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Look forOregonconnections at Emmys
Paralyzedman lostinmortgagemaze
LaMichael James scoresthree times inDucks rout
Hot LakeSprings is back
BUSINESS, D1 SPORTS, C1 TRAVEL, T1SUNDAYLIVING, L2$92INCOUPONS
WINNER OF SEVEN PULITZER PRIZESSEPTEMBER 18, 2011
$2.00
BREAKING NEWS AT OREGONLIVE.COM
SUNRISE EDITION ★★★
By TATIANA SANCHEZTHE OREGONIAN
At first Courtney Lercara deniedit. No way she had breast cancer.She was, after all, only 33. She atea healthy diet and exercised, didn’tsmokeordrink.Noone inher familyhad had breast cancer.“I was 100 percent positive they
had mixed up my slide in the lab,”Lercara says.“Itwas somebodyelse’sdiagnosis. It wasn’tmine.”Butafterabiopsyofherrightbreast
showedotherwise, shehada lumpec-tomy to remove the tumor, followedby chemotherapy. Only a year later,Lercara found a lump in her left breast. Instinct toldher it was cancer again.So did the doctor.Along with the second cancer diagnosis, Lercara
tested positive for the BRCA 2 gene.Since1998whenscientists linked thehereditary gene mutation to breastcancer,womenhavestruggled tode-cidewhether tobe testedatall,whentobetested,andthen, if they testpos-itive,what todowiththe information.For those who test positive before acancerdiagnosis, theymustconsiderwhether to have pre-emptive breastremoval.Theseare thechoicesof sci-ence in the 21st century.The gene increases the chance of
breast and ovarian cancer up to 87percent, and approximately 10 per-cent of breast cancers are due to
BRCA gene mutations, according to the NationalCancer Institute.As forLercara, thenewswouldaffecther two younger sisters and generations after them.
Please see SISTERS, Page A16
By MAXINE BERNSTEINTHE OREGONIAN
Severalmonthsafterhiswifeof 50years died from breast cancer, Rob-ert L. Hulen was approached by awoman at the Gateway Fred Meyerstore. She asked Hulen whetherhe knew where a certain item was
shelved and started a friendly con-versation.They talked forawhile, exchanged
phone numbers and then met forcoffee, and occasionally dinner.But the casual connection turned
into a cunning con — one Hulendidn’t see coming, especially whenhe came to view the woman whocalled to checkonhimseveral timesa day as a “dear and trusted friend,”court documents show.The woman who befriended Hu-
len is nowone of three familymem-bers facing Oregon,Washington or
federal prosecutions for fraud. Twoare accused of exploiting elderly
victims in Portland andWashingtonstate. A third family member is ac-cusedof defrauding the federal gov-ernment.Conartistswhospecialize infleec-
ing theelderlyoftensucceed, leavingtheir victim unaware or too embar-rassed to report the deception tofamily or law enforcement. But inthePortlandcase,analertbankman-agerwonderedaboutoneofhercus-tomer’s large, frequentwithdrawals,knewwhomtocall in thecountyandset off an investigation by Multno-mah County’s elder financial abuse
specialist team.State cuts this year threatened to
reduceadultprotective investigatorsonthe team,but thecounty lastweekfound one-time funding to providea temporary reprieve. The countyhas successfully prosecuted 110 el-der fraud cases in the past year andahalf,partly thanks to its teamof twoadult protective service investiga-tors, a Multnomah County sheriff’sdetective, a deputy district attor-ney and a forensic accountant. Theteam works closely with Portland’s
Please see CON, Page A16
Business .......................D1Classified index...........E1Crossword...................H7Crossword NYT.........L9
Homes...........................H1Metro.............................B1Movies...........................L7Nation ..........................A2
Obituaries...................D4Opinion ........................B5Parade................................Sports ...........................C1
Sunday Living..............L1Television....................L2Travel..............................T1Weather.....................C10
INDEX WEATHERShowersHigh: 68Low:56Details, C10
Copyright © 2011Oregonian Publishing Co.
Vol. 161, No. 54,270124 pages
The Sunday Oregonianis printed on recycled-content newsprint
How a casual conversation turned into a big-bucks conA Portland widowerhands over thousands ofdollars to a woman whoseemed to be a friend
Testingfor the
BRCA 2gene gives
womeninformation
— and adecision
theymust face
Sisters struggle withknowledge of cancer risk
RIGHT | CourtneyLercara (left) and
her sister ErinHurley carry theBRCA gene thatputs them at an
87 percent risk forbreast and ovariancancer. The sistersdevote their timeto raising breast
cancer awareness.
BELOW | Aftertwo breast cancerdiagnoses and two
mastectomies,Lercara left herjob as a special
education teacher tocreate PinkWings.She sells jewelry,clothing and pins
that promote breastcancer awareness.
Photos byDANIA MAXWELLTHE OREGONIAN
Read previouscoverage ofthe 2011 Racefor the Cure,
including medical advancesand readers' own stories atoregonlive.com/health
Tina EphremSentenced to15months in prison
Tim EphremCharged inWashington case
By RACHEL BACHMANTHE OREGONIAN
EUGENE — Oregon officials announced Saturdaythat the NCAA earlier in the week officially notified theschool of its inquiry into possible violations involving afreelance talent scoutOregonhired, themost seriousde-velopment in a six-month saga that could threaten Or-egon football’s greatest-everrun of success.Oregon athletic director
Rob Mullens referred to theNCAA phone call as “sim-ply the next stage of the pro-cess.” But the call markedthe NCAA’s notice of inquiry,a step that typically falls latein an investigation and sig-nals that the NCAA soon willlist its allegations against theschool. That was the case inongoing investigations at Ohio State, North Carolinaand Boise State.Thenotification is significant forOregonanditsmush-
rooming legionof fansbecause itmarks thefirst concretestep towardanNCAAfindingofwrongdoing.Dependingon the severity of the findings, sanctions for the Duckscould range fromprobation tosuspendedathletic schol-arships or worse.Athletic officials are often vulnerable when the find-
ingsareserious. Inrecentcases involvingUSC,OhioStateand North Carolina, one head football coach changed
Please see UO, Page A15
NCAAputs UOfootballon noticeThe action means that allegations ofviolations linked to a freelance scouthired by the school could soon follow
InsideJohn Canzano:The best outcome forOregon: a raised barSports, C1
Formorecoverageof Oregonfootball go to
oregonlive.com/ducks
Advertising space donated by The Oregonian. Creative services donated by Leopold Ketel & Partners.
OregonHumane.org
3231656V01
Look forOregonconnections at Emmys
Paralyzedman lostinmortgagemaze
LaMichael James scoresthree times inDucks rout
Hot LakeSprings is back
BUSINESS, D1 SPORTS, C1 TRAVEL, T1SUNDAYLIVING, L2$92INCOUPONS
WINNER OF SEVEN PULITZER PRIZESSEPTEMBER 18, 2011
$2.00
BREAKING NEWS AT OREGONLIVE.COM
SUNRISE EDITION ★★★
By TATIANA SANCHEZTHE OREGONIAN
At first Courtney Lercara deniedit. No way she had breast cancer.She was, after all, only 33. She atea healthy diet and exercised, didn’tsmokeordrink.Noone inher familyhad had breast cancer.“I was 100 percent positive they
had mixed up my slide in the lab,”Lercara says.“Itwas somebodyelse’sdiagnosis. It wasn’tmine.”Butafterabiopsyofherrightbreast
showedotherwise, shehada lumpec-tomy to remove the tumor, followedby chemotherapy. Only a year later,Lercara found a lump in her left breast. Instinct toldher it was cancer again.So did the doctor.Along with the second cancer diagnosis, Lercara
tested positive for the BRCA 2 gene.Since1998whenscientists linked thehereditary gene mutation to breastcancer,womenhavestruggled tode-cidewhether tobe testedatall,whentobetested,andthen, if they testpos-itive,what todowiththe information.For those who test positive before acancerdiagnosis, theymustconsiderwhether to have pre-emptive breastremoval.Theseare thechoicesof sci-ence in the 21st century.The gene increases the chance of
breast and ovarian cancer up to 87percent, and approximately 10 per-cent of breast cancers are due to
BRCA gene mutations, according to the NationalCancer Institute.As forLercara, thenewswouldaffecther two younger sisters and generations after them.
Please see SISTERS, Page A16
By MAXINE BERNSTEINTHE OREGONIAN
Severalmonthsafterhiswifeof 50years died from breast cancer, Rob-ert L. Hulen was approached by awoman at the Gateway Fred Meyerstore. She asked Hulen whetherhe knew where a certain item was
shelved and started a friendly con-versation.They talked forawhile, exchanged
phone numbers and then met forcoffee, and occasionally dinner.But the casual connection turned
into a cunning con — one Hulendidn’t see coming, especially whenhe came to view the woman whocalled to checkonhimseveral timesa day as a “dear and trusted friend,”court documents show.The woman who befriended Hu-
len is nowone of three familymem-bers facing Oregon,Washington or
federal prosecutions for fraud. Twoare accused of exploiting elderly
victims in Portland andWashingtonstate. A third family member is ac-cusedof defrauding the federal gov-ernment.Conartistswhospecialize infleec-
ing theelderlyoftensucceed, leavingtheir victim unaware or too embar-rassed to report the deception tofamily or law enforcement. But inthePortlandcase,analertbankman-agerwonderedaboutoneofhercus-tomer’s large, frequentwithdrawals,knewwhomtocall in thecountyandset off an investigation by Multno-mah County’s elder financial abuse
specialist team.State cuts this year threatened to
reduceadultprotective investigatorsonthe team,but thecounty lastweekfound one-time funding to providea temporary reprieve. The countyhas successfully prosecuted 110 el-der fraud cases in the past year andahalf,partly thanks to its teamof twoadult protective service investiga-tors, a Multnomah County sheriff’sdetective, a deputy district attor-ney and a forensic accountant. Theteam works closely with Portland’s
Please see CON, Page A16
Business .......................D1Classified index...........E1Crossword...................H7Crossword NYT.........L9
Homes...........................H1Metro.............................B1Movies...........................L7Nation ..........................A2
Obituaries...................D4Opinion ........................B5Parade................................Sports ...........................C1
Sunday Living..............L1Television....................L2Travel..............................T1Weather.....................C10
INDEX WEATHERShowersHigh: 68Low:56Details, C10
Copyright © 2011Oregonian Publishing Co.
Vol. 161, No. 54,270124 pages
The Sunday Oregonianis printed on recycled-content newsprint
How a casual conversation turned into a big-bucks conA Portland widowerhands over thousands ofdollars to a woman whoseemed to be a friend
Testingfor the
BRCA 2gene gives
womeninformation
— and adecision
theymust face
Sisters struggle withknowledge of cancer risk
RIGHT | CourtneyLercara (left) and
her sister ErinHurley carry theBRCA gene thatputs them at an
87 percent risk forbreast and ovariancancer. The sistersdevote their timeto raising breast
cancer awareness.
BELOW | Aftertwo breast cancerdiagnoses and two
mastectomies,Lercara left herjob as a special
education teacher tocreate PinkWings.She sells jewelry,clothing and pins
that promote breastcancer awareness.
Photos byDANIA MAXWELLTHE OREGONIAN
Read previouscoverage ofthe 2011 Racefor the Cure,
including medical advancesand readers' own stories atoregonlive.com/health
Tina EphremSentenced to15months in prison
Tim EphremCharged inWashington case
By RACHEL BACHMANTHE OREGONIAN
EUGENE — Oregon officials announced Saturdaythat the NCAA earlier in the week officially notified theschool of its inquiry into possible violations involving afreelance talent scoutOregonhired, themost seriousde-velopment in a six-month saga that could threaten Or-egon football’s greatest-everrun of success.Oregon athletic director
Rob Mullens referred to theNCAA phone call as “sim-ply the next stage of the pro-cess.” But the call markedthe NCAA’s notice of inquiry,a step that typically falls latein an investigation and sig-nals that the NCAA soon willlist its allegations against theschool. That was the case inongoing investigations at Ohio State, North Carolinaand Boise State.Thenotification is significant forOregonanditsmush-
rooming legionof fansbecause itmarks thefirst concretestep towardanNCAAfindingofwrongdoing.Dependingon the severity of the findings, sanctions for the Duckscould range fromprobation tosuspendedathletic schol-arships or worse.Athletic officials are often vulnerable when the find-
ingsareserious. Inrecentcases involvingUSC,OhioStateand North Carolina, one head football coach changed
Please see UO, Page A15
NCAAputs UOfootballon noticeThe action means that allegations ofviolations linked to a freelance scouthired by the school could soon follow
InsideJohn Canzano:The best outcome forOregon: a raised barSports, C1
Formorecoverageof Oregonfootball go to
oregonlive.com/ducks
Advertising space donated by The Oregonian. Creative services donated by Leopold Ketel & Partners.
OregonHumane.org
3231656V01
METRO | NORTHWEST
Her sisters had been such a com-fort as Lercara struggled with thesuddendiagnosis, surgeries, chemo-therapy and emotional pain. Nowthey all faced a test.Erin Hurley, a pediatrician at Kai-
ser Permanente in Salem, testedsoon after her sister’s diagnosis, asdid Melanie Aguilar, the youngestsister and a stay-at-homemother ofthree.“I assumed my test was going to
be positive just because Courtneyand I are very similar,” says Hurley.And it was.Melanie’s tested negative.At 31, Hurley was just two years
shyof theagewhenher sister feltherfirst lump. After the tears, the sistershad decisions tomake.“Iwasreally scared that something
was going to happen,” says Lercara.
One sister’s reluctanceLercaraunderwent amastectomy
in 1998 to remove the tumors fromher left breast. A doctor then sug-gested a preventive mastectomy ofher right breast. But Lercara passed.“Myhair,mybreastwere taken frommeat theageof33,” shesays.“Ididn’twant to give anything up anymore.“Whenyou thinkofmastectomies
you picture women with a giganticscar across their chests,” Lercarasays. Her blue-green eyes shine inthe light spilling through a windowat a downtown coffee shop. She’snow 48, a healthy mother and suc-cessful businesswoman. A pair ofminiature breast cancer awarenessribbons dangle from her ears andflicker lightly. “To be 30-somethingyears old and to think that was myfuture was very difficult.”Reconstructive breast surgery
has improved greatly over the past20 years, says Arpana Naik, direc-tor of the Breast Center at OregonHealth&ScienceUniversity.Womencanchoosecosmetic surgeryas theyhave a breast removed, which takesaway some fear for some women,Naik says.Several years passed and in 2007,
Lercarametwomen inher situation.The national grass-roots organiza-tion Facing Our Risk of Cancer Em-powered is forwomenatheightenedriskofbreast andovariancancerbe-cause of their genes. At the confer-ence,Lercarametasurgeonwhotoldher she was a ticking time bomb.“What’s so important aboutkeep-
ing this breast?” Lercara remembersthinking. “I made an appointmentwith him immediately.”Her second mastectomy also in-
cluded reconstruction at the sametime. Sheryl Crow’s“All IWannaDo”played in the background, as it hadin her previous surgeries.Today, the former special edu-
cation teacher is an entrepreneur,trading in all things pink. She ownstheonline storePinkWingsandsellsclothing, jewelry and pins designedto emphasize breast cancer aware-ness. Pins that read “Survivor” and“Fight like a girl” decorate her keyring.Women from as far away as Ja-pan and Australia order her pins.“This one’s really popular,” says
Lercaraandpoints toapinkandyel-low happy face that reads, “Boobiesmakeme smile.”
One sister’s decisionFor years after her positive BRCA
test, Hurley fought the idea of a pre-ventivemastectomy.“At31 Iwas thinking there’snoway
in heck I’m going to have a preven-tivemastectomy, that’s so radical, sodisfiguring,” she says.“It’s this gameofRussian roulette.
You think might I live to 90 withoutgetting cancer, or might I get diag-
nosed inmy 20s?”She waited. She married and
started a family. She nursed threechildren. Shedid self-exams.Hurleyremembers standing in her kitchenone day as her children ran around.“Are my breasts really worth
their kids losing their mom? ” shethought.Themonths leadingup toher sur-
gery were wrenching. Some nightsshe stayed up until 2 a.m. chattingin online forums about hermastec-tomy. Hurley underwent a doublemastectomy inNovember2007, just
months after her sister. She was 40years old.Bothsistersadmit thatwaitingwas
risky.“Webothdidnothingwith the in-
formation,which is very scary,” Ler-cara says. “I was lucky I didn’t getdiagnosed a third time, and Erinwas lucky she didn’t get diagnoseda first time.”It would be impossible to notice
that the women, in their distinctivepink tops, had mastectomies. “Herbreasts arebeautiful, shecouldposeforPlayboy,”Lercara jokes.“Not thatshe would.”Hurley, the quieter sister, lets a
slight smile linger.Through the years they’ve ded-
icated much time to awarenessevents, including the AvonWalk forBreast Cancer and the Susan G. Ko-men three-day Race for the Cure.They have raised close to $500,000.They wear large pink wings at eachwalk.Now, as the Oregon outreach co-
ordinators for FORCE, Hurley andLercaraopen theirhomes towomenin their community struggling tode-cide what to do.
The next generationOnAug.15,Lercara’soldestdaugh-
ter,Sedona, turned18.Thedatecameas a reminder the BRCA genemightbe ticking in her.“Mydaughter tellsme,‘Everybody
in Oregon, when they turn 18 theywant to get a tattoo. I’m going to getmy BRCA testing,’ ” Lercara says.“She’s going to have to make hugedecisions in her life.”But Sedona, who starts college at
the University of San Diego this fall,flip-flops on the idea.“If it turns out positive, then I’d
freak out about that and my mindwould be elsewhere,” says Sedona.Fornow,she’schosentoget testedaf-ter graduating fromcollege.Thoughhermotherandauntcannotbear theidea of passing the gene on to thenext generations— bothmales andfemales are at risk— they are awarethat there isa50percentchance theirgirls carry the gene.Hurley worries about her 7-year-
old daughter, Samantha.“I have a picture of Courtney’s
daughter, writing a message to hermomonabigmessageboard for theregistration at the firstwalkwe did,”Hurley says. Her voice quivers andher hazel eyes fill with tears. Fast-forwarda fewyears toanotherbreastcancer awareness race and Hurley’sdaughter, Samantha, is writing amessage on the bigmessage board:“My auntie Court had breast can-
cer and she’s still alive.”•
Tatiana Sanchez: [email protected]
THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN • SEPTEMBER 18, 2011A16
SistersContinued from Page One
DANIA MAXWELL/THE OREGONIAN
Courtney Lercara (left) and her sister Erin Hurley stand among women diagnosed with breast cancer. The sistersare Oregon outreach coordinators for the Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered organization. Courtney offers hercellphone number to the women: “I always have it withme, so call anytime,” she says.
Race for the CureThousands will be on hand to show their support for a cure for breast cancer at theSusan G. Komen Race for the Cure today in downtown Portland. The map will help youget around — or, if you’re not part of the event, will tell you what streets to avoid.
elder-vulnerable adult unit, andhastrained more than 1,000 bank em-ployees, caseworkers andcaregiverson how to detect scams, and the el-derly on how to protect themselves.WashingtonandClackamascoun-
ties have multidisciplinary teamsthat target elderabusebutnota sep-arate group that’s focused on elderfinancial abuse.“It’s justagoodcollaboration,”said
Detective Jay Pentheny, assigned tothe team from the sheriff’s office. “Iwas afraid of any cuts coming to uswhenwe’reworking sowell on thesecases. I applaud the county for theirefforts in supporting elder financialabuse issues. These crimes cost allof usfinancially andmostof all, costthe victims who also suffer lastingemotional abuse.”
A promise of $240,000By April 2010, the woman who
identified herself as Tina Johnsonconfided to Hulen that she and herbrotherwere to receivea$20millioninheritance fromtheirdeceasedauntand uncle, who had raised them af-ter their parents died years ago. Butshe said her aunt’s business partnerhad been targeting the inheritance,tying up themoney by putting lienson the estate’s property.The lienshad tobepaidoff before
the inheritance was released. If Hu-len helped her, she promised to payhim $240,000 fromher inheritance.Hulen, now 79, gave her as much
as he had available, $40,000, andalso persuaded his friend, KennethPaddock, now 78, to help Johnson.Paddock turned over $140,800 toJohnson between April and August2010,with thepromiseshe’dpayhim$1.5million in return.OnAug.2, 2010,anastuteConsoli-
datedFederalCreditUnionmanagerfound it suspicious thatPaddockhadsoughtfivecashier’s checks, each forthousands of dollars, over a shortperiod and alerted a MultnomahCounty Adult Protective Servicesinvestigator.Pentheny, theMultnomahCounty
elder frauddetective, intervenedbe-fore Paddock obtained a sixth ca-shier’s check for $57,000.“I had to convince these guys for
an hour each that this was a scam,and this girlwasnot legit,”Penthenysaid. “Now they’re kicking them-selves, because they can’t believe
how they got duped. But I tried toexplain to them, she’s a professionalscamartist.That’swhat shedoes.Herjob is to get yourmoney.”Hulen told Pentheny he invested
the money because he wanted tohelpTina, andhewaspromisedsub-stantial money in return.“Iwas thefirst sucker I guess,”Hu-
len told thedetective, according to asearchwarrant affidavit.Multnomah County prosecu-
tor Charles Mickley described thescheme as a “classic sweetheartswindle.”“It seems likeascamthatshouldn’t
work,” Mickley said, “but they seekout a victim because they’re elderly,endear themselves to thevictimandsteal theirmoney.”Pentheny quickly learned that
Johnson was really Tina Ephrem,now36,who identifiesherself aspartof a Roma, or Gypsy, family.Paddock learned aboutTina from
Hulen, his good friend for two de-cades.SometimeinApril2010,Hulentold Paddock about a “way to makesomeextramoney,” introducedhimto Tina and she shared her inheri-tance story.Paddock obtained five cashier’s
checksmadeout toHulen fromCon-solidated Credit Union and WellsFargo between April 21 and Aug. 9,2010. Tina had told him that her at-torneys demanded cash and wouldnot take checks.Hulen, in turn, cashed the checks
and would give the money directlyto Tina, who drove to his house in abeigeCadillac, sometimesaccompa-nied by her 10-year-old daughter.Withasearchwarrant, thesheriff’s
office raidedTinaEphrem’shomeoffNortheast 126th Avenue in late Oc-tober 2010.Investigators seizedabout$22,000
incash, 70diamonds,numerous sil-verandgoldcoins, riflesandahand-gun. Tina’s mother, Rita Ephrem,who said she’s lived in the home formore than 30 years, went to courtto retrieve the firearms, saying theybelonged to her late husband. Shesaid the cash, found in money bagsindifferent bedrooms, coins anddi-amonds were hers. She said stash-ing cash in bags in the home is notunusual for members of the Gypsycommunity.At the time of the search, Rita
Ephremtolddetectivesherdaughterdidn’t live there and described Tinaas the“black sheep”of the familybe-cause Tina Ephrem had a daughterout of wedlock.“I never got along with her,” Rita
Ephrem testified. “We had no rela-tionship with her.”
In May, Tina Ephrem pleadedguilty to three counts of first-degreeaggravated theft. As part of a pleadeal, she promised to repay the twoelderlymenby the timeshewassen-tenced.“I cheated the victims out oftheirmoneyasalleged,” shewrote inaMay 16 plea agreement.
Another family memberPentheny dug into Tina Ephrem’s
past and quickly learned that shewasn’t the only one in her family ac-cused of fraud.InMarch,TimEphrem,Tina’s sec-
ond cousin and father of her child,was charged in King County,Wash.,
with fourcountsoffirst-degree theft,stemming from a similar alleged fi-nancial exploitation scheme. He’dpreviously been convicted of theftin Pierce County,Wash.Between 2005 and 2009, Wash-
ington resident Frederick “Smokey”Basler said, he gave Tim Ephrem,42, varying sums of money, upto $2.3 million, to pay off what hethought were legal fees stemmingfrom a probate estate relating toEphrem’s deceased father. In ex-change, Tim Ephrem promisedBasler a third of the estate’s assets,reportedlyworthabout$500million.WhenBasler didn’t receive anythingandTimEphremsuddenlyvanished,Basler contacted a lawyer and lawenforcement.Basler first met Tim Ephrem in
1999,whenBaslerboughta truck forhis electric business from him afteranswering anewspaper ad.By 2005,they’d become friendly. Basler andhis wife had met Tim and Tina fordinner several times, andvisited theEphrems’ 6,000-square-foot homewith its circular driveway, indoorpool and baby grand piano, outsideTacoma.Ephrem’sextravaganthomeconvinced Basler that Ephrem had,indeed, come into an inheritance.NowBasler, 64, is stunnedbyhow
hewas taken.“Wedon’t haveour re-tirementanymore,”hesaid.“I’mnota stupid person, and I’musually nota gullible person. I look back on it,and I just can’t believe it.”Meanwhile, Tim’s mother, Lizzie
Stevens, faces federal indictment inU.S. District Court in Portland, ac-cused of theft of government fundsandSocialSecurity fraud.AuthoritiesdiscoveredthatStevenshad$900,000in a safe deposit box at Vancouver’sFirst Independent Bank, while shewas collecting supplemental secu-rity income and Medicare over a20-year period, according to courtpapers. She’s pleaded not guilty tothe charges.AfterTinaEphrem’sarrest, Stevens
wrote $340,000 in cashier’s checksto Tina Ephrem in December 2010—money Ephrem’s attorney placedin a client trust account to be usedto pay legal costs or restitution tovictims. But Stevens later instructedTina Ephrem’s lawyer, JacobWiesel-man, that the money was hers, andnot to be used byTina.The attorneyhadamediator settle thecompetingclaims to themoney.SevendaysbeforeEphrem’ssched-
uledAug. 30 sentencing,hermothershowed up at Hulen’s door, accord-ing to a civil complaint.Rita Ephrem pleaded with Hu-
len to drop the charges against her
daughter.Themother returnedtohishouse thenext twomornings, speak-ing withHulen and Paddock.They wouldn’t see a dime if
her daughter went to prison, RitaEphremwarned them, according toacivil complaintHulenandPaddockfiled in court.If they dropped the charges, Rita
Ephrem promised she’d make surethey got theirmoney back.On Aug. 30, Multnomah County
Judge John A.Wittmayer sentencedTinaEphremto15months inprisonafterherattorneyhanded theprose-cutor twochecks totaling$180,800 topay back Ephrem’s two victims.PaddockandHulendidn’tobject to
the plea deal, but that doesn’tmeanthey support it, their attorney, ErinOlson, told the judge.“My clients have worked their
whole lives.They served their coun-try, and they worked hard for theirmoney,” Olson said. “They earnedthedignityandrespect that she thenstole from them, and this court can’timpose restitution for that.”Wittmayer pressed Ephrem on
why she did what she did. Throughtears, sheanswered,“I’msorry” threetimes. Frustrated, the judge contin-ued, “You want to answer my ques-tion?”Ephrem, who in depositions said
she never had a job, never went toschoolanddoesn’tknowhowtoread,finallymuttered shehadagamblingproblem, something investigatorsand theprosecutor hadn’t heardbe-fore.“Do you think of yourself as a
thief?” the judge asked.Meekly, Ephrem said, “Yes.”“That’sexactlywhatyouare,”Witt-
mayer responded. “You victimizedthesepeople for yourownpurposes.There’s no justification for that.”Sheriff ’s deputies handcuffed
Ephrem and started to lead her outof the courtroom to prison. Baslersaid he traveled from his home inKent,Wash., toattendthesentencingjust “to see her walk away in hand-cuffs.”“We were totally embarrassed by
it,” Basler said. “These people needto be stopped.”AsTina was led out, Rita Ephrem,
who 10 months earlier had told in-vestigators she had no relationshipwith her daughter, approached.Thedeputies told themother tokeepherdistance.“Whatare yougoing todo tome?”
she asked, adding that they’ve al-ready taken her baby.
•Maxine Bernstein: [email protected]
ConContinued from Page One
Other resourcesMultnomah County AdultProtective Services:503-988-4450
Portland police elder crimesand vulnerable adult unit:503-823-0950
Washington County HumanServices, Seniors and Peoplewith Disability Office:503-640-3489
Washington County Elder Safe:503-846-6048
Clackamas County, AdultProtective Services:971-673-6655
The statewide, 24-hour AdultProtective Serviceshotline: 800-232-3020
Are you a victim?Anyone who may have hadcontact with Tina or Tim Ephrem,or been a victim of a similarfinancial scam, is encouraged tocall Multnomah County DetectiveJay Pentheny at 503-988-4450.
110cases of elder financial abuse
prosecuted in Multnomah County
$3 millionin restitution ordered
$500,000recovered
555total complaints in 2010
6:30 a.m.:On-site registration atWaterfront Park (near Taylor Street)7:45 a.m.: Chip-timed co-ed 5K run8:10 a.m.: Untimed co-ed 5K run8:30 a.m.: Untimed 1-mile walk8:40 a.m.: Untimed women’s 5K run9 a.m.: Untimed 5K walk7-11 a.m.: Survivor City (near MorrisonBridge inside Waterfront Park)8-11 a.m.: Entertainment (main stage)10:45 a.m.: Survivor tribute (main stage)
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATIONPlan your trip atwww.trimet.org.Regular fares apply.
OTHER EVENTSSail for the Cure is Sunday, Sept. 25.Festivities include a family-friendly sailon the Columbia River and a reception,music, the Wall of Wine and the treasurechest raffle at the Portland Yacht Club.For more information, go towww.sailforthecureoregon.net.
Row for the Cure is Sunday, Oct. 2,beginning at 7 a.m. Station L RowingClub (stationlrowingclub.com) is the host.Check regattacentral.com for details.
Sleep in for the Cure is for those whowant to participate and receive an officialrace T-shirt, but won’t be there on raceday. To register, go to komenoregon.org.
SISTERS STRUGGLE WITH KNOWLEDGE OF CANCER RISK by Tatiana Sanchez
My favorite story of the summer was one I wrote toward the end of my term at The Oregonian. I cared a lot about this story because I cared a lot about my characters; they had a truly unique story and as a journalist, it was my desire to tell it in a compelling and memorable way. Sisters Erin and Courtney share a deadly gene that puts them at an extremely high risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Though only one sister has been diagnosed with cancer, both Erin and Courtney had mastectomies done on each of their breasts. My interview with them proved to be remarkably moving and inspiring-just being in their presence was a very significant experience for me. I know I will remember them for many years to come. It was amazing to see how these women picked up the pieces of their lives after discovering that they had the BRCA gene. The story was to be a feature for The Oregonian’s Race for the Cure section. Though my interview with the sisters was so easy because of their openness, the writing process was extremely difficult for me. Erin and Courtney had a beautiful story, but it was as complicated as it was beautiful. There were so many layers and factors to their story that I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to properly convey everything they had shared with me during the interview. I was afraid I wouldn’t do it justice. And so I devoted much time and energy to the writing process. I reviewed several drafts with my editor and we felt that the simpler the story, the better. To make it a bit less complex, I organized it in chapters. The story went on to become an A1 centerpiece for September 18, the day of Portland’s Race for the Cure. My goal with all the stories I write is to create a piece that I will be proud of when I read it in its entirety- I definitely accomplished this with Erin and Courtney’s story. This article, which originally ran on September 18, 2011, has been reproduced in its entirety on our website with permission from The Oregonian.
