Dianne Feinstein, 90, accuses trustees of her late husband’s estate of financial abuse by denying her funds as she calls for them to be suspended

Senator Dianne Feinstein accused the trustees of her late husband’s estate of financial elder abuse, asked to be removed from office and accused them of improperly enriching his three daughters financially.

The lawsuit was filed August 8 in California Superior Court in San Francisco County by the senator’s daughter, Katherine Feinstein, who has power of attorney for her.

The 90-year-old Democratic senator from California has suffered ill health over the past year, including a case of shingles that kept her away from the Senate for a month. She also fell at her home in San Francisco last week and was briefly hospitalized.

Feinstein and her late husband, Richard Blum, married in 1980 and lived together until Blum’s death in early 2022.

The lawsuit alleges that the trustees committed “financial abuse” of Feinstein by “falsely withholding benefits to which (her late husband’s trust) entitles her in bad faith and by diverting assets they should have used to” to fund the senator’s confidence.

The application was first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.

Feinstein gave her daughter a power of attorney on July 23 to allow Katherine Feinstein to act as her litigation representative, the indictment said.

She has filed three lawsuits — in June, July and August — against the trustees for trying to access her late husband’s assets.

Steven Braccini, the attorney representing co-trustees Michael Klein and Marc Scholvinck, previously told the Chronicle that they have “never denied any payout to Senator Feinstein.”

But Feinsteint’s latest lawsuit says, “The trustees have not responded to requests for disbursements, which is a de facto denial.”

Klein says Feinstein will receive $125,000 each quarter in response to her June lawsuit.

Blum was reportedly a billionaire at the time of his death. Feinstein is also wealthy independently, separate from her husband’s finances.

The lawsuit also alleges that the trustees improperly “funded gifts to Blum’s daughters or canceled their debts” before giving Feinstein what the trust dictated she should receive.

Each of Blum’s three daughters will inherit at least $22 million after Feinstein’s death, according to his trust, if the money is available.

Senator Dianne Feinstein, 90, has had health problems and missed three months in the Senate earlier this year after contracting shingles

Senator Dianne Feinstein with her husband Richard Blum in March 2009

Feinstein’s daughter Katherine (above) has power of attorney over her mother

Braccini told the paper that the trustees “have acted ethically and appropriately at all times; the same cannot be said of Katherine Feinstein. This report is unconscionable. The trustees have always respected Senator Feinstein and always will. But this has nothing to do with her needs and everything to do with her daughter’s greed.”

Feinstein’s July lawsuit said she was denied access to Blum’s assets to pay for “significant medical expenses” following a bout with shingles. Feinstein is covered by Medicare and the DC Health Link, which offers health plans for members of Congress.

The senator was diagnosed with the shingles virus in late February and hospitalized in early March. She was absent from the Senate for three months and was still dealing with medical complications.

A hearing for the June case is scheduled for Monday and the July case is scheduled for September 5.

Concerns have been raised about how Feinstein’s health will affect her ability to perform her duties as a senator.

She has faced calls to resign — even from her fellow Democrats — amid her health concerns and concerns that her absence could get in the way of confirmations from President Joe Biden’s judges. She sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which conducts the confirmation hearings.

Several female legislators supported her, calling it sexist to ask Feinstein — a trailblazing female lawmaker — to resign when many white men have served in the Senate until their deaths.

But she has stumbled on Capitol Hill in her days back. At the end of July, she had to be told to “just say yes” when voting for a defense bill during an armed forces price hike.

When asked to vote “yes” or “no,” she went on a bizarre tirade instead.

“I would support a yes vote on this. It brings in $823 billion…” she said. Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., leaned over and whispered, “Just say yes.”

“Yes,” said Feinstein.

Feinstein has said she will not be seeking re-election next year and several Democrats have already entered the primary to replace her, including three House Democrats: Representatives Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. Businessman Eric Early is on the Republican side.

She is the fifth oldest person to serve in the Senate. Strom Thurmond, the segregationist Democrat turned Republican, was the oldest and longest-serving senator ever: he was 100 when he retired in January 2003 after 48 years in office.

She is also one of the richest: Feinstein is worth an estimated $58 million, according to the Los Angeles Times.