By Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Home exterminator, Michael Bakke, 62, (left) specializes in removing wayward bats from residences around his hometown of La Crosse Wisconsin. He calls the company “Wisconsin Bat Specialists.” Seems he also sidelines in stealing rare musical instruments from the elderly and the blind. Hired in early June to help a widow remove the pesky creatures, Bakke helped himself to a rare mandolin the homeowner had decided to auction. The theft occurred when the sightless homeowner asked Bakke’s wife to check to see if the mandolin was upstairs. When she did not immediately return, Bakke went upstairs explaining his wife had a language barrier and might be confused. Bakke was not at sixes and sevens in the least and spying the stringed instrument, he moved it to a side window. Telling the distraught elderly woman that he didn’t see it, he went about his work only to return later that night. Using his ladder, he went through the upstairs window to retrieve the melodic booty from its hiding place. Bakke tried to sell the piece — which he valued at about $5,000.00 — to a Texas auction house. He found out the item was actually worth about $225,000.00. Seems conscience got the better of the Batman and he turned himself into police saying he intended to sell the mandolin and give the proceeds to the senior citizen as a “surprise” to improve her living conditions. Seems not only comic book creators are adept at fiction.
It’s hard for me to imagine a more despicable crime that one against elderly victims but it’s an all too often occurrence. There is no national repository of crime statistics involving the elderly and no national victimization survey specific to elder abuse, but there is widespread agreement among law enforcement that “fraud in general is dramatically underreported” by the elderly. Most elderly victims are either unaware of the crime or too embarrassed to report it fearing their independence might be compromised by well-meaning family or a court system all too quick to declare them unfit or incompetent to handle their own affairs. I think crime against the elderly deserves a lot more study and a focused effort to prevent this abuse and then to catch perpetrators. It’s both a debt of honor and an efficient use of law enforcement resources to protect this growing population of those most vulnerable to crime.
What do you think?
Source: WKBT-TV
~Mark Esposito, Guest Blogger
Slarti,
Hey there bud … hope you’re going to stay with us for awhile. We need you.
Ariel,
Dr. Slartibartfast is correct that the elderly are less tech savvy. As a group, they have poorer eyesight, poorer hearing, and may be more trusting. Geropsychology is a subspecialty for good reason. Aging is complex, often compounded by dementia of one kind or another. Also, being wise when raising children is not the same as being wise with a smooth con man. Most elderly people are easy targets. That is why so many state legislatures have passed laws enhancing punishment for crimes against vulnerable adults.
And by the way. Don’t be too quick to make assumptions about who is writing on this blog. Some of us might just be old enough to be your great grandparent. I look at other people my age and sometimes wonder if we are even part of the same generation.
Ariel,
Older people are also less likely to be tech-savvy, and thus more vulnerable to on-line scams.
Oh, one more thing, by CNN Money, in 2011 using 2009 numbers, over 65 was 47 times more wealthy than under 35. As a con-man, you’d go for the over 65 crowd because they’re “like children” or because they have more money?
Darren said: “If he says he wants forgiveness he can start by turning around and placing his hands behind his back.”
But isn’t that exactly what he did? When he clearly didn’t have to?
What is the purpose of punishment? The way I see it, it is three-fold: to rehabilitate, to prevent, and to protect.
The value to society of rehabilitation is in preventing recidivism. Given that, as OS pointed out above, he is unlikely to ever be put in such a position again coupled with the fact that he turned himself in willingly, it seems to me that, even absent further punishment, there is virtually no chance that he will become a repeat offender. On the other hand, hard time could make him bitter enough to disregard any pangs of conscience in the future, not to mention any criminal skills he might learn in prison.
Strong punishment would seem counterproductive in preventing others from committing similar crimes as well—it would send the message that you should never turn your self in or accept responsibility as you will still be dealt with harshly. That doesn’t sound very smart to me.
As for protecting society from this guy, he’s not a serial killer that, given the slightest opportunity, is going to find a victim and eat their liver with fava beans and a nice chianti. He’s someone who made a bad call, owned up to it, and will probably never have the opportunity to make a similar mistake again. There is no protective value to restricting his freedom any more than is sufficient to prevent recidivism, something that is already a likely consequence of his actions, while the cost of restricting his freedom is significant. I don’t know about you, but I would like much less of my tax dollar spent on prisons, not more.
So, in the end, I’ll forgive him because I don’t want the burden of judging him (judge not, lest ye be judged) and because, if our places were reversed, that’s how I would want him to treat me. Society, on the other hand, should act in its own best interest, which I don’t believe would be served by a harsh sentence—especially in light of the costs (both direct and indirect).
I have never read in one place more stereotyping of a group of people than I have just read here except on some sites I don’t want to mention…
Yes, the elderly all more vulnerable but to violence. Unless they have sunk into a state where they have obviously lost faculty, they are no more intellectually vulnerable than the rest of us. In many cases, less so fo been there, done that.
Yes, they do fall to con-men, but you are going to have to show me that they fall in any greater numbers by stats (by con by x thousand) than other groups in the same circumstances. The elderly, in this society, are often more cut off from others than other ages, partly because of the very mindset I’ve seen here. That does make them more vulnerable to con-men, but it isn’t because they are “are as vulnerable as children” but because they are isolated: by throwing them away as useless; having worthless knowledge; unproductive; and the devaluing of wisdom over knowing the latest celebrity, the latest trend to be forgotten next year.
If you want to protect the elderly, quit thinking of them “as children”. How patronizing, unless they’re actually addled, but then there are a lot of 20, 30, and 40 somethings that would be considered “addled” if it weren’t for their age.
I had the privalege of being raised by grandparents and great-grandparents. I learned more from them than I ever did from my parents, minute for minute. Too much wisdom.
FWIW, those are five sound clips of that F-5 just below the blue highlighted text that says, “contact us…..”
Just click the numbered links. The sound of an F-5 in competent hands can send chills down the spine.
For any musicians out there, I have done some homework. The instrument Mr. Bakke stole was a 1923 Gibson F-5 made by Lloyd Loar when he was chief engineer at Gibson. The F-5 is considered the best of the best in mandolins. Bill Monroe owned one. How much is is worth? Here is the broker’s page from the last sale of a 1923 Gibson F-5 made by Mr. Loar:
http://gregboyd.com/instrument_detail.html?instrument_key=513
Caveat occupant
This guy clearly knew the instrument was worth more than some old rusty instrument or else he wouldn’t have went to an auction house to get something more than just a run of the mill pawn shop payoff. My thoughts were as soon as he discovered it was worth a fortune, he knew he faced a Major Crime enhancement and figured he would play the “penitent” angle and try to stave off being locked away for a long time.
Many states have enhanced sentences when the vulnerable are victimized; that is elderly, infirm, or helpless. I hope he gets this.
If he says he wants forgiveness he can start by turning around and placing his hands behind his back.
Slarti,
My answer to your question is yes. One of the things we know about behavioral reinforcers is that you do not punish when there is compliance. For example, some people yell and slap at the dog if it does not come immediately when called. All that does is practically guarantee it will be even slower to come when called next time.
He certainly is guilty of the crime, but the authorities don’t want to send a message to the next crook there is no percentage in turning oneself in, because they will still get the book thrown at them. Obviously, all this will go into the official sentencing report and recommendation to the court. He is not going to get off scot-free. In addition, he has lost his business forever. I can’t imagine him getting a job or working anywhere that will allow him to be inside homes or businesses. I see in the story he is 62 years old. He can draw early Social Security now, and my guess is he will be over 65 or possibly 70 when he gets out. Inmates cannot draw Social Security while incarcerated. I have no idea what fines will be imposed, or if he has any retirement saved.
Regardless of our emotional outrage, this must be properly litigated until Hell won’t have him, and the Courthouse Mob has grabbed three times the value of the unstolen instrument for accomplishing that.
nick,
The way I figure it, we all need forgiveness for something. Admitting your faults is the first step to changing them.
OS,
That does mitigate the value of his confession, but he could have easily held on to the mandolin or destroyed it or even find a way to “run across it” in the old lady’s house. He choose to go to the police. In my book he deserves a far lighter sentence than a $250,000 theft would normally draw. To me, heavily putative measures in this case would be bad for society rather than good for it—and shouldn’t the justice system strive for the outcome which is best for society?
What a dirtbag!
Slarti, This predator can get his forgiveness from God, I’m not interested.
Excellent story…. This is covered in Michigan as elder abuse…. As Slartibartfast said… It goes along way to me as well that he confessed and repented…. He had a change of heart and tried to do the right thing in a corrective way….
I read about this shitbird in the local paper. The elderly are as vulnerable as children. The elderly are one of the biggest targets of con men/women. With our aging society old folks will be even a more target rich environment. Families are the best protection, the police simply can’t prevent the elderly from being victims. They can only arrest scum like this. Clockwork Orange is not far away. And, many of us are approaching this demographic of at risk seniors. Hopefully our children will be there. We have good friends that are childless. They fear becoming old and alone.
As one who works with competency and guardianship issues a lot, the welfare and well being of the elderly is a concern and a problem in our society. What really frosts me is coming across cases where the kids or other relatives are circling like vultures. As one man told me, “They are wishing I would hurry up and die so they can get my stuff.”
While I am glad the thief returned the instrument, a couple of things occur to me. First of all, once he realized it was not just an antique, but a national treasure, he knew it was going to be hard to sell and could easily be traced. Therefore, how much of his actions were due to conscience and how much to being practical.
Second, by turning the instrument and himself in, he may have been gambling on drawing a lighter sentence than a quarter million dollar theft would draw.
While I don’t disagree with you regarding crime against the elderly, an admission of responsibility, especially one that was freely given, goes a long way for me. This guy may have (probably did) ripped off others before, but he clearly had a line he wouldn’t cross (somewhere between $5K and $250K apparently 😉 ). While he will have to accept the legal consequences of his actions, he deserves our forgiveness. To me, the only conditions for forgiveness should be an admission of guilt, an understanding of why your actions were wrong, and an acceptance of the consequences. I think the Roman Catholic Church has it right on this one.
We all owe it to our fellow citizens to look out for the most vulnerable in our society – both the young and the elderly.
Right on Mark! I live part-time in Florida where elderly issues like this are probably studied slightly more often, but I am certain it is a far greater issue than we recognize. I think you have gotten me preoccupied with this subject for the week at least.