If you have issues viewing or accessing this file contact us at NCJRS.gov. r "t \ \, x:DOM'ESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST THE ELDERLY \1 HEARING '-.. BEFORE THE' , , \ () I', (} SUBCOMMITTEE ON 'IIUMAN SERVICES OF THID ~ SELEOT OOMMITTEE ON AGING HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES NINETY~SIXTH CONGRESS SEOOND SESSION APRIL 21, 1980, NEW YORK, N.Y. , " I' : Printed for the use of the Select Oommittee on Aging Comm. Pub. No. 96-233 i u: ,{,a-~!J'v:'c;! , I f 811 " . " if { .. ~!/' ~ \ ' u.s. GOVERNl\IEN'l' PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON: 1980 , ' the Superintendent of Documents. U.S. Government Printing Office , Washington, D.C. 20402 , I I I , r .' l , c ., ' If 1i __________ -', SELEOT OOMMITTEE ON AGING CLAUDE PEPPER, Florida, Ohairman EDWARD R. ROYBAL, California CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa, CONTENTS MARIO BIAGGI, New York Ranking Mittortty Member . IKE F. ANDREWS, North Carolina WILLIAM C. WAMPLER, Virgima JOHN L. BURTON, California JOHN PAUL HAMMERSCHMIDT, Arkansas DON BONKER Washington JAMES ABDNOR, South Dakota MEMBERS' OPENING STATEMENTS THOMAS J. DOWNEY, New Yorl, MATTHEW J. RINALDO, New Jersey Page JAMES J. FLORIO, New Jersey MARC L. MARK,S, PennsylY.a.nill, Chairman Mario BiaggL ________________ .___________________________ _ Thomas A. Luken ________________________________________________ _ 3 HAROLD E. FORD, Tennessee RALPH S. REGULA, Ohio 12 WILLIAM J. HUGHES, New .Jersey ROBERT K. DORNAN, California MARILYN LLOYD BOUQUARD, Tennessee HAROLD C. HOLLENBECK, New Jersey CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF WITNESSES JIM SANTINI Nevada S. WILLIAM GREEN, New Yorl' ROBERT F. DRINAN, Massachusetts ROBERT (BOB) WHITTAKER"Kansas H on.New Geraldine 1rork _____________________________________________________ A. Ferraro, a Member of Congress from the State of _ DAVID W. EVANS, Indiana NORMAN D. SHUMWAY, California 1 MARTY RUSSO Illinois LARRY J. HOPKINS, Kentucky Leora Magier, directo'0. New 1rork State Coalition of the Concerned for STANLEY N. LtJNDINE, New York OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine Older Americans (CuCOA), New York, N.1r _______________________ _ 6 MARY ROSE OAKAR, Ohio DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California Dr.Ne,,- Vincent1rork, Fontana,N.1r ________________________________________________ medical director, New 1rork Foundling Hospital, _ ELIZABETH HOLTZMAN, New Yorlt 13 JIM LLOYD, California Ralph Brewster, director, Brooklyn, S~nior Citizens Crime Vict.ims Assist­ ance and Prevention Program, Br.ooklyn, N. Y.; accompanied by abuse THOMAS A. LUKEN, Ohio victims, Mrs. R. and Mrs. C _____________________________________ _ WEB WATKINS, Oklahoma 21 LAMAR GUDGER, North Carolina Charlene Washington, social worker .. _______________________________ _ 24 GERALDINE A. FERRARO, New York Joseph Fornabaio, sergeant, North Manhattan Police Precinct's Senior BEVERLY B. BYRON, Maryland Citizen Robbery Unit, New 1rork, N.1r ____________________________ _ 28 WILLIAM 'It. RATCHFORD, Conneeticut Lou Glasse, directo_', New York State Office for the Aging, Albany, N. Y_ 36 DAN MI'CA, Florida Robert Trobe, deputy administrator, Family and Adult Services, Human Resources Administration, New 1rork, N.1r ________________________ _ EDWARD J. STACK, Florid~ 46 HENRY A. WAXMAN, 'California Lucy N. Friedman, executive director, Victim Services Agency, New ~:J1IKE SYNAR, Oklahoma 51 EUGENE V. ATKINSON, Pennsylvania ElJ~~kM~'~ ~l~h; ~~~~ber--bo~~cC of di~ecto~s,-Ne;- Yorl; -aity- Ch~pter~ National Association of Social Workers, New 1rork, N.y ____________ _ CHARLES H. EDWARDS III, Ohief Of Staff 55 YOSEF J. RIEMER, Deputy Ollie! of Staff Kathryn1r ork, N.1rRutkowsky, _________________ nursing supervisor, :. __________________________________ Visiting Nurse Service, New _ VAL. J. HALAMANDARIS, Speciat OOttn8eZ 58 JAMES A. BRENNAN, Assistant to the Ohairman Barbara B. Bl.um, commissioner, New 1rork State Department of Social WALTER A. GUNTHARP, Ph. D., Minority Staff Director Service~ Albany, N.1r., read for the record by Phyllis Barit,z, director, Adult .l:'rotective Services, New York State Department of Social Services, Albany, N. Y __________________________________________ _ 63 SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES ApPENDIX MARIO BIAGGI, New York, Ohairman JAMES J. FLORIO, New Jersey CHARLES E. GRASSLEY, Iowa, Additional material received for the record: Margery E. Ames, consultant on public social policy, and Robert L. WILLIAM J. HUGHES, New Jersey Ranking Minority Mell~ber MARTY RUSSO, Illinois JOHN PAUL HAMMERiSCHMIDT, Arkansas Popper, chairman, Committee on Public Social Policy, Federation JIM LLOYD, California MATTHEW J. RINALDO, New Jersey statenlentof Protestant __________________________________________________ Welfare Agencies, Inc" New 1rork,' N. Y., prepared . WES WATKINS, Oklahoma NORMAN D. SHUMWAY, California 69 GERALDINE A. FERRARO, New York OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine P&squale Gilberto, Brookdale Center on Aging, Hunter College _____ _ 71 Mary Yanlmuer, executive director, Burden Center for the Aging, DAN MICA, Florida DANIEL E. LUNGREN, California Inc., New York, N. Y _______________________________________ _ 72 EUGENE V. ATKINSON, Pennsylvania New 1rork State Adult Protective Service:> Task Force Report _____ _ STANLEY N. LUNDINE, New York 74 . ROBERT B. BLANCATO, Majority [Staff Director (nI) J. B. (PETE) 'CONROY, MinoritZI ff.~~ff Director • (TI) 1-;;;;;;;"-- 1 MAR. '1 9 1981 r 'f " ;,' 'nOMESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST THE ELDERLY \1 l¥..tOlNDAY, APRIL 21, 1980 U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SEl,ECT COMMlTI'EE ON AGING, SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN SERVICES, , . New YfYrk, N.Y. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 9 :30 a.m., in room 305-0,26 Federal Plaza, New York, N.Y., Hon. Mario Biaggi (chair- m~n of the subcommittee) presiding. ' Metnbers present: Represenpatives Biaggi of New York, Luken of Ohi~, Ferraro of New York, and Rinaldo of New Jersey. ' , Staff pI'esent: Robert B. Blancato, staff director, Mary Ann Sciarra, research assistant, and Clementine Anthony, staff aSSIstant. , The CHAIRMAN. The hearing is called to order. ,This is a hearing by the Subcommittee 'on Human Services of the House Select Committee on Aging, a.n oversight hearing on domestic yiole,~lce against the elderly.' ,: ' Now? our first witness is a member of this panel and a very deeply conc¢rned member of the committee, Geraldine Ferl"aro. , ST,ATEMENT OF REPRESENTATIVE GERALDINE A. FERltARO ·'Ms. FERRARO. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I will make my c,omments brief because I am anxious to join the committee fcthd hear the testi­ lllOIly·that is to be presented this morning. I do, however, have some comments which I think are better made from this table 'and I appre­ .ciate your allowing me to participate in th~s hearing from both a:ngles: . Prior to my election to Congress, I served as an ass~stant district attorney in the Queens County District Attorney's office. In that, posi­ tiOli, I founded and served as the chief of the special victims bureau. I called it the special victims bureau because, we handled people who caIne' into the criminal justice system most traumatized by criminal offenses. We attempted to carry them vertically through each step with / the same attorney handling the case and eliminating the delays and 'i. unnecessary anxieties which surround a criminal justice system as large as ours. " ' , ' Among the mtses under the jurisdiction of the bureau were those 1/, 'involving crimes against senior citizens, as well ,as those relating to intrafamilial violence. ~fy comments this morning'are based on1l1Y ex­ periences in the bureau and are from the perspective of both those types of cases. .. "" " 'There are few vIctlms as helpless 'and afraId as semor CItIzens., The feai' that any victim has, compounded by an understanding of their (1) • # .. '." I, r \ I \ 2 3 vulnerability and isolation,. m~kes senior. citizens particularly reluc­ the ~tress situations ~nd pressures put 'On families caring for 'Older tant to come forward and aId m prosecution. When young people are rel'a.tlves and those whICh are pr'Oduced by that tension. the victims of sex crimes lOr physi~al a?use there. is the hope of counsel­ F,rankly, as a f'Ormer prosecutor my c'Oncerns here are divided. The in~ and rehabilitation. While it IS dIfficult to Impress upon. a :young first t:yp~, th~ pa~h'Ol'Ogical abuse, should be contr'Olled, in part, through chIld that it is important for him or her to come fort~l and assls.t m the the crlmmal JustIce system. prosecution, you generally· can do so comfor~able wIth the ~eh~f that /' The second type, the random a:buse stemming fr'Om the pressures subsequent assistance and time will hea~ theIr :"ounds.. W1111~ It may brought on by caring for an elderly relative are easier t'O s'Olve. Last be temporarily difficult for them to rel~ve theIr experIence, It prob- week my office w~ .in .contact 'yith the Jamn;ica service program ~or ably will not cause perm~nent ~sych.o!oglCal damage. .. older adu~ts, a. C:r;SIS mterventl?n program III Queens dealing WIth This is not the case wIth sem:or CItIzens who are the YlCtIms of VIO~ elderly crIme VIctims. We were mformed by J'SPOA that oftentimes lent crime. Elderly crime victims ~re ashamed and afraId, ashamed ?f the ,Problem. 'Of abuse a;g~i;nst grandparents can be s'Olved by merely the vulnerability 'and isolation whIch makes th.em easy prey and afraId havmg a thIrd pers'On VIsrt the home and rem'Ove the seni'Or citizen that their abusers will retaliate. The problem IS complex enough when from ItfOl' a sho~i pe~iod. The brief respite a.Ilows f'Or eJbbing of ten­ the perpetrator of the violence is an unknown and unrelate~ defendant. sionsand n:a.ke~ ~t eaSIer for b?th the y'Ounger J?1em1?ers 'Of the fftmily But, the proble11l:s po.sed by, that s.ituation be.co~e almost msurmount- an~ the sem'Or c~tlzen t? ?'Ope WIth the stress:£ul SItuation brought about . able when the crIme IS one mvolvmg domestIc VIOlence. by llltergeneratIOnal hvmg arrangements. It's to'O bad we don't have Parents never cease being parents. They continue to pro~ect their a foster care system for the elderly.