An Act To Establish an Elder Victims Restitution Fund
Maine Legislature, Session 125, LD 0787
Committee: Criminal Justice and Public Safety
Sponsors: BURNS, MASON, BICKFORD, PLUMMER, ROSEN, TILTON, GERZOFSKY, WHITTEMORE
Amends: 18-A MRSA §2, 34-A MRSA §1214-A

Legislative Document 
No. 787 
H.P. 594 
House of Representatives, March 1, 2011 
An Act To Establish an Elder Victims Restitution Fund 
Reference to the Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety suggested and ordered 
printed. 
HEATHER J.R. PRIEST 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative BURNS of Whiting. 
Cosponsored by Senator MASON of Androscoggin and 
Representatives: BICKFORD of Auburn, PLUMMER of Windham, ROSEN of Bucksport, 
TILTON of Harrington, Senators: GERZOFSKY of Cumberland, WHITTEMORE of 
Somerset. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  18-A MRSA §2-105, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 540, §1, is amended to 
read: 
§2-105.  No taker 
If there is no taker under the provisions of this Article, the intestate estate passes to 
the State, except that an amount of funds included in the estate up to the total amount of 
restitution paid to the decedent pursuant to a court order for a crime of which the 
decedent was the victim passes to the Elder Victims Restitution Fund established in Title 
34-A, section 1214-A to be used to compensate elderly victims of financial crimes. 
Sec. 2.  18-A MRSA §2-803, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 540, §1, is amended to 
read: 
§2-803.  Effect of criminal conviction on intestate succession, wills, joint assets, life 
insurance and beneficiary designations 
(a).    A surviving spouse, heir or devisee who feloniously and intentionally kills the 
decedent is not entitled to any benefits under the will or under this Article, and the estate 
of decedent passes as if the killer had predeceased the decedent.  Property appointed by 
the will of the decedent to or for the benefit of the killer passes as if the killer had 
predeceased the decedent. 
(b).    Any joint tenant who feloniously and intentionally kills another joint tenant 
thereby effects a severance of the interest of the decedent so that the share of the decedent 
passes as his the decedent's property and the killer has no rights by survivorship. This 
provision applies to joint tenancies in real and personal property, joint and multiple-party 
accounts in banks, savings and loan associations, credit unions and other institutions, and 
any other form of coownership with survivorship incidents. 
(c).    A named beneficiary of a bond, life insurance policy, or other contractual 
arrangement who feloniously and intentionally kills the principal obligee or the person 
upon whose life the policy is issued is not entitled to any benefit under the bond, policy or 
other contractual arrangement, and it becomes payable as though the killer had 
predeceased the decedent. 
(d).    Any other acquisition of property or interest by the killer shall must be treated 
in accordance with the principles of this section. 
(e).    A final judgment of conviction of felonious and intentional killing is conclusive 
for purposes of this section. In the absence of a conviction of felonious and intentional 
killing a Court may determine by clear and convincing evidence whether the killing was 
felonious and intentional for purposes of this section. 
(f).    This section does not affect the rights of any person who, before rights under 
this section have been adjudicated, purchases from the killer for value and without notice 
property which that the killer would have acquired except for this section, but the killer is 
liable for the amount of the proceeds or the value of the property. Any insurance 
company, bank, or other obligor making payment according to the terms of its policy or 
obligation is not liable by reason of this section unless prior to payment it has received at 
its home office or principal address written notice of a claim under this section. 
(g).  A person who has been convicted of a crime of which the decedent was a victim 
may not benefit under the will or under this Article; benefit from property owned jointly 
with the decedent; benefit under a bond, life insurance policy or other contractual 
arrangement in which the principal obligee or the person upon whose life the policy is 
issued is the decedent; or benefit from any other acquisition of property in which the 
decedent had an interest to the extent that an acquisition of property or interest by the 
offender does not exceed the amount of restitution owed to the decedent by that person as 
a result of the sentence for the crime. 
Sec. 3.  34-A MRSA §1214-A is enacted to read: 
§1214-A.  Elder Victims Restitution Fund 
The Elder Victims Restitution Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is 
established for the purpose of compensating elder victims of financial crimes. 
1.  Definition.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the 
term "elder victim" means a victim of a crime who is 65 years of age or older. 
2.  Administration.  The Victim Services Coordinator under section 1214 shall 
administer the fund. All administrative costs of the fund must be absorbed by the 
department. 
3.  Funding.  Money collected pursuant to Title 18-A, section 2-105 must be 
deposited into the fund. The fund may also receive private donations, federal funds and 
state funds designated by law. 
4.  Use.  The fund may be used for the payment of claims of elder victims of financial 
crimes who are entitled to receive restitution from offenders as a result of the sentences 
for the crimes in cases in which those offenders are not meeting their restitution 
obligations. 
5.  Rules.  The commissioner may adopt rules, which are routine technical rules 
pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A, to carry out the purposes of this section. 
SUMMARY 
This bill establishes the Elder Victims Restitution Fund to compensate elder victims 
of financial crimes who are entitled to receive restitution from offenders but who are not 
receiving that restitution. The fund receives money from estates passing to the State of 
people who received restitution. The bill provides that a person who has been convicted 
of a crime of which a decedent was a victim may not benefit under the will of that 
decedent or by virtue of property held jointly with the decedent or contracts concerning 
the decedent to the extent of restitution owed by the person who has been convicted of a 
crime.