Comments Document

My name is Matthew Skarlatos and I’m a resident of Reston Virginia I’m here today to speak on behalf of fellow victims and their family members related to a recent study that was prepared by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission on guardianship reform entitled – Improving Virginia’s Adult Guardian and Conservator System. My sister and I participated and were interviewed by the JLARC panel earlier this year that prepared this study in the malfeasance and fraud of the 19th circuit court in our case that ultimately led to our father Paul Skarlatos untimely death, the circumstances of which are still unresolved. Our father’s story as this panel knows is a thoroughly documented case that sought formal acknowledgment from both the Commonwealth’s attorney, OSIG, State police, State AG and Governor for redress all of which were denied. We along with other victims families still have no clear indications after this report was furnished of how the data was collected, assessed and the criteria used with confirmation of the total number of individual cases extrapolated as a subset to all cases that led to abuse, neglect and premature deaths over a period of 10 years or longer. The study cites 12,000 confirmed wards under probate guardianship in the Commonwealth of Virginia, yet discloses no specific details in profiling those ward(s) cases that specifically resulted in neglect, abuse and death with relevant statistical data and what the steps towards remediation ought to be including civil and criminal penalties when severe abuse, neglect and death are identified.

The private guardians/conservators, "guardian" in VA are NOT regulated. Guardian for my parents broke MANY VA CODES but continued to STEAL, money launder, own "SHELL" companies-her boss has many. I complained since last year that my mother was being over-MEDICATED BY OPIOIDS (I HAVE ALL THE RECORDINGS, VIDEOS, CORRESPONDENCE, PICS-OVERKILL ON EVIDENCE) But NOBODY did anything-NOT THE OMBUDSMAN, ALF, APS, ATTORNEY GENERAL/SENATORS/LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SO MANY OTHERS! I ASKED FOR AN EMERGENCY CARE PLAN MEETING. NEVER GOT. I EVEN FILED A COMPLAINT WITH APS (some corruption there too)"found nothing wrong" but NEVER CONTACTED ME to show my evidence. I have asked repeatedly for my parent’s medication list, inventory, informed all that they were malnourished & dehydrated & STILL NOBODY LISTENED! She sold my parents house, without there being a hearing and stated they had ONLY $500 worth in their ESTATE (so she would not have to itemize). I alone had thousands' worth of stuff. She gave me 1 day to get my stuff but 4 mo later, had cannonsauctions come in get 'SOME'. Most of the items WERE NOT AUCTIONED OFF. Where are they? Where is the money? I was EVEN told I could bid on my items! Her boss’ mother sold the house - WHICH was willed to me, THAT IS A CONFLICT OF INTEREST! My mother was rushed to the ER on the morning of April 15, 2021 bc she was overdosed on opioids (at minimum). The doctor (I am 99% certain is receiving KICKBACKS) DID NOT DO A TOXICITY SCREENING as HE SAID. Due to the lack of oxygen MY MOTHER lost, she could not talk, walk, sit up! This was MY MOTHER. THE MOTHER I HAD LOVED AND CHERISHED FOR 51 YEARS! An LPN CHANGED THE FULL STATUS CODE TO DNR &THE GUARDIAN GAVE THAT TO THE NURSE THAT DAY! The guardian had me arrested ON AUG 5, 1 day after commenting about guardianships on Facebook. I did not tag anyone, name anyone but I was arrested for a class 6 felony, spent 3 weeks in jail WHILE MY MOTHER WAS "killed" on Aug 22 while I was still in jail. When I saw my mother at the funeral home, had bruises on her whole right side of chest, had what appeared an infection where her feeding tube was and I could wrap my hand around her bicep. I can't bare to wonder how she truly died BUT I KNOW it was not BY stroke/demenia like the doctor wrote on her death certificate. ASK ME HOW I KNOW? ANDMy sister has not used 1 penny of the $9500 she gets as my dad's VA Fiduciary every month). THAT MONEY IS TO HELP THEM! VA REFUSES TO INVESTIGATE. My father is WHITHERING AWAY THANKS TO NO HELP FROM THE LAW. She also restricted my visitations (YES JUST LIKE IN THE DOCUMENTARIES). How can she break so many laws AND WALK FREELY? ALL? I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW YOU ALL PLAN TO STOP THIS CONSPIRACY (MUCH WORST THAN THE HOLOCAUST). THIS IS THE MOST ATROCIOUS, INHUMANE TORTURE THAT SOMEONE COULD LIVE THROUGH. MY FAMILY WAS RAPED! THIS IS NOT ONLY A SLOW TORTURE, INHUMANE BUT RICO AND SEC VIOLATIONS AND FIRST-DEGREE MURDER- ALL FOR GREED! AND NOBODY FOLLOWING THE LAW IS MAKING THIS A LEGAL 4 TRILLION DOLLAR A YEAR BUSINESS! THIS RICO CONSPIRACY IS THOUGHTFULLY PLANNED OUT THROUGH MONEY-LAUNDERING WHERE MANY PEOPLE ARE RECEIVING KICKBACKS INCLUDING SOME JUDGES AND DEFINITELY DOCTORS ETC! I WOULD LIKE TO MEET WITH SOMEONE AND GET JUSTICE. WHO DO I GO TO? WHERE CAN VICTIMS GO AND BE HEARD? THIS CONSPIRACY THAT INVOLVES LAWYERS, GUARDIANS, GALS, JUDGES NEEDS TO STOP. I WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE AND PRESENT MY EVIDENCE OR ARE YOU ALL GOING TO IGNORE THIS ALSO?

Requesting time to speak to the House of Delegates concerning policy reforms suggested by the Commonwealth Supreme Court in the 6 month study released last month by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission -JLARC on guardianship reform (http://jlarc.virginia.gov/landing-2021-virginias-adult-guardian-and-conservator-system.asp). While the Richmond Times Dispatch spoke to it briefly in an article they wrote last month, there are many question(s) that need to be answered as to the efficacy of what the study actually accomplished, without both civil and criminal penalties cited for both officers of the court and State agencies that violate their oaths and responsibilities in the protection(s) of the ward when abuse and neglect leads to death. My sister and I participated and were interviewed by the JLARC panel that prepared this study in the malfeasance and fraud of the 19th circuit court in our case that ultimately led to our father Paul Skarlatos untimely death, the circumstances of which are still unresolved. We along with other victims still have no clear indication of how the data for this report was both collected and assessed with confirmation of individual cases that led to abuse, neglect and premature deaths over a period of 5 to 10 years or longer. No meaningful statistics are provided in the Report We also are puzzled that the summary, and report is labeled as a Draft with no guidance in either the summary or appendices coming largely from DARS APS Annual report with no corresponding outside peer reviewed sources for meaningful analysis? Or how this Draft will change over time, or if it will at all? In all candor this report is completely ineffective in approach, scope and methodology and will require Delegates to thoughtfully contemplate on behalf of victims families who have lost loved ones to the malfeasance and fraud of both the courts and the State agencies entrusted to protect the ward. There can be no level of confidence with data that is this nebulous and vague in both it's context and conclusions to each section in the report that is represented. If NONE of the victims family members are able to provide testimony to this meeting next week on the "how" and "why" of this report's inadequacies, we will have to assume that it is business as usual for Virginia State BAR and the court(s) in the Commonwealth that are in a perpetual mode of damage control and ensuring that transparency never exists in order to promote the very lucrative enterprise of probate guardianship and it's human trafficking and racketeering that has no boundaries. In light of what has taken place in other State(s) with the onset of COVID related deaths over the last 2 years in many cases still in question,especially New York State, transparency and the level and quality of the data provided is without question paramount in making the most informed decisions possible given the sources of the problems in our courts within the Commonwealth of Virginia. We must develop meaningful criteria within DARS where personnel are willing and able to report abuse and neglect directly to the court when guardians are knowingly committing fraud that damages not only their reputations but the system as a whole..