Coastal VIRTUAL FRAUD SUMMIT: Modern Crimes, Modern Times

Jane Jones is the Director of the Area Agency on Aging (AAA) with Cape Fear Council of Governments, Wilmington, NC serving Brunswick, Columbus, New Hanover, and Pender counties. She began her service with the COG/AAA as the Regional Long-Term Care Ombudsman in 1991 and became Director of the Area Agency on Aging in 1996. Duties include assisting local counties to assess the needs of older citizens currently & in the future, and administering federal, state, and local funds to provide a wide array of community-based services/supports that enable older persons to live independently in their own homes when possible. Jane is also the organizer and facilitator of the Cape Fear Elder Abuse Prevention Network. Since 2006, this grass roots coalition of aging & human service professionals/volunteers within the four-county area not only meet monthly but also plan, sponsor & provide consumer/community education regarding elder abuse & fraud/scams prevention. Jane holds a bachelor’s degree in Social Work from UNC-W. Prior to joining the Council of Governments, she worked for ten years as a Registered Nurse in a variety of hospital/industry/medical settings with a focus on adult medicine and geriatrics.

Jeffrey has been a social worker since 2002 working with various populations (birth to 100+). Since 2014 he has worked exclusively with the adult population. Jeffrey joined the Senior Resource Center in 2016. Jeffrey graduated from Appalachian State University in 2001 with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology, and he graduated from Liberty University in 2006 with a master’s degree in Human Services/Counseling. Jeffrey has helped senior adults in many areas when facing challenges in everyday life. His experiences include an array of services provided at the Department of Social Services level prior to joining the Senior Resource Center. In Jeffrey’s current role he serves as one of four dedicated Life Enrichment Program Social Workers.

Suzanne LaFollette-Black has been a gerontologist for the past 35+ years. She is the AARP NC Associate State Director of Advocacy and Community Outreach. Suzanne’s career has been in the aging network as a non-profit nursing home administrator, Area Agency on Aging Director, Executive Director of Moore County Department of Aging. Suzanne is originally from Window Rock, Arizona (Navajo Indian reservation). Suzanne has a BS in Sociology and minor in Zoology/ Music from NAU and graduate studies at USC Ethel Andrus Percy Gerontology program and MASA from University of North Texas, Denton, Texas. She served as the NCAOA (NC Association on Aging, Inc.) President from 2018-2020; Rotary; NCIOM Deaf and Hearing committee; Governor’s Highway Safety Executive Committee; and other community organizations.

New Hanover County Manager Chris Coudriet serves as chief administrator of county government and maintains responsibility for administering all departments under the general control of the five-member Board of Commissioners. The county manager’s work includes the development of the county’s annual budget. The budget is the policy document, financial plan, and operations guide and communications device of county government. It reflects the county’s response to the needs of the community and residents’ requests for services. New Hanover County’s government is operating on a $399.6 million multi-fund budget for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2020 and ends June 30, 2021. In addition, the county also administers $294 million in state and federal funding. Through this $693 million, the county serves more than 233,000 residents. In addition, the manager and his executive leadership team are responsible for aligning the operations of the county to the adopted strategic plan and advancing the county’s mission and vision through five key focus areas: superior education and workforce, superior public health and safety, intelligent growth and economic development, strong financial performance, and effective county management. Mr. Coudriet has served as the county manager since July 2012. Prior to his appointment, he served as assistant county manager for New Hanover County for four years and as county manager in Franklin and Washington counties, N.C. Mr. Coudriet has twenty-five years of public administration experience, with fifteen years as a county manager or assistant county manager in North Carolina. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree in Urban and Regional Planning from East Carolina University and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. He is a native of eastern North Carolina. Chris and his wife, Leigh, and two children Montgomery and Silas, reside in Wilmington.

Sheriff Ed McMahon began his law enforcement career in 1988 with the Vermont State Police, where he rose to the rank of Senior Trooper. In 1991, he and his family returned to Wilmington, where he joined the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Ed has worked in both the Patrol Division and the Detective Division, as a Deputy, Detective, Sergeant, Lieutenant, and Assistant Division Commander. In 2003 he was promoted to the rank of Captain, and assigned to head the Judicial Services Division. In 2007 Ed was promoted to Chief Deputy, serving in that position until 2009, when Sheriff Sid Causey retired and he was appointed to Sheriff. Ed was elected by the people of New Hanover County to serve as their Sheriff in 2010, 2014 and again in 2018. In 2013, Sheriff Ed was appointed to the Seventh Congressional District Homeland Security Task Force and graduated Chief Executive Leadership Training at the Southern Police Institute. Sheriff Ed married his college sweetheart, Teena, in 1982, and they have two married children, Shaun and his wife Sara, and Taryn and husband Josh. They are the proud grandparents of Braylee, Camdyn, Tenley, Sadie, Kylan, Kenzie and Cooper whom they adore. Sheriff Ed says, “What an honor and a privilege it is to serve and protect the citizens of this great county. I give God the glory for His blessings on my life. I want to be a humble and available leader, serving with Professionalism, Responsibility, and Accountability. I would ask that each citizen joins with me in praying for God’s wisdom each day, as I make decisions that affect each and every life that I serve.”

Born and raised outside St. Louis, Missouri, Sean Dwyer has been with New Hanover County Department of Social Services since June of 2013. During his work at NHCDSS, he worked as an Adult Protective Services Social worker for 4 years and a supervisor for APS for the last 2+ years. Prior to this, he was a supervisor for Adult Protective Services in Onslow County. Sean has 21+ years of social work experience including CPS, APS and several experiential education wilderness programs for juvenile offenders.

District Attorney Ben David received his B.A. degree from the University of Florida, where he graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He received his J.D. degree from Wake Forest University School of Law. He became the elected district attorney five years after joining the Sixth District (New Hanover and Pender Counties) and is currently in his fifth term. Ben’s professional organizations include the Wilmington Downtown Rotary, and the Blue Ribbon Commission on the Prevention of Youth Violence. As District Attorney, he served on the Chief Justice’s Commission on Professionalism, the Governor’s Gang Task Force, and Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration. Ben is a past president of the NC Conference of District Attorneys. Most recently, he received his certification as a handler for POTTER, a facility dog who assists victims of crime. Ben is the author of Crime and Community in the Cape Fear: A Prosecutor’s Guide to a Healthier Hometown (Cognella). He serves as an adjunct professor at UNCW where he teaches a class by the same name to undergraduate and Osher Lifelong Learning Institute students. He also wrote “Community8Based Prosecution in North Carolina: An Inside8Out Approach to Public Service at the Courthouse, on the Street, and in the Classroom” (Wake Forest Law Review). He resides in Wilmington with his wife, Stephanie, and their children, Maddie, Sophie, and Fitz.

Newly retired Deputy District Attorney Paul Greenwood was a lawyer in England for 13 years. After relocating to San Diego in 1991 he passed the California Bar and joined the DA's office in 1993. For twenty-two years, Paul headed up the Elder Abuse Prosecution Unit at the San Diego DA's Office. In 1999, California Lawyer magazine named Paul as one of their top 20 lawyers of the year in recognition of his pioneering efforts to pursue justice on behalf of senior citizens. He has prosecuted over 750 felony cases of both physical and financial elder abuse. He has also prosecuted ten murder cases, including one death penalty case. In March 2018 Paul retired from the San Diego DA's office to concentrate on sharing lessons learned from his elder abuse prosecutions with a wider audience. In October 2018 he was given a lifetime achievement award by his former office. Paul now spends much of his post retirement time consulting on elder abuse cases and providing trainings to law enforcement and Adult Protective Services agencies across the country and internationally. He is also involved as the criminal justice board member of National Adult Protective Services Association.

Amalia Mercedes Restucha-Klem serves as an Assistant Attorney General with the Public Protection Section of the North Carolina Department of Justice. In this role, she does outreach to vulnerable populations and works on various policy initiatives, including consumer protection and criminal justice reform. Mercedes is the Attorney General’s representative on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Hispanic/Latino Affairs. Prior to joining the Public Protection Section, Mercedes represented the North Carolina Division of Child Development and Early Education in administrative hearings related to childcare providers. Before joining NCDOJ, Mercedes worked for Disability Rights North Carolina advocating for the civil rights of people with disabilities, with a focus in employment, architectural accessibility and voting rights. She has also practiced criminal and immigration law. Mercedes has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication (Public Relations Sequence) with a second major in Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a Juris Doctorate degree, with honors, from North Carolina Central University School of Law. Prior to attending law school, Mercedes worked as an aide to U.S. Congressman Bob Etheridge in North Carolina’s second District. She is a Raleigh-native, where she lives with her husband, daughter, and pug.

Seth Boffeli is a fraud prevention specialist for AARP. He is an advisor for AARP offices in all 50 states, working to increase their fraud prevention outreach work. He has a unique view of the different scams that are being used to target consumers based on their age, background or what region of the country they live in. Seth started in the AARP Minnesota office in 2011 and has previously worked for in campaigns and government in the states of Iowa and Wisconsin and Washington D.C. where he was Press Secretary for Iowa Senator Tom Harkin and the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee.

Felice McConnell Corpening is an Assistant United States Attorney with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina where she is the Deputy Criminal Chief of the Economic Crimes Section. As an Assistant United States Attorney, Mrs. Corpening prosecutes a variety of cases with an emphasis on complex white collar crimes. In addition to her supervisory duties, Mrs. Corpening is the Professional Responsibility Officer, Giglio Officer, Elder Fraud Coordinator, Disaster Fraud Coordinator, Financial Fraud Coordinator, and Identity Theft Fraud Coordinator for the office. Mrs. Corpening has been with the United States Attorney=s Office for over 22 Years. Mrs. Corpening also serves as an adjunct professor at UNC-School of Law where she teaches trial advocacy. Additionally, Mrs. Corpening serves a faculty member for the National Institute of Trial Advocacy (NITA) for the Southeast Regional Program where she teaches basic trial advocacy techniques to attorneys across the nation. Mrs. Corpening also serves as a faculty member for the Basic and Intermediate Criminal Trial Advocacy Seminars at the National Advocacy Center in South Carolina which is an intensive advocacy skills program designed for new federal prosecutors across the nation. Mrs. Corpening received her BS degree in Criminal Justice at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 1991, and her law degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law in 1994.