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News & ArtsMonday, April 19, 2010
Homo Depressing—But Required—Reading
Posted by Dan Savage on Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 5:44 PM
On or about June 28 and continuing through August 2008, Defendants ACV, DILLINGHAM, COUNTY, LIEDHOLM, STAGG-HOURIGAN, BREWSTER, and others and each of them, did not allow Plaintiff GREENE access to [Harold Scull], his partner of 25 years, who was terminally ill. On or about June 28 and continuing through August 2008, Defendants ACV, DILLINGHAM, COUNTY, LIEDHOLM, STAGG-HOURIGAN, BREWSTER, and others and each of them, falsely imprisoned Plaintiff GREENE, keeping him behind a locked gate at Defendant ACV's premises and restricting and limiting his movements and communications with his friends, family, and the general public.... Plaintiff was put in fear of physical harm, was and felt intimidated and attacked, and remains fearful that he will be chased down and locked up again.On or about August, 2008, Defendants MICHAEL BREWSTER and KAREN STAGG-HOURIGAN, as employees of the COUNTY acting in their official capacities... did disparage and demean Plaintiff GREENE in his presence and in the presence of others, making and/or ratifying derogatory references to Plaintiff GREENE's sexual orientation and age, stating "you know how those 'gay boys' are"...
After [Harold Scull's] death, Defendants BREWSTER and STAGG-HOURIGAN further expressed displeasure at dealing with expressions of grief by a gay man who had lost his long-time partner.
Harold Scull worked for MGM studios in the 1950s and 60s—he worked with Louis B. Mayer—and, according to the complaint, Scull had "collected numerous artifacts and memorabilia from that period, many of which were displayed in his home. Greene worked in television, "working with many stars early in their careers," and also had a large collection of memorabilia. Everything they owned together—their mementos, art, furniture, their car, family heirlooms—was sold out from under them without their consent.
Go read the whole thing. Or if you prefer your tragedies in English and not legalese...
Clay Greene and his partner of 20 years, Harold Scull, lived in Sebastopol, California. As long-time partners, they had named each other beneficiaries of their respective estates and agents for medical decisions. As 2008 began, Scull was 88 years old and in deteriorating health.... In April of 2008, Scull fell down the front steps of their home. Greene immediately called an ambulance and Scull was taken to the hospital. There, the men’s nightmare began. While Scull was hospitalized, Deputy Public Guardians went to the men’s home, took photographs, and commented on the desirability and quality of the furnishings, artwork, and collectibles that the men had collected over their lifetimes.Ignoring Greene entirely, the County petitioned the Court for conservatorship of Scull’s estate. Outrageously referring to Greene only as a “roommate” and failing to disclose their true relationship, the County continued to treat Scull as if he had no family. The County sought immediate temporary authority to revoke Scull’s powers of attorney, to act without further notice, and to liquidate an investment account to pay for Scull’s care. Then, despite being granted only limited powers, and with undue haste, the County arranged for the sale of the men’s personal property, cleaned out their home, terminated their lease, confiscated their truck, and eventually disposed of all of the men’s worldly possessions, including family heirlooms, at a fraction of their value and without any proper inventory or determination of whose property was being sold.
Adding further insult to grave injury, the county removed Greene from their home and confined him to a nursing home against his will—a different placement from his partner. Greene was kept from seeing Scull during this time, and his telephone calls were limited. Three months after Scull was hospitalized, he died, without being able to see Greene again.
“Because of the county’s actions, Clay missed the final months he should have had with his partner of 20 years,” said Greene’s trial attorney Anne Dennis of Santa Rosa. “Compounding this horrific tragedy, Clay has literally nothing left of the home he had shared with Harold or the life he was living up until the day that Harold fell, because he has been unable to recover any of his property or his beloved cats—who are feared dead. The only memento Clay has is a photo album that Harold painstakingly put together for Clay during the last three months of his life.”
15
If a wife pushes her husband down the stairs, the county wouldn't seize their home and sell their possessions to pay for his care or her incarceration. Bad analogy, Ecce.
19
@4: 1-to-1 odds that Loveschild shall remain mute on the matter. There isn't really isn't anything it* could say shy of unequivocal concession.
* shucks. I went there.
* shucks. I went there.
20
This is horrible. There are no words. Thank-you, Dan, for helping to give this the publicity it deserves.
22
19, Loveschild already vomited up some ignorant crap over here: http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archive…
25
I'm still not ready to convict the county in the court of public opinion, but the plaintiffs are making a case that there was motive and opportunity here. Keep us apprised of updates.
26
So so incredibly sad. On behalf of the human race, I apologize to these men.
May your lawsuit bleed the evil fucks who did this dry and may they suffer prolonged jail time.
And may this never, ever, happen again.
Ever.
May your lawsuit bleed the evil fucks who did this dry and may they suffer prolonged jail time.
And may this never, ever, happen again.
Ever.
28
So heartbreaking and depressing. Poor Harold and Clay. I can't fathom how much it must have hurt to be kept apart. To have your humanity denied you by being forced into a nursing home. The grief of loosing ones life partner being so huge, and to also loose memories tied to their home, pets, and keepsakes. It's so overwhelming. I can't help but weep for them.
29
Dan, we need to know what to do. With Constance, you gave us people to call, letters to write... Can you get in touch with the lawyers or the NCL and find out what we can do to help?
30
There is already an existing Facebook site with many, many more members and I believe it is the official site or at least the one in contact with NCLR. http://www.facebook.com/JusticeForClay?r…
31
There is already an established Facebook page with many more members than the link above. I believe it is the official group or at least the one in contact with NCLR.
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Justice-fo…
the links on this Facebook page have a long list of phone numbers and email addresses both for government officials to complain to and media contacts like Rachel Maddow, CNN etc. to request that the case get media coverage,
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Justice-fo…
the links on this Facebook page have a long list of phone numbers and email addresses both for government officials to complain to and media contacts like Rachel Maddow, CNN etc. to request that the case get media coverage,
33
I just heard about this on the radio and burst into tears. Please let us know where a donation to help make these inhuman theives PAY THROUGH THE FUCKING NOSE should go to do the most good.
34
I actually do prefer my tragedies in legalese. Because complaints tend to be so specific, I feel the complaint offers a more complete picture than the summary.
And yes. These monsters should pay through the nose.
And yes. These monsters should pay through the nose.
35
@32: All stairs are antibiotic resistant. I've been pouring methicillin on my stairwell for three years now and it doesn't seem to have had any effect on it.
Period Hivemind, we've all missed you and your singularly execrable brand of bullshit. NOT!
Period Hivemind, we've all missed you and your singularly execrable brand of bullshit. NOT!
37
As I suspected, the guilty are turning out to be born-again evangelical Christians:
http://www.appletreeneighbors.com/?page_…
"Leilani Brewster grew up in San Jose, CA and graduated from San Jose
State University with a degree in Business Administration. She is
happily married to Michael Brewster, a Deputy Conservator for Sonoma
County. They have an 8 year old son, Joey, who is a student at Biella
elementary school. Leilani has held a variety of jobs, one of which
was volunteering at San Jose Juvenile Hall as Assistant Chaplain. Her
aim was to enhance the lives of the young people she counseled. She
did this for 10 years.
Leilani’s motto for her life: “As a Christian, I take seriously the
commandment to love God and to love my neighbor as myself.” This
belief motivates her to help and encourage people. When she lived in
San Jose, she distributed the neighborhood newsletter. This allowed
her to get to know her neighbors and as the years went by, watched all
of the neighborhood children grow up. Her interests now include
membership in an ecumenical Bible Study group numbering 300 women."
Love your neighbor as yourself, right? Unless your neighbor happens to be gay.
http://www.appletreeneighbors.com/?page_…
"Leilani Brewster grew up in San Jose, CA and graduated from San Jose
State University with a degree in Business Administration. She is
happily married to Michael Brewster, a Deputy Conservator for Sonoma
County. They have an 8 year old son, Joey, who is a student at Biella
elementary school. Leilani has held a variety of jobs, one of which
was volunteering at San Jose Juvenile Hall as Assistant Chaplain. Her
aim was to enhance the lives of the young people she counseled. She
did this for 10 years.
Leilani’s motto for her life: “As a Christian, I take seriously the
commandment to love God and to love my neighbor as myself.” This
belief motivates her to help and encourage people. When she lived in
San Jose, she distributed the neighborhood newsletter. This allowed
her to get to know her neighbors and as the years went by, watched all
of the neighborhood children grow up. Her interests now include
membership in an ecumenical Bible Study group numbering 300 women."
Love your neighbor as yourself, right? Unless your neighbor happens to be gay.
38
God this is sad, sad and sick. I think George X is right, some greedy assholes wanted their belongings and money. Just disgusting, if it hasn't gone on CNN it needs to. This is a crime, plain and simple. I bet you anything if Skull's partner was a woman, and even if they weren't married, this would not have happened. This is just sick. It's wrong, wrong, wrong. And where the hell are the cats? There could be an animal cruelty case (negligence on part of the "Public Guardians"), to say nothing of the extreme human cruelty case.
This is why same-sex marriage needs to be legalized. This story makes me want to vomit.
This is why same-sex marriage needs to be legalized. This story makes me want to vomit.
39
What hateful, horrible people... I think that if there is a hell, there must be some special consideration given to those that harm the helpless esp. children, animals, and the elderly. Makes me so mad.
41
Elder abuse is a serious thing, whether at the hands of a partner or the county. I'm waiting to see what emerges at trial. Trying cases one-sidedly on the internet is not justice. If the county is guilty, I hope they pay enormously. If the partner is guilty, I hope he is made to pay for his crime. I had an elder friend abused by his partner and, just before his friends jumped in to stop it, he died of heartattack/heartbreak rather than confront him over it. That was a huge tragedy, too.
42
Can we get some phone numbers of people in Sonoma and politely call them and tell them what a bunch of fucking ass wipes they are? Nicely of course.
43
Thanks for turning off anonymous comments. Can you guys turn them off by default from now on for any and all posts on this topic right off the bat?
45
What I find troubling is that even though the county was acting as a fiduciary (i.e., someone who takes care of stuff for you) and should be taking good care of stuff ("utmost care" in legalese), there is no accounting for the assets taken. (That's complaint number 14, for those keeping count.)
Think about that. They took cash, carpets, a car, cats, clothes, kitsch, and who knows what else, and aren't even telling the what they took, what they did with it, or when they'll give it back. I hate to use this cliche, but here goes: "If they did nothing wrong, they've got nothing to hide." If a bank holds my money, they give me a monthly statement -- why can't the fiduciary?
Think about that. They took cash, carpets, a car, cats, clothes, kitsch, and who knows what else, and aren't even telling the what they took, what they did with it, or when they'll give it back. I hate to use this cliche, but here goes: "If they did nothing wrong, they've got nothing to hide." If a bank holds my money, they give me a monthly statement -- why can't the fiduciary?
46
Another gap in the safety net occurs to me: all nursing homes are required to have prominently posted, in multiple locations, the full contact information for the regional ombudsman concerned with eldercare. Ombudsmen are also to make periodic (monthly or more frequently) unannounced visits to assess general conditions and directly contact as many patients/prisoners as possible. California nursing homes are also required to have social-services directors on staff whose job is to enable, not restrict, telephone calls and visits with family and friends, and above all to BRING TO THE ATTENTION OF COUNTY AND STATE AUTHORITIES, AND POLICE, any allegation by patients/prisoners of theft or abuse of any kind--it is not the social-services director's job to judge their validity.
So where was the ombudsman and the social-services staff?
So where was the ombudsman and the social-services staff?
47
This is a horrific story. I think "Stalinistic" is an appropriate adjective. Thanks for informing us. Has CNN picked it up?
48
Is this the same Sally Liedholm (CA is the location)?
"Why would Liedholm lie to Judge Muse? Why was it important for Liedholm that Kirk drop the petition that would gotten control away from the criminals? Equally, why was the district attorneys office turning a blind eye?
About a week after the court day, the local newspaper's top headlines were about allegations of Liedholm's extensive fraud against the elderly whom she had control of their assets.
The whistle blower found herself up to her eyebrows in alligators and Liedholm accused her of abuse and sent staff in her home to haul the elderly out. One of those people died in transit.
"Liedholm was never held accountable for anything she did to any of the families," said the daughter. "Instead she gets a posh job in Solano County and El Dorado County officials sweep the whole thing under the carpet. I had one county supervisor say to me in frustration when I wanted justice: 'we got rid of Liedholm isn't that enough?'"
"No its not!. Giving Liedholm a better job in a bigger county is not justice. Makes you wonder just how wide spread the fraud was in El Dorado County that the officials there rushed Liedhold off to Solano County.'"
"Why would Liedholm lie to Judge Muse? Why was it important for Liedholm that Kirk drop the petition that would gotten control away from the criminals? Equally, why was the district attorneys office turning a blind eye?
About a week after the court day, the local newspaper's top headlines were about allegations of Liedholm's extensive fraud against the elderly whom she had control of their assets.
The whistle blower found herself up to her eyebrows in alligators and Liedholm accused her of abuse and sent staff in her home to haul the elderly out. One of those people died in transit.
"Liedholm was never held accountable for anything she did to any of the families," said the daughter. "Instead she gets a posh job in Solano County and El Dorado County officials sweep the whole thing under the carpet. I had one county supervisor say to me in frustration when I wanted justice: 'we got rid of Liedholm isn't that enough?'"
"No its not!. Giving Liedholm a better job in a bigger county is not justice. Makes you wonder just how wide spread the fraud was in El Dorado County that the officials there rushed Liedhold off to Solano County.'"
49
Do what I just did...
Email the board of supervisors of Sonoma County and tell them that you have bought your last bottle of Sonoma County wine until they correct the injustice and that you'll be telling everyone you know to boycott Sonoma County.
Email the board of supervisors of Sonoma County and tell them that you have bought your last bottle of Sonoma County wine until they correct the injustice and that you'll be telling everyone you know to boycott Sonoma County.
50
I see Skeptical Cicada and raise the ante. Perhaps our brothers and sisters in the Castro can begin a formal boycott of Sonoma. No trips up, no wine, no shopping, no refilling the tank, no dinners, no hotels, no spas. Watch the tax dollars stay away. I have no idea what the annual haul of SF based cash in to Sonoma, but having lived a decade in the Bay Area, I am certain it is stunning enough to prove the point.
52
Hello all. I just opened a Facebook page for Harold and Clay, Will add more later after the work day. The page is "Stand Up for Harold and Clay." Please add it to your "Likes." Thanks.
56
This is why me and a few thousand friends around the world are boycotting Sonoma County.
Australia, France, Canada, Mexico, most US states, and much of the East.
ACTIONS speak louder than words.
Australia, France, Canada, Mexico, most US states, and much of the East.
ACTIONS speak louder than words.
57
@48 ah, yes, you have discovered sally liedholm's job prior to her getting hired here, in somoma county, to do the same thing. she had already gotten some practice in before clay had the unfortunate luck of meeting her.
@52 join this one too: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/Just… - it already has more than 11,000 fans.
@52 join this one too: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/Just… - it already has more than 11,000 fans.
58
@54: Spaying is applied to a female animal; it's an ovariectomy often combined with a hysterectomy. It's just called neutering or castration when applied to a male.
Medical knowledge FAIL, Period Hive Drone.
Medical knowledge FAIL, Period Hive Drone.
61
@59: I recognize the snark, but I do not give it any more attention than necessary.
For the Snark was a boojum you see.
For the Snark was a boojum you see.
62
@60: "Reportedly the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors said there were reports of domestic violence..."
"Reportedly...said...reports..."
That's not terribly certain, the way you write it, Period Hive Drone. And even if it turns out that that was the case, does the county then have a right to confine Clay against his will? And do they have a right to auction off their belongings and ignore the powers of attorney and other legal documents?
I think that hysteria would be justified, but frankly, I haven't seen any such yet. No word on the "HyperHomoHysteria", though. Did you invent that word all on your own, or did another drone hear it and pass it on through the Period Hivemind?
"Reportedly...said...reports..."
That's not terribly certain, the way you write it, Period Hive Drone. And even if it turns out that that was the case, does the county then have a right to confine Clay against his will? And do they have a right to auction off their belongings and ignore the powers of attorney and other legal documents?
I think that hysteria would be justified, but frankly, I haven't seen any such yet. No word on the "HyperHomoHysteria", though. Did you invent that word all on your own, or did another drone hear it and pass it on through the Period Hivemind?
64
@63: Yes, he did catch on. He posted about how the county was claiming that there was domestic abuse. And if so, why is there no record of it?
You, however, do not seem to want to address the points I made (i.e., that the county has no right to disregard power of attorney and sell all their stuff without due process of law). And if the facts are not all verified, why do you seem to think that we should drop the issue?
Oh right, you hate gay people. Well, have a nice day.
P.S. A trademark search comes up with no results for "HomoHyperHysteria". FAIL.
You, however, do not seem to want to address the points I made (i.e., that the county has no right to disregard power of attorney and sell all their stuff without due process of law). And if the facts are not all verified, why do you seem to think that we should drop the issue?
Oh right, you hate gay people. Well, have a nice day.
P.S. A trademark search comes up with no results for "HomoHyperHysteria". FAIL.
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