A life-long resident of Throggs Neck who was found wandering the streets after either being kicked out of or leaving her home is getting the medial treatment she needs.
Geraldine Panattieri left her Edison Avenue house after she sold it for $10 to man that she befriended, is undergoing psychiatric treatment at Jacobi Hospital. Panattieri had lived in the house her entire life.
According to lawyer Steve Kaufman, Panattieri is likely suffering from some form of mental illness and he would like to get back the house that she sold, so she can pay for an assisted living facility.
“She is in Jacobi Hospital undergoing treatment,” Kaufman said. “When she gets out of the hospital she needs to have someone appointed guardian ad litem so that this person can file a lawsuit on her behalf [indicating] that she was not competent to execute the conveyance [selling the house].”
Kaufman said that the ideal situation would be to get back the house from the man she sold it to, Joseph Lillard. It could then be sold at full market value, using the proceeds to fund her continued stay at an assisted living facility.
“She is worth whatever the house is worth,” Kaufman said. “She could probably live comfortably in an assisted living facility for 20 or 30 years.”
Kaufman brought Legal Aid into in her case, and said that the city has become more responsive to her needs. According to neighbors, Lillard is currently living in Panattieri’s former home with a child and an unidentified woman.
Kathy Ziegler of Alpert and Kaufman did a lot of work on Panattieri’s behalf, and got both Legal Aid and Adult Protective Services involved in her case. Ziegler even put Panattieri up for a night at a motel to get her off of the street.
“Legal Aid is working to document that she was not in her right mind when she signed the document [selling the house,]” Ziegler said.
