On Tuesday, September 20, 2011, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation awarded Marie-Therese Connolly their $500,000 “genius grant.” According to the MacArthur Foundation, Connolly has “devoted her career to laying bare the many forms of elder abuse: physical and psychological, as well as financial exploitation and wrongful deprivation of rights.” As elder abuse lawyers , we were very happy to hear about the recognition of someone who has spent her career fighting for those who can no longer fight for themselves.
Marie-Therese Connolly, a former Department of Justice lawyer, recently said in an interview,
“I was shocked that the problem is so invisible…There is so much opportunity for change, and I can’t think of another issue that affects so many people and where less is being done.”
She has worked tirelessly for years hoping to change the problem of elder abuse. She has written, lectured, testified before Congress and been instrumental in creating laws that help protect the elderly. In the late 1990s, Connelly was put in charge of the Elder Justice and Nursing Home Initiative that was created by the Clinton administration. She was the inventor of the Elder Justice Act which Congress passed last year and the founder of Life Long Justice, a non profit organization aims to fight elder abuse.
“It should be a part of the national conversation like health care, justice and jobs… I’m just hoping that the foundation’s recognition of what’s really a growing epidemic is the beginning and will be a game-changer in the whole field,” Connelly said.
Connelly’s Peers in the Fight against Elder Abuse Sing Her Praises
Connelly is admired and respected among elder abuse lawyers, government officials, and other advocates for the elderly. It is amazing what she has done for the elderly community and she deserves all of the recognition and praise she receives.
“I see her as one of the major leading figures in the development of a broader social movement to address elder abuse,”
said Kathy Greenlee, the assistant secretary for aging at the Department of Health and Human Services. U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. also commented,
“I commend the MacArthur Foundation for recognizing the critical importance of the work Marie-Therese helped launch several years ago at the Justice Department, and the need for our continued vigilance in combating elder abuse, fraud and neglect.”
Elder Abuse Lawyers in New Jersey and Philadelphia
If your loved one is currently a resident of a nursing home or care facility and you are worried that the care they are receiving is negligent, abusive, or inadequate, contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation. You may also call for a free consultation with one of our elder abuse lawyers at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.