Abuse: Physical abuse includes acts of slapping, shoving, punching, pushing, kicking, and restraining, among other things. These acts constitute physical abuse of an elderly person.
Sexual Abuse: Sexual abuse is another form of abuse that elderly people may become the victims of. This abuse includes non-consensual sex of any kind. If a senior is forced in some way to participate in any type of sexual act without their consent, that is sexual abuse. If an elderly person does not have the mental ability to say no, it is also sexual abuse.
When it comes to elder abuse and neglect, it is very important to know what to look for, so that you can report any instances of such abuse promptly. If you suspect someone you care about is a victim of elder abuse, you can report it to Adult Protective Services.
You or your loved one may also be entitled to compensation. To learn more, contact an elder abuse attorney at The Peck Law Group by calling (866) 999.9085.
With multiple offices throughout California, The Peck Law Group’s elder abuse attorneys can you assist you with your case anywhere in the state including (but not limited to):
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