In an old vault in the Denver City and County Building, thousands of files are stored, stuffed with documents detailing the lives of some of Colorado's most fragile citizens.
The probate files contain pleadings, bills, financial records, court orders, letters, medical evaluations and much more.
Reporters Lou Kilzer and Sue Lindsay sifted through these records and others from courthouses around the metro area, assembling this series of articles. It documents the struggle between Coloradans and the probate court system that is designed to help, but sometimes plunges the innocent into a world of upside-down justice.
The probate pit, Saturday, April 7, 2001
Retired Air Force Col. Farrell Hupp was one of hundreds of Coloradans over the past decade to become wards of probate court with control of their lives turned over to caregivers appointed by a judge. While most of these cases are routine, it was a never-ending battle for Hupp.
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Costly litigation, Monday, April 9, 2001
Milly Prewitt had a paid guardian, a professional appointed by the court who oversaw her affairs and charged her estate for the service. At one point, she also had a guardian ad litem, another court appointee whom she also paid to look out for her interests. Those guardians billed her more than $48,000 for arguing over her care.
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Presumed innocent, Tuesday, April 10, 2001
Clara Gelberg was eccentric, headstrong and, by most accounts, a royal pain in the neck.
Some said she was demented. But Clara flatly refused to be examined to determine whether she was. Denver Probate Court took control of her life anyway.
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Bankroll about-face, Wednesday, April 11, 2001
No one knew he had a dime, but when Manny Boody's guardian discovered he had socked away hundreds of thousands of dollars, a $2,100-a-month plan to care for Boody jumped to $13,051 a month.
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Guardian vs. family, Thursday, April 12, 2001
At first his professional guardian seemed like "a savior" to David Kleck. His family was struggling with the upheaval of relocating to Denver at the same time he was entering a nursing home. But when the crisis passed and the Klecks decided David no longer needed an outsider's help, the guardian disagreed. Only after a costly legal battle did she resign.
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'I hope to die soon', Friday, April 13, 2001
She read the book Final Exit. She hoarded medications for the right day. She talked of stepping in front of an 18-wheeler.
Helen Arnold, a retired French teacher at East High School, wanted to die.
It was the only escape she could find from a system determined to protect her from herself, even against her will.
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A matter of convenience, Saturday, April 14, 2001
William Susman was considered incompetent, then competent, then incompetent again, all in the span of a few days. His status fluctuated to meet the needs of a system that required his approval to cut off life support to his dying sister.
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