"Guardianships are very helpful. Without my guardianship, my life would be a disaster. I would get in trouble, and I would be around the wrong people. Because of my guardianship I have the supports I need to be safe, learn new things, and live in my own home, in my community."

Cory shares his beliefs about his guardianship.

POWERPOINT PRESENTATIONS

These PowerPoints are not intended and should not be taken as giving any legal advice. Rather, they are for educational and informational purposes only. You should always speak with a licensed attorney for any legal question, issue or problem that you are experiencing. 

Classroom Edition - Forensic Guardianships

The complexities of and barriers in operating the most difficult type of guardianship.

Criminalizing Disabilities By False Confessions of Guilt (Extended Edition)

Protecting a ward from being wrongfully convicted of criminal conduct by giving false confessions of guilt because of the ward's disabilities and the vulnerabilities attached.

Extended Edition - Disability Rights, Concepts & Practices

Identifying the destructive issues and harmful effects people with disabilities face when they are deprived or abridged of their civil rights or civil liberties.

Disability Rights, Concepts & Practices (Classroom Edition)

A 10 slide classroom presentation on the outside rights, concepts and practices involving people with disabilities.

Extended Edition - When Reasons Have No Logic

Providing an in-depth examination on cause and effects of abuse, neglect, exploitation and discrimination imposed on people with disabilities, based on historical and present-day methods. 

Classroom Edition - When Reasons Have No Logic

A 10 slide classroom presentation discussing abuse, neglect, exploitation and discrimination of people with disabilities and the cause and effects.

Legal Guardianships In Missouri

Discussing the framework, expectations, requirements and limits on legal guardianships in Missouri.

Alternatives To Guardianships

Identifying issues with alternatives to guardianships when private guardians are not the issue.

CLASSIFICATIONS IN GUARDIANSHIP

Missouri has only two classes of guardians:

(1). Private Guardians: These are individuals who are a family member, friend, a spouse, and other people who serve in a non-government capacity.

(2). Public Administrators: These are publicly elected government officials who serve only for the length of time he or she holds office; and 

Missouri state laws do NOT require ANY private guardian or public administrator guardian to have any type of specialized or formal education, training, certifications, licenses, or a specific professional background, to be appointed by a probate court to serve as a legal guardian. 

Mo. Rev. Stat. § 475,010 provides three types of guardianship:
(1).  Standby: "One who is authorized to have the temporary care and custody of the person of a minor or of an incapacitated person under the provisions of section 475.046";
(2).  Limited: "One whose duties or powers are limited." A person having a limited guardianship has only the custody level, powers, and duties that are written into the court's order, Letters of Guardianship, and state laws.
(3).  Full: "One appointed by a court to have the care and custody of the person of a minor or of an incapacitated person." A person having a full guardianship makes any and all decisions for and on behalf of the ward in accordance with the court's orders, Letters of Guardianship, and state laws.

The Missouri Guardianship Association uses a three-tier classification system of guardianships:
(1).  General: This is the lowest level guardianship. It involves an adult requiring the least amount of supervision, structure, and supports.
(2).  Specialized: This is an intermediate level guardianship. It involves a ward requiring specialized care, services, treatment, habilitation, or supports because he or she has a medical and/or physical condition, that without such specialized care, services, treatment, habilitation, or supports, his or her life, health, safety, or welfare is put in immediate danger.
(3).  Forensic: This is the highest level of guardianship. In addition to the person meeting the required criteria for a guardian to be appointed by a probate court, it also involves a ward who is at substantial risk of becoming involved with or who is involved with the criminal justice system; who is incarcerated in jail or prison; who is on probation or parole; who is under any court order requiring the ward to engage in or prohibiting the ward from engaging in any specific act or action; or who is a registered sex offender; that there is a personal and/or public safety risk.

The Facts Every Guardian Must Know.

1. What The Missouri Appellate Court Says

In determining whether guardians are required to know the laws governing them and thus, whether guardians can be removed by the probate court, as guardian, the Missouri Appellate Court pointed out that, “Gerald Pittman's testimony exhibited some confusion concerning his precise . . . duties as guardian . . . He complained that no one informed him of his legal duties, but this did not relieve him of those duties. This is not want of `knowledge of a fact' but a self-professed lack of understanding of the law's requirement, which could have been ascertained from a reading of the statutes and pertinent cases. Persons are conclusively presumed to know the law." See In re Estate of Pittman, 16 S.W.3d 639, 643 (Mo. App. W.D. 2000) (citing Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission v. Myers, 785 S.W.2d 70, 75 (Mo. banc 1990)).

2. What The Missouri Attorney General Says

"Under Missouri law, the guardian of an incapacitated person has a broad range of legal powers. See § 475.120, RSMo. "Pursuant to section 475.120, a guardian is empowered and charged to act in the ward's best interest." Matter of Warren, 858 S.W.2d 263, 265 (Mo. App. W.D. 1993) see also Preston v. State, 33 S.W.3d 574, 580 (Mo. App. W.D. 2000) (explaining that a guardian has "the duty and responsibility to make any and all decisions" regarding important aspects of his or her ward's life)" (emphasis added).

Legal Opinion Issued to (former) Missouri State Representative Mike Kelley, August 10, 2017

3. Habitual Failures To Protect Wards

On July 26, 2019, KSHB Channel 41 reported, Missouri paid over $1,000,000.00 for Carl DeBrodie's wrongful death. His guardian, Karen Digh-Allen is a Public Administrator, and  according to the Fulton Sun, and the 2022 MO WINGS member roster, she has been actively involved in promoting "alternatives to guardianships" since at least 2016.

On June 9, 2021, the Columbia Missourian reported on the habitual failures to protect wards, such as, but not limited to, Carl DeBrodie, which is resulting in their being abused, neglected, exploited, and killed (homicides, suicides, alleged accidental deaths, and so-called 'undetermined' deaths). The article centers on wards receiving services from private providers operating under state contracts.

4. What State Law Says

"Guardian" one appointed by a court to have the care and custody of the person of a minor or of an incapacitated person. A "limited guardian" is one whose duties or powers are limited. A "standby guardian" is one approved by the court to temporarily assume the duties of guardian of a minor or of an incapacitated person under section 475.046. The term guardian, as used in this chapter, includes limited guardian and standby guardian unless otherwise specified or apparent from the context;

§ 475.010(8), RSMo (2018)

5. Implicit Biases For People With Disabilities

In January 2020, Modern Psychological Studies published a report discussing the degree in which people are uncomfortable being around others with disabilities. 

The American Bar Association, Commission on Disability Rights, also published a report that discusses implicit biases people have for those with disabilities, and the rate in which a person's implicit bias strengthens as he or she gets older.  

While some people advocate for what is commonly called, "alternatives to guardianship", it is important that it not be based on a person's implicit biases. Moreover, that it is not being advocated as a means to avoid or prevent someone else from becoming guardian due to a belief about that person. 

Just as guardianships are not appropriate for every person, alternatives to guardianship are not the proper solution for every person either. 

Alternatives to guardianship may be well intended but, they can also create and impose far-reaching consequences and serious irreparable harms on the person with disabilities.

The MGA believes in supporting guardians, wards, and the type of guardianship they live in and operate.  

6. The Inherent Dangers Of Eliminating Guardianships

In 2005, The Arc reported the high rate of people with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) and Developmental Disabilities (DD) committing sex offenses or who otherwise engage in sexual misconduct behaviors.

In 2015, The Arc reported people with ID/DD lack communication skills (understanding  consequences, expressing emotions), and lack moral reasoning (understanding right from wrong) among other issues. 

In 2018, the National Council on Disability reported, "The lack of data on who is under guardianship or what happens to adults under guardianship is a constant source of frustration for anyone attempting to understand guardianship, much less those urging policymakers that there is an immediate need for resources to address problems arising from it."

In 2019, the Special Needs Alliance reported that, "But a health care proxy is usually useless if the individual requires admission to a psychiatric hospital, since it can be invalidated at will by the person for whom it’s drafted."

The National Resource Center Psychiatric Advance Directives has also written that in Missouri law, there is no guarantee a power of attorney will be an effective tool, as an alternative to guardianship.

In April 2020, the Missouri Assoc., of Public Administrators published its report on guardianships held by its members. It is a laundry list of complaints they have about being appointed guardian and about the disgruntled positions they have in being guardians of people with serious to severe disabilities,  whom they allege are dangerous because of their behaviors.

In 2020, the Missouri Association of Public Administrators reported  having a substantially growing case load of wards with serious mental illness and many having  violent behaviors. Moreover, that public administrators are facing constant difficulties due to a lack of needed funding and resources.

On June 9, 2021, the Columbia Missourian reported that, the Missouri Department of Mental Health, Division of Developmental Disabilities is not sufficiently protecting people with disabilities from abuse, neglect, and death (homicides, suicides, alleged accidental deaths, and so-called undetermined causes of death) who receive services from private providers operating under state contracts.

On November 10, 2021, Public Administrator Karen Digh-Allen testified before the House Subcommittee on Mental Health Policy Research that wards leaving state mental health  institutions are dangerous people. She, like other public administrators argue that these wards should remain in some type of facility. 

If and when a person meets the statutory definition to require a guardian and a court appoints one, then neither the ward nor the guardian should ever be obstructed or prevented by anyone from exercising their rights, liberties, and privileges arising from their guardianship, nor should anyone ever hinder or restrain guardians from discharging their duties and exercising their statutory authority.

Christopher Cross, President & CEO