Hahn Launches Unit to Prosecute Elder Abuse
WEST HILLS — Los Angeles City Atty. James Hahn announced Tuesday the formation of an Elder Crimes Unit to investigate and prosecute elder abuse.
Speaking to members of the Senior Shalom Club at the West Valley Jewish Community Center, Hahn called senior abuse “a hidden problem that must be brought out in the open and then eliminated.”
Added Hahn: “A civilized city can have no tolerance for these types of crimes.”
Hahn said the unit, which is scheduled to begin operations next month, would provide a “coordinated approach” to prosecuting what he labeled “significantly underreported crimes.”
About 370,000 city residents are 65 or older, a figure that will double in the next 30 years, he said. Experts estimate that 4% of all seniors are abused, he said.
The city attorney’s office established an Elder Abuse Task Force in February to cross-train personnel from various agencies, including Adult Protective Services and the Los Angeles Police Department. In addition, the city attorney’s office has adopted a “no-drop” protocol for elder abuse, which means it will proceed with cases even when victims recant or are uncooperative.
“The test of a people is how it behaves toward the old,” Hahn said, quoting the late scholar, Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.
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