Marvin Siegel with his family. Photo courtesy of family.
by Health Impact News/MedicalKidnap.com Staff
Retired lawyer Marvin Siegel of Boxford, Massachusetts, has lived an isolated and heavily-medicated existence, against his will and wishes, after court proceedings in August in 2011 resulted in his being placed under a court-appointed guardianship and conservatorship that his family considers to be unlawful. His meticulous estate planning has been eviscerated, and millions of dollars continue to be plundered from the 88-year-old’s estate.
He is being held prisoner in his own home, under medical providers that his daughter has termed “24/7 guards.” Meanwhile, his daughters Attorney Lisa Siegel Belanger and Devora Kaiser tirelessly advocate for him in the court system, despite those who are working vigorously to shut them out of their father’s life.
At this point, those in charge of Mr. Siegel’s estate have drained half of the retired attorney’s approximate nine-million-dollar estate deceptively and fraudulently, according to Lisa. Further, as Lisa began to research her father’s case, she uncovered a network of corruption within the family and probate court system of Essex County, where the case is, as well as in other Massachusetts counties. The daughters’ court documents allege fraud, embezzlement, and money laundering, involving 40 litigants in the Siegel case alone.
Earlier this month, Lonnie Brennan of Boston Broadside broke the story in his article, “ISOLATE, MEDICATE, LIQUIDATE: How to Fleece a Senior.” It is a “Warning to Seniors: Rich or Poor, You’re Worth a LOT to Lawyers, Courts, and Service Agencies!”
In 2011, Mr. Siegel was starting to slow down a little, and he needed help around the house. His family stepped in to help, and they also arranged for a part-time worker to check in on him and tend to any unmet needs. Mr. Siegel asked Lisa and her family to move in for nurture and care.
Medical Kidnapping: Family Power of Attorney Revoked
One day, the worker reportedly called 911, stating that Mr. Siegel was believed to be a harm to himself or others. An ambulance arrived and took him to Beverly Hospital and then to a psychiatric facility for evaluation. That is where he was placed on lock-down, without any notification of his family. As Lisa and her family arrived home from a day out, they found Mr. Siegel being placed in the ambulance.
However, court documents state that Lieutenant Riter of the Boxford Police Department, who had known Mr. Siegel for ten years at the time, “had no experience with the elder being a legitimate threat.” Lieutenant Riter went on to say that the concerns that prompted the 911 call were “more benign than indicated,” and that “there has been no legitimate reason to use a section 12.”
Lisa said that once Mr. Siegel was placed in psychiatric facility, his financial advisor Brian Nagle reportedly facilitated having Attorneys Edward Tarlow and Catherine Watson go into the psychiatric ward to revoke the Durable Power of Attorney (DPOA) that he had previously executed in February of 2003.
Further, the attorneys brought with them papers retaining Attorney Tarlow and his firm, to “do whatever they wanted to do.” She went on to say that the paperwork also named accountant William Austin, who had a long, established relationship with Nagle, the new DPOA. Lisa said that Austin later refused to be attorney-in-fact. She felt that this was because he knew that she “wouldn’t be someone to run over.”
Lisa had been assigned DPOA when Siegel was fully of sound mind, but somehow attorneys were able to go into a psych ward and obtain his signature to revoke that document. Lisa accuses Nagle of “refus[ing] to carry out his fiduciary duty and honor the Durable Power of Attorney.”
Marvin Siegel with his daughter Lisa at her graduation. Photo courtesy of the family.
As a result, a guardianship and conservatorship were subsequently appointed over their father without their approval. The family has been embroiled in litigation over this ever since. It is nearly six years later, and the Siegel family is having to fight for the rights that Mr. Siegel appointed to them back in 2003.
Robbing Seniors – How the State Plunders the Estate of Senior Citizens
According to Lisa, in 2003 her father obtained expert lawyers to prepare a DPOA intending to safeguard him from ever having to enter probate court or be labeled incapacitated. Lisa was named the primary attorney-of-fact, and her sister Devora was the successor attorney-of-fact. Therefore, a guardian and conservator should have never been appointed to make decisions regarding Mr. Siegel and his estate.
Attorney James Feld became Mr. Siegel’s court-appointed conservator, and Attorney Brian Cuffe became his court-appointed guardian. Marsha Kazarosian is Mr. Siegel’s private attorney.
Siegel’s attorney Marsha Kazarosian. Source: Wikipedia.
Lisa said that Kazarosian has been working against the family and has allied herself with the court-appointed conservator and guardian. Attorney Mr. Siegel tried to terminate Kazarosian in 12/14/11, before the 911 event, but she refused to withdraw her representation as legal counsel.
Marvin Siegel tries to fire Kazarosian. Source – Boston Broadside.
Lisa said that Kazarosian is supposed to be in an adversarial position against the court-appointed guardian and conservator. But, she said that Kazarosian has sold out Mr. Siegel, calling her “a turncoat.” Lisa said that her father had Kazarosian attest to his competency in writing.
Kazarosian responds to Marvin Siegel trying to fire her. Source – Boston Broadside.
Attorneys Work Together with Hospitals to Medically Kidnap Seniors and Rob Their Estate
Prior to the medical kidnapping, Lisa said that her father had never been diagnosed with any psychotic/mood disorder. Devora said that the court has never allowed them to get a second opinion. Lisa said that her father had his own medical providers that he had been seeing for years.
But the first thing that the guardian and conservator did was get rid of all of his medical providers and put in their own network. Lisa filed a complaint stating that there is a conflict of interest among the court-appointed guardians/conservators because they have their own dealings with the medical providers and hospitals. She said:
They ask for one another to be appointed in court. It’s so incestuous—it’s unfathomable.
She continues:
This is all about the money. What people need to know is, this starts from your local hospitals. These attorneys who are also court-appointed guardians/conservators/GALs [Attorney Guardians ad Litem], they just happen to be attorneys who are private counsel for these very medical facilities. They have a financial interest in wanting elders to be judicially deemed wards of the state. There’s a purposeful motivation of wanting to dismantle the family unit.
Conservator James Feld and Attorney Marsha Kazarosian at Marvin Siegel’s bank vault. Source – Boston Broadside.
Conservator James Feld counting the money. Source – Boston Broadside.
Devora adds:
Now, the family unit—nothing. Dismantle them, and they have complete control. That’s the first piece of the puzzle. It gets very complicated. They take away any control you have. They take away your rights.
Devora goes on to say:
One thing we’ve asked for over the years is for is consistency with the caregivers. They change caregivers so often, which is not good with an Alzheimer’s patient. Some of them speak very little English, understand little English. I don’t even have the right to say or to approve the people taking care of him. I can’t say anything.
We should never be where we are five years later. Lisa was appointed [attorney-of-fact].
Marvin Siegel with his daughter Devora. Photo provided by the family.
Lisa told Health Impact News:
The big problem is that this situation should have been stopped from the get go had the court been applying the law. In five years, it has not been one iota of applying the proper, existing law. It’s been outright lawlessness. I refuse to stop fighting against it. Because, I know what the truth is. And, I know what the law is. And, unfortunately, most people can’t endure the viciousness and vile tactics that these attorneys employ.
The sisters said that they receive scathing emails on regular basis from the attorneys involved in the case. Devora said that the stress from this has been detrimental to her health. She now defers to Lisa when it comes to corresponding with them. She told us:
I couldn’t take the viciousness of their attacks. It was horrendous.
Rule of Law Thrown out the Window in the Kangaroo Court
Lisa said that probate court blatantly disregards the entire instrument, or the estate planning documentation, that Mr. Siegel had prepared in 2003, and as a result, the court dismantles the family infrastructure—preventing the truth from coming out.
Lisa said:
Once they get you into probate court they just completely disregard that entire instrument, as if it never existed. And, the whole purpose would be because they want to be able to have the court-appointed guardian conservator to be able to get themselves into the family infrastructure and dismantle it. So, when that happened to us, especially myself being an attorney, I said to myself, this is not something I’m understanding here. I’d been an appellate attorney—at that time for at least 15 years. It didn’t matter. Rule of law was thrown out the window—it was purely a kangaroo court. And, that’s what it has been for five years, is a kangaroo court.
The sisters went on to say that if a person does not have the money to fight, it is doubtful that they will ever have justice. According to Lisa:
The way the court system exists, people are prevented from being able to have the truth be heard a lot of times because most people can’t even afford the transcripts cd or electronic recording, let alone the transcript CD. Then you have the filing fees. Basically, these people have been able to get away with it because there has been no outrage, they haven’t been made to be able to be seen in public for what they are.”
Devora said:
It’s horrible when somebody can’t fight something because they don’t have the funds to pay the filing fees. Where’s the justice in that? And, the court knows that. And they’re bullies. And that’s part of their game. They just keep hoping that we’ll quit fighting.
At one point, Lisa reports that she was offered $100,000 by Attorney DeNapoli, paid from the trust if she would not seek legal action to validate her father’s 2003 DPOA, which would eliminate all court-appointed attorneys and make Attorney DeNapoli a permanent fixture. Lisa viewed it as a bribe and declined the offer.
How Many More Seniors Is This Happening To?
The sisters are reaching out to the media in the hopes that they will get a force behind them that will hold the people involved accountable in the public eye. Lisa said:
The local media, they refuse to report on it. No one wants to go up against them, no one. My sister and I are just trying to somehow…it’s not just for our own personal endeavor, but this is something that will hopefully help other people.
They believe that this is happening to numerous other families around the country. Devora said:
I wonder, if we could find out how many people this has happened to, if everyone would step forward. I wonder how many thousands would. And, that’s bad. And, we’re supposed to be United States of America! Something is wrong in the court system.
The Siegel family before a corrupt system tore them apart. How many more families is this happening to? Photo courtesy of the family.
According to Lisa:
They make things up. They want to say dementia or whatever–psychotic delusions. At no time have they ever put down any factual information as to what kind of psychotic delusions. They just put down a statement and that’s it. That’s the problem is that there’s no oversight. There’s no justice in the court system.
She said that people have the perception that when you go to court that the judge will hear the evidence, and then do a diligent job at reviewing what was presented. However, she said:
That is just a complete myth.
Regardless, Lisa said that she and Devora will continue to pursue justice for their father in the courts.
Until these people are forced into the public, the court system is all we have.
Not Only Rich Seniors are Targeted
Lisa said:
The scary part of it is that this is not an isolated incident. This is business as usual. It is a pattern of isolate. Medicate. Liquidate.”
She pointed out that people that think this only happens to people who have large sums of money, but that is not the case. Of her four years of personal research, she said:
It doesn’t matter the amount of a person’s estate, even if a person has virtually nothing to their name. The fact that an elder is receiving some sort of government benefit that automatically brings you into their clutches. People don’t realize that it affects basically everyone. I also find, I’m probably kind of a lone attorney in this process, because it’s so insidious. Because, a lot people who even hire attorneys, they don’t even realize that their attorneys are playing along to get along with the opposing side. So, many people think that their attorneys are supposedly advocating on their behalf, when in reality, they’re stabbing them in the back, for lack of a better term.
Lisa loves her Dad, but cannot even see him now. Photo supplied by family.
Rapid Deterioration After Unnecessary Drugging
Marvin Siegel and Sophie the dog. Photo courtesy of the Siegel family.
Devora said that her father has gone downhill since he was stolen from his family. His communication is to the point to where he cannot carry on a conversation. She said that when they are together, she only gets a few words from him. It is really difficult for her to witness what is happening to her father. She said:
I’m there to hold his hand. I try to talk to him. He’s aware of what I am saying to him and answers when he desires.
See other stories we have covered about medical kidnapping of senior citizens:
Elder Medical Kidnapping in Texas Results in Abuse and Death of Elderly Mother
Adult Medical Kidnapping in New York: 1950s Air Force Veteran Held Hostage in Hospital
World War II Veteran Medically Kidnapped in New York Dies in Pain on Thanksgiving Day
California Kidnaps Elderly Brother of Medical Malpractice Attorney
Medical Kidnapping of Baby Boomer Seniors Not Rare – Now the Norm
Obamacare: America’s Elder Medical Kidnapping Epidemic is Leaving Seniors Homeless
How You Can Help:
Governor Charlie Baker may be reached at 617-725-4005 or contacted here. His Facebook is here. His Twitter is here.
Representative James Lyons Jr. may be reached at 617-722-2460 or contacted here.
Senator Bruce E. Tarr may be reached at 617-722-1600 or contacted here. Facebook is here. His Twitter is here.
Attorney Lisa Siegel Belanger’s website is here. Her Twitter is here.
Poem for Her Father by Lisa
A TRIBUTE TO: MY FATHER – MARVIN H. SIEGEL
MY FATHER TAUGHT ME:
To Live in Hope
To Have Loyalty, Morals
To Have Compassion, Kindness
To be Gentle When Stroked, Fierce When Provoked
To Fight for Justice for Family, for Others
To Not be Silent When People Suffer at the Hands of Others—
To be Heard in Defending Others
To Right the Wrong and To Not Stop Until Won
And to Be Able to Look in the Mirror When the Day is Done
I Miss You–More Than Words Can Ever Say;
Yet, I will Overcome the Obstacles in Our Way—
Because of What You Taught Me
I LOVE YOU,
LISA
by Lisa Siegel Belanger for her father on Father’s Day 2012 (Source)
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