Las Vegas hoarder taken into custody for his own protection

What does it say when your family wants you behind bars for your own safety?

Sun City Summerlin hoarder Kenneth Epstein was taken into custody for his own protection on six misdemeanor counts Friday at the urging of family members worried about his health and safety, fearful he would enter the house while it's being fumigated.

The family also is considering whether he needs to be institutionalized for his own good, according to Las Vegas City Councilman Stavros Anthony. Epstein was to be taken to University Medical Center, then to the Las Vegas Detention Center, where he would undergo a psychiatric evaluation that would take nearly 72 hours.

That would be long enough to keep him away from the home while it is fumigated today and Sunday.

Starting this morning, a tent will be placed over the entire duplex and the four storage containers with the items he wants to keep to decontaminate everything. Next week, a contractor will remove the contaminated drywall, insulation, duct work, electrical outlet boxes, flooring, windows and window frames. Essentially, the house will be gutted.

His family was worried that during the process of decontamination, Epstein, 55, who has been sleeping on the patio and had refused to leave, might re-enter his home.

Anthony said the decision was made "to take Mr. Epstein into custody for his own protection."

Powerful fumigants are used, and "the family told us if we leave Mr. Epstein out there, he could go in and could get sick and possibly die."

The city started the cleanup process Oct. 5 after my Sept. 28 column about the Sun City Summerlin home with stuff piled up in the front courtyard and back patio. None of the neighbors had any idea that inside was one of the worst hoarding cases ever seen in Las Vegas.

Anthony, a former police officer, visited Epstein Sept. 29 and said he had a hunch this was not a normal city code problem. Legal steps were taken to enter the home with a multi-jurisdictional task force. That is when the full extent of the hoarding was realized.

The family said Epstein has been a hoarder for about 30 years, "and this is the 12th house he's destroyed," Anthony said.

A cousin, who asked not to be identified by name, told me the family wants Epstein to get help. "To be honest the real victims here are the people in the neighborhood and specifically the co-owner of the duplex," the relative said.

The cousin said Epstein was raised in small towns in upstate New York near the border of Pennsylvania. Once these problems started, Epstein's mother was not strong enough to control them. After his mother's death several years ago, Epstein's hoarding became worse. The cousin has no idea whether there was some trauma about 30 years ago that launched the hoarding.

"One idea we had was to buy a place in Pahrump where he could hoard 'til the world ends," the cousin said in an interview. Instead, Epstein remained in the Sun City Summerlin home he had shared with his mother.

"This is not an isolated incident, Kenny has had this problem for many years," the cousin wrote me. "He has had mental issues for many years and prior to his Mother passing, she would bail him out time and time again for the same problem."

The misdemeanor charges against him are the following:

■ One count of failure to register a pistol found inside the home.

■ Two counts of public nuisance.

■ One count of unjustifiable injury to animals. Authorities found 55 cats - 40 live and 15 dead. To date, 19 were euthanized.

■ One count of failure to have a cat fanciers licence required to have more than three cats in the city.

■ One count of violation of the city's fire code.

Some 44 truckloads of contaminated items were taken from the home at 9517 Gold Bank Drive. Among the items hauled away as too contaminated to salvage were two dishwashers, two stoves and six refrigerators, all taken from the home.

Among the health issues were rotting food, roaches, drywall contaminated by cat urine and rodents. No human feces have been found, and one bathroom was found in usable condition.

One unusual aspect of his hoarding is that stuff was packed floor to ceiling, and Epstein had to crawl atop the materials in a crawl space about 12 to 15 inches high to move around the house. Usually hoarders create narrow paths to move around.

Meanwhile, City Attorney Brad Jerbic is working with the family to see about obtaining long-term care for Epstein. Otherwise, the worry is that he will just return to hoarding and his problem will intensify.

Anthony, who represents the area, said Epstein has refused offers of help from health and mental health officials.

He will be billed for the costs of the cleanup, which is already in the "tens of thousands," according to the councilman. If Epstein fails to pay, the city will apply a lien to his house. Any reconstruction will be his responsibility.

The Summerlin Master Community Association and the sub-association Eagle Valley Homeowners Association have been taking heat for not acting on the exterior mess outside the home which were in violation of HOA standards.

He was fined but paid the fines and continued to hoard. Meanwhile, the smaller association with 38 duplex homes asked the master for help yet didn't get it.

Sue Papilion, president of the master association board, explained HOAs can fine, and if they're not paid, place liens, but HOAs have no ability to enter the home. She believes the developer did Sun City Summerlin no favors by creating one master and multiple small associations, some of which, like Eagle Valley, don't have the resources to hire an attorney when there is a persistent problem.

Although the HOAs were aware of the problem for two years, possibly more, they didn't take the allowable action to hold a hearing and then hire someone to clean up the exterior, which they could have done. And should have done.

Anthony defended the efforts of code enforcement, which since 2007 had investigated Epstein eight times, nine if you count this massive cleanup. "Code enforcement did the best job with the resources they have," he said. But each time, Epstein would briefly comply and then resume hoarding.

When the cleanup is finished, Anthony said city officials will discuss what they learned from this experience. What are the conditions where a task force might be needed? What protocols should be adopted in severe cases? How does the city distinguish between a compulsive hoarder and an ordinary code violation?

In Epstein's case, the fact he was riding a bike and taking stuff from neighbors' trash and recycle bins might have been a clue. Another clue, the foul smells wafting from the house.

The task force working on this situation included not just city officials from code, fire, animal control and neighborhood services, but also officials from the state, the health district, police and a private contractor. The state's Adult Mental Health Service also was present.

Depending on what happens to Epstein's mental state, that may be another learning process for officials, who understand he's not choosing to hoard, he's driven to hoard.

Jane Ann Morrison's column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Email her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call her at (702) 383-0275. She also blogs at lvrj.com/blogs/Morrison