Elder Law News

Man Sentenced For Stealing Money That Was Supposed To Be Used To Care For His Ailing Grandparents.

34-year old Christopher John Nowell will spend up to 15-years in prison for pocketing the money that was supposed to be used to care for his ailing grandparents. Third District Judge Denise Lindberg gave the Tooele man the maximum sentence possible and called his actions "despicable."

Nowell’s 89-year old grandfather and his 85-year old grandmother could no longer live at home because of significant health problems including Alzheimer’s disease. Nowell was given power of attorney and access to his grandparents’ bank account to pay for their needs.

"Elder abuse is not going to be tolerated," said Attorney General Mark Shurtleff. "These people are vulnerable and I will do everything I can to make sure this kind of abuse is not repeated."

According to court records, the Middletons were asked to leave a Sandy nursing home after Nowell failed to pay $15,000 for housing costs. The elderly couple was moved to a nursing home in Tooele but Nowell never paid nearly $50,000 in promised payments to that facility.

Adult Protective Services referred the case to Medicaid Fraud Unit Investigators with the Attorney General’s Office. Nowell pleaded guilty to Second Degree Felony Exploitation of an Elder Adult after investigators discovered he cashed and pocketed checks from his grandparents’ account.

The judge ordered Nowell to prison immediately at the August 3 sentencing hearing. He was also ordered to pay $59,306 restitution.

Assistant Attorney General Wade Farraway hopes the stiff sentence will be a warning to others. "Mr. Nowell was in a position of trust. He violated that trust and deserved to go to prison," said Farraway.

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	Did You Know?
	Medicaid does not provide medical assistance for all poor persons. Even under the broadest provisions of the Federal statute (except for emergency services for certain persons), the Medicaid program does not provide health care services, even for very poor persons, unless they are in one of the designated eligibility groups. Low income is only one test for Medicaid eligibility; assets and resources are also tested against established thresholds.