Criminal defense
Elder Financial Exploitation Charges in Miami
Many exploitation cases start inside families: a power of attorney, gifts to a caregiver, a joint account. What one person calls a gift, another calls theft. Florida grades exploitation as a felony by the dollar amount.
Dennis Gonzalez Jr. is a former Miami-Dade prosecutor who has been defending people since 2012. Our office answers 24 hours a day.
Exploitation of an Elderly Person or Disabled Adult (§ 825.103)
The State must prove the person was an elderly person or disabled adult (see Elder Abuse & Neglect for those definitions) and one of six forms. Instruction 33.4 sets out elements for the first five:
- Trust or business relationship: knowingly obtaining or using (or trying to) the person's funds, assets, or property, to deprive the person or benefit someone else, while in a position of trust and confidence (such as a relative, caregiver, or fiduciary) or a business relationship with the person.
- Lack of capacity: doing so, or conspiring to, while knowing or having reason to know the person lacked the capacity to consent.
- Fiduciary breach: a guardian, trustee, or agent under a power of attorney breaching a fiduciary duty, resulting in an unauthorized appropriation, sale, or transfer of property.
- Accounts: misusing, or transferring without authorization, money from an account the person alone funded and owned.
- Necessities: a caregiver or person of trust intentionally or negligently failing to use the person's income and assets for the person's support.
- Wills and trusts: knowingly obtaining or using the person's property by intentionally changing, or fraudulently creating, the plan of distribution in a will, trust, or other testamentary devise, without a court order, a sworn written authorization from the person witnessed by two people, or a valid power of attorney allowing it. This form was added by chapter 2021-221, Laws of Florida, effective July 1, 2021. Instruction 33.4, although last amended in 2024, does not yet set out elements for it.
The $10,000 inference. If a person 65 or older transferred more than $10,000 to a nonrelative he or she had known for less than 2 years, without receiving reasonably equivalent value, the jury may, but is not required to, infer exploitation. It puts no burden of proof on the accused, and there are exceptions for lenders, certain written loans, and charitable donations.
Exploitation of a Person 65 or Older (§ 817.5695)
Under instruction 33.5, the State must prove that you obtained or used (or tried or conspired to) the property of a person 65 or older through deception or intimidation, either to deprive the person or benefit someone else, or by intentionally changing or fraudulently creating a will, trust, or other testamentary plan; or that you deprived the person of honest services through bribery or kickbacks. The statute does not require proof that the person was impaired, and not knowing the person's age is not a defense.
Penalties for Both Offenses
| Value involved | Level | Maximum |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 or more | First-degree felony | 30 years and $10,000 |
| $10,000 to under $50,000 | Second-degree felony | 15 years and $10,000 |
| Under $10,000 | Third-degree felony | 5 years and $5,000 |
Amounts taken under one scheme may be added together. Theft can be a lesser offense, depending on how the charge is written.
Violating an Exploitation Injunction (§ 825.1036)
Under instruction 8.27, the State must prove that an injunction protecting a vulnerable adult, or a person 65 or older, was issued against you and that you willfully violated it, for example by contacting the person or going within 500 feet of the person's home. First-degree misdemeanor; a third-degree felony after two or more prior violation convictions involving the same person.
How We Defend These Cases
- Gift, loan, or payment for care. Documents, texts, and witnesses who saw the relationship.
- Capacity. Medical records on whether the person could make his or her own decisions.
- Authority. What the power of attorney, trust, or account terms actually allowed.
What to Do First
- Do not talk to police, APS investigators, or bank fraud departments without a lawyer.
- Do not move, spend, or return money before getting advice.
- Collect the POA, trust, account records, and care receipts.
- Call us. See Turning Yourself In.
Why Choose Dennis Gonzalez Law, P.A.
- Former Miami-Dade prosecutor.
- Defending people since 2012.
- Super Lawyers recognition and an Avvo Rating of 10.0.
- Bilingual office — se habla español.
- We answer 24 hours a day. Call (305) 209-0384.
See our Results page, Theft, and Economic Crimes.
Frequently Asked Questions
My mother gave me the money. Why am I charged?
Prosecutors may claim she lacked capacity or that you used a position of trust. Proof that it was a real gift, and that she understood it, is often the center of the defense.