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In search of easy living, my parents were oblivious to the ramifications
of bigotry when they ignored what few Northerners understand:
In South Carolina, the Civil War still is being fought.
In
1977, they moved to Walterboro, S.C. After 20 years as residents,
they remained known as "the Yankees down the road."
When a biased legal system looked the other way and allowed neighbors
to "grandpa-nap" my father, the consequences were catastrophic.
Dad
was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 1996. In 1998, Dad's physician
urged Mom to confiscate Dad's car keys and take action to "reduce
[his] financial risk." Mom was weak and frail, suffering
from the end stages of emphysema. Emotionally and physically,
Mom was exhausted from illness and being Dad's full-time caregiver.
In
August 1999, Dad had a car accident in front of Walterboro's elementary
school. He rear-ended another driver, causing serious damage.
Police cited Dad at the scene.
Days
later, I sat beside Mom's hospital bed while she reiterated her
fears about Dad's safety. She knew that I, as next of kin, would
provide quality care for Dad, according to his doctor's recommendations.
For
years, Mom repeatedly cautioned family members in three states,
three local physicians and others about Dad's possible exploitation.
She named specific individuals, citing particular concern about
a married couple who owned a service business in Walterboro.
Just
weeks before she died, my mother, with portable oxygen in tow,
courageously emptied bank accounts, disseminated large sums of
money and liquidated whatever she could to prevent strangers from
stealing her assets.
After
Mom's funeral, it became immediately apparent that Dad's condition
was deteriorating rapidly. He began acting out violently, making
serious threats and experiencing hallucinations. Though Dad's
physicians viewed him as "dangerous," he refused to
surrender his handguns or rifles.
My
concerns deepened when the husband of the couple Mom named as
a concern, remarked, "[Dad] should be taken advantage of."
Frantic,
I retained an attorney in Walterboro, stating my apprehensions
and requesting emergency guardianship proceedings. I was advised
to have Dad evaluated by a county mental health facility, and
to remove his car keys and firearms.
This
was no small task for a woman who had just lost her mother; Dad
was out of control and uncooperative.
At
the mental health facility in Walterboro, the county psychiatrist
immediately diagnosed Dad as dangerous, involuntarily committing
him to Charter Hospital in Charleston in October 1999. Dad was
hospitalized for a week, stabilized and placed on an anti-psychotic
medication.
Dad's
internist in Walterboro noted his condition as: "moderately
severe Alzheimer's dementia with very poor short-term memory."
"Given
my past experience with Mr. Masiello," he continued, "I
have no doubt that he is a threat to others and to himself. He
should not be operating a vehicle or have access to guns. He may
need assisted living. I consider him to be at high risk for suicide,
motor vehicle and firearms accidents."
Though
not the business of neighbors or the worrisome couple, I shared
this information with everyone. They refused to back off what
should have been a private and personal family matter. Instead,
a conspiracy to grandpa-nap my father in plain view of the authorities
began with interlopers exploiting a vulnerable and disabled old
man.
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