If you've been caring for an elderly family member, friend, or client, you put a lot of physical and emotional energy into that care. Caring for an elderly person isn't for the faint of heart. When you make such a serious commitment to care for another, it likely comes as a surprise that you are facing an allegation of elder abuse in Pennsylvania. You are likely afraid and unsure how these charges will impact your life.
Allegations of elder abuse in Pennsylvania can have far-reaching consequences beyond the courtroom. While the criminal action against you is at the forefront of your mind, it's hardly the only thing you should consider. Particularly if you hold a professional license, you need to be prepared for how this can impact your employment and even professional licensure. While elder abuse charges are certainly more relevant for certain professions, such as nurses, doctors, healthcare workers, and teachers, you can face employment consequences in any line of work.
When elder abuse charges threaten your career, you need the strongest defense to mitigate and hopefully eliminate the charges against you. At the LLF Law Firm, our Criminal Defense Team will work tirelessly to fight elder abuse charges against you. Our goal is to reduce the consequences you will face as a result of these serious charges and get your life back on track. Let us fight for you; call us at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
Elder Abuse in Pennsylvania
Elder abuse law in Pennsylvania makes it a criminal offense to abuse any adult who is a "care-dependent." The law doesn't apply only to the elderly; a person of any adult age can be a victim. Because seniors make up the most significant portion of care dependents, the crime is often referred to as elder abuse.
Many actions fall under the Pennsylvania definition of elder abuse, including, but not limited to, the following:
- Physical abuse
- Emotional abuse
- Sexual abuse
- Financial exploitation
- Neglect
- Abandonment
To face elder abuse charges in Pennsylvania, you must be a person's caregiver. You can fall into this category in many ways, most often if you are likely a senior's family member, friend, or hired caregiver. Regardless of your official title, you are playing a significant role in an elderly person's daily care. Whether this is a full-time or part-time responsibility doesn't matter.
The stress of caring for another can be overwhelming. Whether the elder abuse charges against you are the result of a mistake or miscommunication, the LLF Law Firm is here to help. Our attorneys believe that your livelihood, the career you've worked so hard to achieve, should be destroyed over a single incident.
Increase in Pennsylvania Elder Abuse Charges
Pennsylvania takes elder abuse incredibly seriously. Cases of elder abuse in Pennsylvania and throughout the country have been on the rise. The increase in Pennsylvania alone has been shocking. For example, in 2017, only 120 deaths related to elder abuse were reported in the Commonwealth; in 2022, that number had skyrocketed to 1,400. Experts in the Pennsylvania Department of Aging attribute the increase to the quickly growing population of Pennsylvania residents over the age of 65, poverty, and since corrected flaws in Pennsylvania county reporting systems.
Accordingly, the issue has gotten on the Pennsylvania General Assembly's radar and law enforcement's radar. Lawmakers have been urging government officials, including the governor and the Office of the Attorney General, to implement policies to investigate the deaths of elderly adults who were listed as victims in elder abuse and neglect cases.
Elder Abuse, Protection from Abuse (PFA) Orders, and Impacts to Your Employment
Oftentimes, when a person is charged with elder abuse in Pennsylvania, they also deal with the alleged victim filing a Protection from Abuse (PFA) order against them. PFAs can be issued based on many of the same allegations that are the basis of the elder abuse charges against you. This can include physical harm, harassment, emotional abuse, and more. The purpose of a PFA is to prevent a victim from abuse, but often, restrictions can greatly affect your daily life, particularly if you are caring for and/or living with the alleged victim.
When a temporary PFA or final PFA has been filed against you, you can be forced to vacate a shared residence and cease all contact with the alleged victim. PFAs also result in you being legally mandated to surrender any firearms and weapons you own to law enforcement.
Even if your elder abuse charges are dismissed, PFA-related elder abuse allegations can still impact your career. If your employer learns about your PFA, they may terminate you or suspend you immediately. This is often the case when you work with vulnerable populations such as children or in healthcare. Additionally, if you have a professional license, your licensing board may require you to disclose any criminal charges against you, whether it be through mandatory self-reporting or during your license renewal process. You could then be facing disciplinary action with your licensing board. Further, any employer who conducts background checks as part of its hiring process will be able to see a PFA on your record.
If the elderly person who is the alleged victim of the PFA is present in your workplace, for example, if you work in a senior care facility, it is particularly important that a court does not issue a final PFA. A PFA will bar you from being in the same location as the alleged victim, meaning you're out of a job. If you can avoid a PFA, you might be able to salvage your job, even if there are some professional consequences.
If you suspect a PFA is in the works or have been served with a temporary PFA, you need to act fast. Fortunately, the LLF Law Firm Criminal Defense Team is used to fighting battles on two fronts. We often address elder abuse charges and fight PFAs at the same time for our clients. We will do everything we can to ensure a PFA doesn't make it on your record while we work on your elder abuse case.
Employment Implications of Elder Abuse Charges
Elder abuse charges can have devastating consequences on your employment. Whether it's your reputation, losing your job, or having a professional license threatened, there is a lot to lose when it comes to elder abuse charges. This is even more so if you work in an industry that requires a clean criminal record, involves vulnerable populations, or depends heavily on trust and reputation. If you have been charged with elder abuse, the most significant employment implications include the following.
Workplace Issues
We won't get into employment law here, but depending on the terms of your contract and workplace policies, you may be dealing with issues in your workplace following an elder abuse charge. Your employer and colleagues shouldn't be passing judgment over charges of elder abuse – you are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. But that doesn't mean your professional reputation doesn't take a hit. How people in your workplace view you and how that impacts your employment, promotion potential, and ability to thrive in your organization, or get a recommendation if you choose to go elsewhere, are all up in the air.
Background Checks
Even if your elder abuse charges don't result in a conviction, unfortunately, they are still visible when an employer or potential employer conducts a background check. While you may not automatically be disqualified based on the elder abuse charge itself, many employers view any criminal charges as a red flag. Any charge related to abusing a vulnerable or elderly person may leave a bad taste in an employer's mouth. If your career involves caring for others, getting a new job following elder abuse charges can be incredibly difficult.
Security Clearances
As you may know, security clearances are commonplace requirements in many licensed professions and many different employment settings. You may have even been required to get a security clearance for your current job. Unfortunately, your elder abuse charges can impact your clearance and even cost you your current and future job. Elder abuse charges (and potentially associated PFA) can result in a revocation of your security clearance. They can also serve as denials for further security clearance in the future. If a security clearance is mandatory for your job, you could be losing your livelihood if you are convicted of elder abuse.
Issues with Professional Licenses and Professional Licensing Boards
You are held to a higher standard when you hold a professional license. You have committed to certain ethical and moral codes established by your profession's licensing board and Pennsylvania laws. As a licensed professional, in addition to the elder abuse criminal charges against you, you need to ensure you have professional license defense – fortunately, the LLF Law Firm can help.
Especially if you work in a care industry, for example, as a nurse practitioner, social worker, teacher, or physician, there is no way an elder abuse charge isn't relevant to your license. Likely, you are legally required to notify your professional licensing board if you are convicted of elder abuse or, as discussed above, have PFA issues against you.
You may be surprised to learn that your license may also be at risk even if you aren't a social worker, medical professional, or professional working with vulnerable populations. For example, if you're a Pennsylvania CPA or vehicle dealer, you might still be facing professional repercussions. In any profession where honesty and morality are part of the job, you can anticipate your licensing board will be interested in learning about the elder abuse charges against you.
Proactive Measures
There are some proactive measures you can take with your employer in the wake of your elder abuse charges. After consulting your LLF Law Firm attorney, you will want to start with having open and honest communication with your employer. Allegations of elder abuse are serious and hard to keep a secret. It is best for your employer to hear about the charges from you, not through the rumor mill. Your LLF Law Firm attorney will advise you on how to best broach the topic, what questions to answer, how to answer them, and more.
If the allegations against you are true, you may find enrolling in relevant rehabilitation or support programs helpful. This isn't just for your own personal growth. Participation in an anger management, caregiving, or other course or program can demonstrate that you are taking the allegations seriously. This can reduce your consequences both in the courtroom with a judge and hopefully with your employer. Your LLF Law Firm attorney may be able to recommend programs in your area.
How the LLF Law Firm Can Defend You Against Elder Abuse Charges
While the criminal penalties for elder abuse charges in Pennsylvania are steep, so are the professional ones. When elder abuse charges can derail your employment opportunities, you need an attorney who will do everything in their power to mitigate and reduce the charges and subsequent impact on your livelihood. As Pennsylvania ramps up fighting elder abuse, the LLF Law Firm has held fast in representing those charged with elder abuse throughout the Commonwealth. Let us defend you, protect your career, and fight for your future today. Call the LLF Law Firm Criminal Defense Team at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
