The State Attorney’s Office announced it has dropped the case against a 37-year-old nurse’s aide accused of stealing $27,000 from a 78-year-old Jacksonville Beach woman who she was taking care of.
The 37-year-old woman was facing one county of elderly exploitation and one count of credit card fraud.
Prosecutors told News4Jax the case was dropped because of the death of the 78-year-old woman. Defense attorney Randy Reep, who’s not affiliated with the case, said it’s a technicality many people may not be aware of.
According to investigators, the 37-year-old was the 78-year-old’s caretaker who “drained” $27,000 from the elderly woman’s bank account.
“I was overdrawn. I was afraid to write a check,” the 78-year-old told News4Jax in December.
Investigators said the 78-year-old, who was physically disabled, depended on her caretaker to shop for her.
“She said you make a list and I’ll pick up your stuff for you,” the 78-year-old said in December. “So I would give her authorization to use my card to buy my groceries.”
But investigators said the caretaker used the 78-year-old’s debit card to pay for personal items. Records also show there were daily $500 ATM cash withdrawals. A total of $27,000 was reported stolen.
The State Attorney’s Office said the strongest evidence that the defendant did not have consent was the alleged victim’s testimony, which was lost when she died in January.
Reep said that even though there were store and ATM surveillance videos and hundreds of transaction statements creating a paper trail, prosecutors could not allow the case to go forward without the alleged victim.
“You have to keep in mind both the U.S. Constitution and the Florida Constitution has what’s called the confrontation clause. You get to face your accuser. Without her testimony, to say those transactions were not authorized, there’s really no other way to get that evidence in,” Reep said.
And without the alleged victim testifying, the caretaker’s defense attorney would not be able to cross-examine the accuser.
The caretaker’s close relatives, who live in another state, reached out to News4Jax in outrage. They wrote a letter that reads, in part: “We are ashamed and appalled at the justice system in Jacksonville for letting her get away with this.”
Reep said it’s not often that prosecutors lose a material witness in a case like this. He also said this is an example of why criminal cases are challenging.