Four years after charges were filed, a Lebanon area woman was acquitted of charges of theft, criminal mistreatment and forgery when a judge heard her case on July 30-31.
Kelee Joan Gatliff, 59, was charged in 2020 with three counts of first degree aggravated theft and three counts of first degree criminal mistreatment after accusations were lodged that she stole $30,000 or more (possibly up to $70,000) from her mother, Milodene Bolen, in a one-and-a-half-year span of time. The mistreatment charges were related to the alleged theft based on the understanding that Gatliff was custodian in some manner to her mother. In 2021, two counts of second degree forgery were added.
After Bolen began showing signs of dementia, her son, Paul Bolen, acquired power of attorney and in 2018 Gatliff moved into Milodene’s home to care for her. Adult Protective Services was notified of alleged suspicious activity on Milodene’s account about a year after Gatliff moved in. Following an investigation, charges were brought.
After four years of hearings, attorney changes, appearances, continuances and canceled trials, Gatliff waived her right to a jury trial while maintaining her plea of not guilty. Witnesses during a bench trial included a bank representative, police, an associate physician, staff from Adult Protective Services and Paul Bolen.
A witness who investigated Milodene’s account activity only looked for patterns in bank statements during the period of Gatliff’s residence at Milodene’s home. Gatliff’s defense attorney, Andrew Poole, pulled bank statements from several years prior to that time and noted there were several large withdrawals from Milodene’s account because, as witnesses agreed, she was a generous person. He pointed to the possibility that Milodene may in fact have given the money away or even deposited it into another account, based on check records.
Judge Michael B. Wynhausen noted “a lot of activity” on Milodene’s account in 2016 including thousands in withdrawals and more than $22,000 distributed to many individuals, indicating a pattern of multiple withdrawals before Gatliff moved in. He added that the family indicated an awareness there were issues with her use of finances, and the pattern seemed to continue.
“There seems to be a lot of withdrawals in the account after Ms. Gatliff moved in, but the fact of the matter is the state has the burden of proof, in this case, and the state has to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt,” he said. “I received no real information regarding where the money went, who it went to; it could have gone to anybody. I’ve got no video, I’ve got no admissions from the defendant, I have no testimony from any other witnesses to say where that money went.”
He went on to say he believes it’s fair to conclude that the money went to Gatliff, but it also could have gone to other people. Also, some of the withdrawals with explanation as to where it may have gone could be reasonable to believe it was used for purposes for the care of Milodene.
“The long and the short of it is I cannot find, regarding any of these charges, beyond a reasonable doubt, find Ms. Gatliff guilty of any of these offenses,” Wynhausen said. “It may well be that she did some of these things, but the proof is simply not there.”
Court documents show that after the Court heard witness testimony and considered the evidence presented, Wynhausen found Gatliff not guilty on all charges.