Brock Blends Her Christian Faith With RICO Laws To Fight Elder Abuse

Penny & Bill At Nevada Governor's Ball

Penny Brock has always taken her Christian faith and core American values seriously. Now she may be taking them to a federal jury in Portland, Oregon.  For more than thirty years, Penny was married to Capt. Bill Brock III, a pilot for Delta Airlines.  Bill and his father, Bill Brock II, used to joke about the strong-willed nature of Bill’s mother, Thelma, a woman of German descent.

After Bill Brock Jr. passed away, Penny and Bill flew to Portland to review Thelma’s living trust document.  Like millions of senior citizens across America, Thelma had heard about the benefits of a living trust and wanted her son Bill to review the trust before she signed it. 

Shortly after returning home, the couple was surprised to discover that another Portland attorney had advised Thelma to revoke the trust and sign a “bare bones” will.  “Bill and I were concerned that because of her age and failing health, Thelma had been duped into buying junk probate papers,” Penny recalls. “What angered us even more, was the arrogance of this attorney who refused to meet or give us the peace of mind we feel we were entitled to.”

Summerplace Assisted Living Facility

Penny continued to send Thelma birthday and holiday cards after Penny became a widow in 2002. In 2009, Thelma was a resident in Summerplace Assisted Living Facility, a corporate subsidiary of Prestige Care, Inc.  Prestige owns and operates 52 elder care facilities in Alaska and 7 western states.

In 2009, the Portland professional guardianship firm of Tiffany-O’Shea became guardian of Thelma, over her objection. Penny was not notified of the proceedings. Thelma’s death in 2011 began stirring up painful memories of issues Bill had not found peace of mind about prior to his passing.

Multnomah County Courthouse

As court papers filed in the Multnomah County Circuit Probate Court reveal, Penny attempted to arrange a meeting with Tiffany-O’Shea’s attorney, Richard Pagnano. In addition to Thelma’s missing probate documents which would have negated the need for a conservatorship, Tiffany-O’Shea had assigned ten staff members to assist Thelma even though she was paying more than $4500.00 per month for her care at Summerplace.

Penny & Thelma

“It just didn’t make sense that Summerplace and everyone else refused to meet with me,” Penny said. “Bill and I objected to the will. Thelma objected to the conservatorship. I have been objecting to the entire process since I discovered a new will after Thelma’s death. No one in the system would listen. They just steam-rolled right over us. When Mr. Pagnano called me a “predatory lunatic,” for trying to gather information about Thelma’s 96 year old sister who is also a resident of Summerplace, I hit the roof.”

 Penny now is on a mission which combines her love for God with her love for justice. She is networking with other victims of elder abuse and financial exploitation and is also

considering forming a non-profit legal defense fund in Thelma Brock’s memory.  She also plans to pursue her case against the lawyers and elder care facilities under the federal racketeering laws.

 

“Truth and justice are universal,” Penny, who majored in scripture and religious education in college, added. “So is the commandment that we honor our mother and father.”

 

Note: In Boyle vs. United States, 129 S. Ct. 2237 [2009] the U.S. Supreme Court held that an association-in-fact enterprise did not need an ascertainable structure beyond the inherent patterns of racketeering activity.  Thus relationships among attorneys, probate professionals, bond companies and assisted living entities would appear to line up with Boyle.

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