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tlbuffin Asked September 2015

Do you need an attorney to swear out a protection order against the Area Agency on Aging, or can you simply go to the local or state police?

My significant other( age 70 and I am 65) wound up in the hospital from a prescription drug overdose. While he was under the influence, he made wild accusations of abuse against me, and then retracted them at a competency hearing when he was fully recovered and realized that he had been hallucinating from the drugs.
Afterward, the Area Agency on Aging became involved and is constantly calling the house, showing up unanounced and is harassing the both of us with phone calls to the state police simply because we will not answer their phone calls , or answer the door anymore. How do we end this harassment? And what governmental agency do we report their unwanted behavior to? These case workers are not God. They must be answerable to someone. We have spent so much money on private attorneys already that we can no longer afford to hire another. Someone-------please HELP!

GardenArtist Sep 2015
My apologies - I see that I did miss in your profile that your partner is clinically depressed. Your profile also states that you're 65 as is your partner....probably a typo.

I'm thinking maybe you should talk to the doctor who prescribed the medicines, if they're anti-depressants, as well as explain the hallucinatory episodes.

GardenArtist Sep 2015
1. WHY is he overdosing on "meds", which from your profile seems to be more than a rare occasion. Which meds are they? Does he have a substance abuse problem? If these are prescription meds, perhaps his doctor can substitute a medicine that doesn't induce hallucinations.

2. I could understand if this were someone who had dementia, and perhaps your SO does, even at 65. If not, then the accusations he makes because of O'D'ing are apparently the only source of the false allegations.

3. You wrote that the allegations were retracted at a competency hearing. This makes me think there's more to the situation that has been addressed. Does your SO have mental issues, and is it for this the meds are prescribed on which he's over dosing?

4. His false allegations could lead to criminal charges against you, if he doesn't retract them. I would think that would be an inducement to cooperate with a monitoring agency and resolve the issues ASAP.

5. I wasn't aware that the AAA actually got involved in home monitoring for abuse accusations. I always thought it was APS, Adult Protective Services, not the Area Agency on Aging.

If the allegations were retracted, how and why did AAA become involved thereafter? Did the court involve it to provide monitoring, or were new accusations made?

6. An attorney can't do anything to get a PPO against AAA issued other than charge to represent you in applying for one
. Based on my understanding, only a court of law can issue a PPO, but I think it unlikely one would be issued against a protective agency such as APS, or a generally administrative agency like AAA, unless you can prove harassment. And given that your partner is the one making the accusations, I can't imagine that harassment charges against either agency would be issued.

7. Why don't you want to open up the home to APS or AAA and resolve this once and for all, or even advise them that the charges are unfounded because of your partners O'D episodes?

I suspect there's more to this situation than meets the eye.

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freqflyer Sep 2015
tlbuffin, the Adult Protection Service is there to help you and your partner... and when your partner overdoses on prescription medicine and accuses you of abuse, the APS has to take these claims seriously until they find out otherwise.

I know you are frustrated with everyone nosing around, and from your post above sounds like this is a regular on-going issue with all the hiring of attorneys.

The only way to stop it is to find some way for your partner to stop over dosing on his meds. Buy a locked med dispenser that only gives him his daily required pills and nothing more.

Sunnygirl1 Sep 2015
Consulting with an attorney is always a good idea. They can give you insight and practical advice.

Transparency is attractive to those who are trying to protect the vulnerable. Dodging puts up red flags. We are entitled to peace, but when you are providing care to a person who has questionable competency and they end up in an ER due to a drug overdose, you have to accept that these causes concern. Caregivers are responsible for the people they are caring for.

I would make sure you have security measures in place for the medication in the home. Also, keep in mind that further accusations could come from your partner.

I might keep a list of the names and numbers of witnesses who can attest of your good care of your partner, in case they are needed.

BarbBrooklyn Sep 2015
The agency is there to protect vulnerable elders. Ipen your doors to them and they will stop harassing you.

Eyerishlass Sep 2015
I think your quickest and easiest route to resolving the situation would be to let the agency into your home and answering their calls . Since you have nothing to hide let them see that. Once they're in your home explain to them what happened. Dodging them and hiding out just looks suspicious.

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