TULSA, Okla. — In the middle of a legal fight to regain guardianship of their ailing father, a Tulsa family lost the battle.
It’s because Leroy Theodore, Senior, died before they got the chance to be with him again.
WATCH: Court-appointed guardianships: What happens when state abruptly takes control
This is one of many stories of aging loved ones being yanked from their families for unexplainable reasons, and sometimes, fraudulently.
In a story first reported by Oklahoma Watch, Larissa Dudkiewicz and Valerie Parks' dad suffered two strokes, leaving him quadriplegic and nonverbal in 2021.
After years of improper care at nursing homes, Parks, a stay-at-home mom battling breast cancer, decided it was time to be his full-time caretaker.
“It’s hard, extremely yard, but it’s doable and when you care about someone, you’re going to do it,” she said.
One of the nursing homes was particularly horrific.
“They found maggots in his bed,” she said. He made several trips to St. Francis because of the problems.
Parks said she was trained by St. Francis to care for him. However, once home, Parks said getting his prescription feeding tube was nearly impossible, due to entities pointing fingers at each other over who was responsible.
“He was extremely malnourished, he was extremely dehydrated,” she said. “I’m sorry, Oklahoma, I’ve come to the conclusion that something is off with this state! Because they couldn’t get a simple order in.”
Parks said she couldn’t get the trach tube cleaning supplies from St. Francis, so when it got crusted and he couldn’t breathe, she removed the trach and called an ambulance.
“I was like I am glad he is in the hospital, I am glad we can finally get the help we need,” she said.
She was not glad for long. Abruptly, Adult Protective Services (APS), run by the Department of Human Services, took over legal guardianship.
“His finances, everything,” she said.
Parks’ power of attorney got stripped. Theodore was non-verbal and agreed to the POA with eye movement. Despite being in front of an attorney, the courts invalidated the POA.
And citing various reasons, Parks said APS accused her of neglect, which has not been substantiated.
“They did many reports on me, they all came back fine, that I didn’t do anything wrong,” she said.
Not only that, Oklahoma law does not require court-appointed guardians to contact family, so they had no idea where their father went for a month and a half.
“I am told I am not allowed to see my father,” she said. “I’m like, excuse me?”
The family eventually found Theodore at a facility two hours from the Tulsa metro. Dudkiewicz was allowed inside for brief periods. Parks was told to wait outside, for unknown reasons.
Parks never saw him again.
On August 4, she received a letter in the mail notifying her that he passed away.
St. Francis did not reply to 2 News’ repeated emails and questions.
Department of Human Services, over APS, does not comment on cases.
Court-appointed eldercare guardianships: how to protect your rights, avoid potential scams
Guardianships are designed to protect people but they are growingly associated with fraud.
Tulsa attorney Austin Bond, unaffiliated with Theodore’s case, implores everyone, while healthy, to designate a medical and financial power of attorney. A POA is a legal documentation of who will take care of your affairs.
“Because if you don’t, someone is going to step in and they don’t have to follow what you want,” said Bond. “Often times, it is what you don’t want.”
“This is a massive amount of power that a person has,” he explains. “Often times to drive, in some cases, vote, handle your financial affairs, make medical decisions. That amount of power, when unchecked, is ripe for fraud and it happens all the time.”
How does it happen?
Bond says unscrupulous attorneys, or those in the medical field and/or banks, work to petition the court for guardianship. Any could be behind it; most times, for financial gain.
At times, folks are whisked away from their family. Sometimes, even their cell phones are taken away. In Oklahoma, Bond says there is no law that says keeping them from family is wrong.
WATCH: A look at court-appointed guardianships
“There needs to be an obligation for a guardian to communicate with a ward’s family and right now, I think that is lacking at the state level,” he said.
Bond said courts are flooded with lawsuits, but criminal charges are not often investigated or prosecuted.
“If you think the State of Oklahoma is going to try to come in and protect your individual and financial interests if you are in a vulnerable state, don’t count on it,” he said.
Once a guardianship is granted, it is an expensive legal fight to undo it—a fight some could never afford, and the ones who could, are no longer in charge of their money.
If you can not afford an attorney to help set up your affairs, there are medical and financial power of attorney forms Bond says can hold up in court. Find them here.
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Sign up for daily newsletters emailed to you
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube
