Facing eviction, Burlingame woman dies: Elder abuse lawsuit moves on, attention turns to 97-year-old’s longtime roommate

Her lawyers had just filed a lawsuit against landlord David Kantz on her behalf alleging elder abuse, breach of contract and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Hatch was promised by three generations of landlords that she could remain in her California Drive home until she died.

“She was treated respectfully in the end,” said roommate of 32 years Georgia Rothrock.

Rothrock, too, is now fighting her own legal battle to stave off eviction since she technically subleased a room from Hatch.

Nancy Fineman and Nanci Nishimura, with Cotchett, Pitre and McCarthy, had taken up Hatch’s case free of charge and will not drop the elder abuse claim against Kantz.

“There is no doubt that the callous eviction of Marie Hatch has caused her death,” Nishimura said.

They will also work with Rothrock’s attorneys in her legal battle.

“I’m 85. Let’s be realistic about this. I’m on the verge of needing assisted living myself,” Rothrock said Friday.

Hatch suffered from agoraphobia, was afraid to be left alone and rarely left her home.

“I call myself her trusted companion,” Rothrock said.

Rothrock nicknamed Hatch “Mighty Mouse.”

On Thursday, Hatch went to Rothrock’s bedroom door and told her she needed help. It was about 5 p.m.

“She had shortness of breath,” Rothrock said. Son Gary Hatch, 74, called 911.

She died about three hours later. Hatch’s health declined recently and was told that owner Kantz would be showing up to the home with an appraiser on March 3 — the day she died.

Kantz allegedly inherited the home after a death in the family.

Near the end, Rothrock said Hatch developed a persistent cough and spent most of the day in bed.

“She hadn’t really given up but everything became too much effort for her,” Rothrock said.

The uncertainty about her housing situation worried her and the publicity was a lot to deal with, she said.

“She was more worried about her son than herself,” Rothrock said.

Gary Hatch still works and provided emotional and financial support for his mother until her death. Hatch had also become totally dependent on Rothrock.

“It affected my quality of life too,” she said.

Hatch was restless in sleep in her final days and would wake up in the middle of the night worrying, Rothrock said.

The last book Hatch read was to help calm her and get back to sleep was “Poems to Learn by Heart” by Caroline Kennedy.

Rothrock just returned the book to the Burlingame Public Library a couple days ago.

Attorney Nishimura was by Rothrock’s side Friday as television crews stopped by through the day.

“We are not abandoning Georgia,” Nishimura said. “The elderly should be revered and honored not discarded. We are going to continue to give voice to the Marie Hatch’s of the world.”

Greed, she said, is causing landlords to displace the elderly and those on limited incomes.

And Kantz, she said, lacked a moral compass when he moved evict Hatch.

“He was told that ‘if you proceed against Marie Hatch she will die,’” Nishimura said about a letter sent by a friend to Hatch and his attorney Michael Liberty about the eviction.

An oral contract is just as enforceable as a written contract, Hatch’s attorneys said.

Hatch had been promised that she could live in the house for life based upon a decades-old contract with Vivian Kroeze but the estranged husband of Kroeze’s granddaughter, Kantz, started eviction proceedings initially just before the holidays.

Rothrock must vacate the home by April 17.

Neither Kantz nor Liberty could be reached for comment Friday.

Hatch’s story received national attention and an online campaign generated more than $45,000 to support her. It is unclear how those funds will be used now, however.

bill@smdailyjournal.com

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