by Bob Edgren
Easter is a special holiday, a time when families really come together. I hope your Easter was a joyful happy one, as ours was not. A disturbing situation happened this year. On Saturday March 31. The day before Easter, Brother Dave and his wife Dawn brought over Easter dinner to our parent’s house in Capitola. It was all cheers, smiles, laughter, hugs and blessings as we also celebrated dad’s full recovery from his January stroke. Dad will be 100 in less than a year and a half and mom will be 97 in July.
Monday morning came the bombshell
Monday morning, April 2, mom and I were served with a UPS delivered “ex parte” order from Dave, the same Dave who just less than 48 hours before was toasting Easter with us and dad’s recovery! What is an ex parte? I didn’t know either. Like a restraining order, an ex parte legal action is usually used to prevent harm to someone under threat in emergency situations. Recipients or “defendants” are denied normal due process. 97-year-old mom had little opportunity to defend herself, nor did I. Such a legal tool should only be used in extreme cases of impending danger or harm. The ex parte was basically a lawsuit with demands against me and mom.
Good Friday sneak attack
Just when I thought Dave had flipped, I discovered that on the previous Friday, two slimy lawyers, Kendal Fletcher of Hopkins and Carley Palo Alto, and James Farrar of Grunsky Law Watsonville, slithered into our home mid-afternoon on Friday. They confronted mom who was just waking, peppered her with questions, and snooped around our home. Dad was still sleeping. I am not making this up. Where was I? Clever Dave had sent me a text and an email that morning asking to have some “private time” with mom and dad, that he needed to talk to them alone, and if I could be out of the house for a period. I had no reason not to comply. Little did I know under the sick guise of this con, Dave’s two lawyers would invade our home, without Dave. This cowardly, devious act borders on psychopathic mentality. But there is a logical reason for it, as one reads further.
My brother Dave Scares me
Dave hired a team of lawyers from a very pricy Silicon Valley firm to execute the ex parte motion. They are Stephen Braccini and Kendal Fletcher of Hopkins Carley Law, Palo Alto. An ex parte must be signed by a judge. The petition was not just full of lies, but extraordinary lies that would fool any judge into signing it. Judge John Gallagher of Santa Cruz County Superior Court was the one hoodwinked and duped by Braccini and Fletcher with the despicable charges against me and mom. The lies were vicious and hurtful to me, mom and dad. They attacked me as some kind of monster, and mom as some old frail senile lady, and dad, on death’s doorstep. For example,
“Emil…is in extremely poor health…he can walk only short distances with the aid of a walker…he can carry only a limited conversation because his memory recall is impaired…Emil has been in a severe state of depression since the stroke.”
You will be able to read the charges on the coming website. They are appalling, twisted, diabolic and obviously permanently changed the Edgren family relationships. For me? Instead of getting a "thanks" for caring for mom and dad, for several years, I get a lawsuit! It has been a living nightmare. And now, as mentioned I am concerned with the parent's and my own welfare. Dave and Dawn scare me.
Under the terms of an ex parte, as a defendant, one must appear in court the next day to defend themselves. Dave probably assumed I would not make it given such a short notice. But he got a surprise in court, as my lawyer, and the parent’s lawyer in short notice, raced to our defense, and were able to diffuse the situation, strip off an appointed guardian Braccini and Fletcher appointed, and direct the whole case to mediation, (something I have asked and wanted brother Dave to do for five years.) The parent’s lawyer Kathleen Brewington offered the greatest defense when she told the judge she had just spoken to the parents who said they did not trust Dave with finances, and that I (Bob) had been trying to get Dave into mediation for several years.
Of course, the first thing Dave did was rush back to our parents after court like a whimpering bratty girl, Confronting them in a mixed whining and threatening tone, ”You really hurt me when you said I could not be trusted with finances.”
My commentary; Grow up Dave. You opened a can of worms you should be man enough to be able to face what comes out. You are not Michael Corleone in the Godfather. Yes you cold cocked us with the ex parte, a real show of integrity. Face it, you cannot be trusted with finances.
For the past four years I have invited and asked Dave to participate in family mediation, as communication between us had broken down. A local noted family mediator attempted to contact him and offer mediation to him on several occasions. Dave ignored the requests, as did Dawn. He never even acknowledged my request for mediation. Why wouldn't he want to get involved in counseling and mediation? Why wouldn't he accept the chance to get all differences out on the table instead of spending tens of thousands of dollars slamming me with a lawsuit? It makes one wonder. I cannot afford to wonder anymore.
Not to be sounding paranoid, I fear Dave wants me neutralized, out of the picture, and there is good reason. I am sending this out to as many people I know as possible should something happen to me. For those who know the real Dave, we know he can fly off into rages, and has had a long history of problems with alcohol.
So what’s the smoking gun? For about the past three years I had uncovered a number of critical errors Dave made with the parent’s health care. These include medications, blood pressure instructions and incorrect medical condition diagnosis. They can be read on the website link below I am building. But of most concern, I brought them to Dave’s attention, which may have been a mistake for me. With dad’s stroke in January, and his subsequent three-week rehab, I asked Dave not to get involved in his recovery. When he ignored me I threatened him. I did not trust him and I told him why. There was just too much at risk. Nevertheless, he and his wife Dawn tried to “butt in” on their care behind my back.
If Dave was not a pharmaceutical chemist, I would say, “Well, they are just mistakes, and maybe just human error. But he is an accomplished pharmaceutical chemist, who worked closely with doctors. The fact that he understands or can research medications and conditions makes it even more compelling to raise concerns.
Dave cannot afford to have his medical errors on the parents be known. These serious errors could be tantamount to attempted murder. For a long time I kept them hidden from everyone except Dave and never was going to expose them. All I asked Dave was to stay out of their care. After the ex parte? I had no choice. I have to tell and expose this story.
I have discussed this with a representative of the County elder abuse division. She suggested a meeting with the District Attorney’s office. We shall see.
My only hope is that the Internet along with social media will protect me and the parents. Again, I do not have a mega war chest to fend off Dave’s army of lawyers. I don’t know where he is getting his money. Per my understanding he has worked the past couple years for a failing company without pay. He has also come at times asking for money for various things. Dawn retired and receives a pension.
Other motives have been suggested to me. It is believed that Dave and Dawn spent a small fortune sending their daughters to private schools, Redlands for Kristen, and USC for Renee. Together the cost along with daughter trips to Europe, cars, clothes, spending money, vacations, etc., may have cost near a half million. If student loans were taken out, they would be desirable to pay off at the family trusts expense All this is speculation, but as the onion is further peeled off we will know more.
For those of you who have sent supportive letters, I cannot thank you enough. It is often when I read those letters, I draw much needed strength. Thank you so much, they have been invaluable.
This is a very sad