Case Law on Children Supporting Elderly Parents
Case law on children supporting elderly parents sets judicial precedents state-by-state on the legal duty or criminal omission of adult children in caring for their parents. Settled cases establish rulings that effect future cases with similar circumstances regarding accountability or criminal neglect of adult children.
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State Statutes
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The failure of an adult child to perform as a caregiver to an elderly parent does not lead to criminal liability, unless a legal duty to do so is implicated. State statutes differ in their interpretation of what constitutes a legal duty. For example, New York deems an adult child liable pursuant to a court order or monetary exchange. However, an Alabama statute establishes caregiver responsibility through an assumed familial relationship.
Defined Legal Duty
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Case law on children supporting elderly parents refers to the legal or financial accountability, if any, and the circumstances under which an adult child is responsible for providing care to parents with insufficient ability to care for themselves. The case of criminal negligence against the defendant was dropped in the People versus Susan Valerie Heitzman, pursuant to a ruling that the statute was vague in defining who is responsible for legal duty to an elderly person under California penal code section 368.
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Criminal Negligence
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Case law has set precedents defining omission of legal duty as punishable in a court of law, as in Mary Davis versus the Commonwealth of Virginia. The defendant Mary Davis was charged with criminal negligence in the death of her elderly mother who starved and froze to death. Davis was the designated payee of her mother's social security check and food stamps, thus legally binding her as caregiver, leading to a manslaughter conviction.
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References
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