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A Detroit judge, along with three accomplices, is facing charges for allegedly embezzling close to $300,000 from state wards, using the stolen funds for personal luxuries such as a new vehicle and private investments.
Andrea Bradley-Baskin, who serves as a judge in Michigan’s 36th District Court, stands accused of orchestrating a $273,000 theft scheme. This conspiracy reportedly involved court-appointed guardians, a group home operator, and even her own father, targeting the estates of individuals deemed unable to manage their own finances.
According to a federal indictment, adults recognized by the courts as unable to handle their finances are classified as incapacitated wards and are appointed guardians or conservators to manage their assets.
U.S. Attorney Jerome Gorgon, Jr. revealed on Friday that Judge Bradley-Baskin allegedly misappropriated $70,000 from one ward’s estate to invest in a local bar.
The indictment further claims that Bradley-Baskin diverted funds from another ward to cover the costs of a two-year lease on a Ford Expedition.
“We respect the authority that covers a black robe. This state judge and her cronies allegedly abused that high honor for personal gain by preying on the needy protected by the court. This would be a grievous abuse of our public trust,” Gorgon said.
Bradley-Baskin, 46, and her father, Avery Baskin, are attorneys who represented a firm that was appointed to manage the estates of incapacitated wards in over 1,000 cases, according to the Department of Justice.
The firm, Guardian and Associates, run by indicted co-conspirator Nancy Williams, would distribute funds from the estates of vulnerable individuals to the judge and her father, as well as to group home operator Dwight Rashad, according to officials.
Bradley, 72, Rashad, 69, and Williams, 59, are accused of swiping $203,000 from a ward’s legal settlement and spending nothing on the individual.
Guardian and Associates would even pay out sums to Rashad for individuals who didn’t live in any of his facilities, the indictment claimed.
The four were all slapped with conspiracy to commit wire fraud charges.
“Regardless of a person’s position in society, no one is above the law. These four defendants allegedly conspired to steal from some of our most vulnerable citizens,” FBI Special Agent Jennifer Runyan said in a statement.
Bradley-Baskin is also charged with one count of making a false statement to a federal law enforcement agent.
Bradley was charged with one count of wire fraud, and he, his daughter and Rashad all received multiple money laundering charges.