SAN ANTONIO – Texas Adult Protective Services (APS) estimates that one out of every 10 older adults (65+) in Bexar County are abused, neglected or exploited every year.
Speakers from the San Antonio Police Department and the Department of Human Services discussed elder abuse Tuesday morning during the Public Safety Committee meeting at City Hall.
In Bexar County, elder abuse reports received by APS have increased by 41% in the last 10 years, said Melody Woosley, director of the Department of Human Services.
Woosley also said that last year Bexar County had the highest rate of APS investigations per 1,000 adults when compared to Texas’ other largest counties.
“It’s difficult because, like domestic abuse, a lot of it happens within the family and people they know,” SAPD Chief William McManus said.
McManus said elder abuse can be seen both physically and financially. He said that in many cases, victims do not know how to speak up when being taken advantage of by family members.
According to data from the National Center for Elder Abuse, family members are perpetrators in nearly 47% of elder abuse incidents. Medical caregivers were perpetrators in close to 13% of elder abuse cases.
The most common offenses against the elderly include theft, fraud, injury, assault and credit/debit card abuse, according to SAPD’s crime data.
Both SAPD and the Department of Human Services make up the Elder Abuse and Exploitation Task Force.
In front of the committee, SAPD explained some of the obstacles they’ve encountered in their elder abuse investigations.
Assistant Chief Jesse Salame said it can be difficult both obtaining timely, useable evidence and in working with complex financial records that span jurisdictions.
Aside from the task force’s work, McManus said “education and early intervention are the two best things that I believe helps knock that problem down.”
“It’s a bigger problem than we are aware, I think,” Councilwoman Misty Spears (D9) said. She emphasized the need to also accommodate possible victims of elder abuse who may be isolated or disabled.
The Public Safety Committee — comprised of Spears and fellow councilmembers Sukh Kaur (D1), Leo Castillo-Anguiano (D2) and Teri Castillo (D5) — created an Elder Abuse subcommittee to address these unique safety concerns.
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