What is the name of your state? Virginia
My father had a brain injury years ago and as a result is mentally disabled. He can pretty much function normally (with a few exceptions) and pass for normal but he's not exactly competent enough to make important and safe decisions.
According to his doctors, he has cognitive disorders, learning disabilities, and borderline intellectual functioning. His IQ is 75 which falls in the range of mental retardation and low average intelligence. People like that are not able to solve problems of moderate complexity by themselves.
My father is currently in a legal situation because he broke a zoning law. This has been going on for years but now he faces criminal charges and a $30,000 fine. My parents don't even make anywhere near that amount of money.
The problem that I see is that my father insists that he didn't break any laws even though I showed him the County zoning rules. It clearly states in there what a person is and isn't allowed to do, yet my father cannot understand that he is wrong. Everyone is telling him what he needs to do to end this legal situation without him going to jail and being fined. However, he refuses to do what anyone says because he strongly believes he is right and they are wrong.
I think the best way to describe the situation is with an example. Everyone knows what a dog is, it's one of the first things kids learn. If my father's mental disability causes him to think that a dog is actually a monkey, then no matter what you do or say he will think a dog is a monkey. You could show him pictures, articles, documents, etc. and he still wouldn't believe that a dog was really a dog.
That's sort of the problem in this legal situation. Something in his brain is causing him to believe what he wants to believe about the law even though everything and everyone is telling him he's wrong. He's delusional and there's no getting through to him. Other than that, he seems fairly normal. He can fix just about anything, he's a good mechanic, good carpenter, he can maneuver a large vehicle with no problems, and he knows a lot more about life situations than most people. But he's just not capable of making crucial decisions.
The thing I'm worried about with this legal situation is my mother. She disagrees with my father on this issue but there's nothing she can do. She doesn't want to leave him and honestly it would be nearly impossible at this time. But if my father is found guilty, my mother will be the one to suffer, not my father. Sure, he will go to jail but he doesn't seem to care. If my father is fined $30,000, it's not going to bother him, but it will affect my mother. My parents can't afford to pay that and it's not fair that my mother should have to.
No matter what happens, my mother will be the one who truly pays the price. She will be punished for a crime she didn't commit.
My father has a court appointed attorney and another court appointed attorney acting as a guardian. However, neither of these attorneys are very good and we don't trust them. It's almost as if they're conspiring with the county prosecutor. My parents can't afford to hire an attorney but don't qualify for any financial legal aid.
Is there anything that can be done so that my mother isn't the one to pay? It seems that if my father isn't competent enough to be making these decisions that something could be done. I think my mother is afraid to step forward and take action herself as my father gets very angry and could easily hurt her although he never has before. I'm sure though that if she or even me were to just make the decisions ourself that he would physically harm us. I'm tempted to ask to speak to the county prosecutor to ask for some other forms of punishment for my father so my mother won't be punished too.
It angers me that there doesn't seem to be anything anyone can do when a crazy man is going around making stupid decisions that affect other people. It's not right.What is the name of your state?
My father had a brain injury years ago and as a result is mentally disabled. He can pretty much function normally (with a few exceptions) and pass for normal but he's not exactly competent enough to make important and safe decisions.
According to his doctors, he has cognitive disorders, learning disabilities, and borderline intellectual functioning. His IQ is 75 which falls in the range of mental retardation and low average intelligence. People like that are not able to solve problems of moderate complexity by themselves.
My father is currently in a legal situation because he broke a zoning law. This has been going on for years but now he faces criminal charges and a $30,000 fine. My parents don't even make anywhere near that amount of money.
The problem that I see is that my father insists that he didn't break any laws even though I showed him the County zoning rules. It clearly states in there what a person is and isn't allowed to do, yet my father cannot understand that he is wrong. Everyone is telling him what he needs to do to end this legal situation without him going to jail and being fined. However, he refuses to do what anyone says because he strongly believes he is right and they are wrong.
I think the best way to describe the situation is with an example. Everyone knows what a dog is, it's one of the first things kids learn. If my father's mental disability causes him to think that a dog is actually a monkey, then no matter what you do or say he will think a dog is a monkey. You could show him pictures, articles, documents, etc. and he still wouldn't believe that a dog was really a dog.
That's sort of the problem in this legal situation. Something in his brain is causing him to believe what he wants to believe about the law even though everything and everyone is telling him he's wrong. He's delusional and there's no getting through to him. Other than that, he seems fairly normal. He can fix just about anything, he's a good mechanic, good carpenter, he can maneuver a large vehicle with no problems, and he knows a lot more about life situations than most people. But he's just not capable of making crucial decisions.
The thing I'm worried about with this legal situation is my mother. She disagrees with my father on this issue but there's nothing she can do. She doesn't want to leave him and honestly it would be nearly impossible at this time. But if my father is found guilty, my mother will be the one to suffer, not my father. Sure, he will go to jail but he doesn't seem to care. If my father is fined $30,000, it's not going to bother him, but it will affect my mother. My parents can't afford to pay that and it's not fair that my mother should have to.
No matter what happens, my mother will be the one who truly pays the price. She will be punished for a crime she didn't commit.
My father has a court appointed attorney and another court appointed attorney acting as a guardian. However, neither of these attorneys are very good and we don't trust them. It's almost as if they're conspiring with the county prosecutor. My parents can't afford to hire an attorney but don't qualify for any financial legal aid.
Is there anything that can be done so that my mother isn't the one to pay? It seems that if my father isn't competent enough to be making these decisions that something could be done. I think my mother is afraid to step forward and take action herself as my father gets very angry and could easily hurt her although he never has before. I'm sure though that if she or even me were to just make the decisions ourself that he would physically harm us. I'm tempted to ask to speak to the county prosecutor to ask for some other forms of punishment for my father so my mother won't be punished too.
It angers me that there doesn't seem to be anything anyone can do when a crazy man is going around making stupid decisions that affect other people. It's not right.What is the name of your state?
