UPDATE: Sonoma County Settles Case Involving Elderly Gay Couple

On April 18, 2010, we posted an article about the county of Sonoma separating an elderly gay couple, Harold Skull and Clay Greene.  To quickly recap, Harold, 88, fell on the porch of their home of 20 years, and required hospitalization.  While there, Harold made accusations of abuse at the hands of his partner, and despite Mr. Skull’s apparent dementia, the County of Sonoma declared him a ward of the county, appointed a conservator, and put him in a convalescence hospital.  They declared his partner Clay incompetent, put him in a different facility, and refused to allow him to see his partner of 20 years.  The county ignored medical directives, power of attorney documents, and testimony of friends, and began a process that ended with the lease on their home being ended and all their personal property being sold off.  Mr. Skull died three months later, and Mr. Greene was never allowed to visit his partner.

Friday, Sonoma County and the nursing home agreed to settle the case for $650,000 to Mr. Greene and the estate of Mr. Skull.

From the SFGate:

The county denied violating the men’s rights. But on Friday, Greene’s lawyers said the county and a nursing home had agreed to a $653,000 settlement with Greene and the estate of Harold Scull, his partner of 20 years.

“This victory sends an unmistakable message that all elders must be treated with respect and dignity, regardless of their sexual orientation, and that those who mistreat elders must be held accountable,” said attorney Amy Todd-Gher of the National Center for Lesbian Rights in San Francisco, which represented Greene.

The county said it agreed to the settlement to avoid the expense of a trial. There was no “credible evidence of discrimination or misconduct,” the county Human Services Department said in a statement.

“No credible evidence”… what a crock. They would have lost at trial, and they knew it. This is why marriage equality is important. It’s much more difficult to separate a married couple and liquidate their assets than to do so to “roommates”, as they were described in county documents.