A Pennsylvania man is facing multiple felony charges for allegedly stealing more than $3.7 million from the estate of an elderly woman suffering from dementia, spending the funds on luxury goods and personal expenses.
James Batt, 66, was arrested after an investigation revealed he had taken millions from the accounts of Alice Lineman, who died at age 92 on Aug. 29, 2019, the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office announced on Wednesday.
Batt had been appointed as both executor and trustee of Lineman’s estate and was also one of the largest beneficiaries, set to inherit 45 percent of her assets.
The alleged thefts first came to light when two of Lineman’s relatives, who were also beneficiaries, filed a lawsuit in Montgomery County Orphans Court. They claimed Batt had failed to disperse Lineman’s funds as required by her will.
In March 2023, Judge Lois E. Murphy removed Batt as trustee of Lineman’s living trust and ordered him to appear in court and turn over estate assets. Batt refused to comply with the order. Judge Murphy found him in contempt of court in 2023 and again in March 2025, at which point she issued a warrant for his arrest and referred the case to prosecutors.
Investigators found that Batt, who was a friend of Lineman’s, knew that Lineman suffered from senile dementia and needed a live-in aide.
The DA’s office said he allegedly used Lineman’s finances for his own benefit both before and after her death. Prior to Lineman’s death, Batt allegedly made $30,003 in personal purchases on Lineman’s American Express account, changing the mailing address for the account to his own residence, and adding his significant other as an authorized user. He also withdrew $884,743 from Lineman’s Wells Fargo account and $156,068 from her Morgan Stanley account before she died.
After Lineman died, between 2019 and 2022, Batt allegedly wrote 139 checks to himself from Lineman’s Wells Fargo account, totaling $592,400. He also made additional charges, transfers, and wrote checks from her Morgan Stanley account, totaling $1,384,435. Additionally, he is accused of making transactions totaling $490,632 on the American Express account after she died.
The total amount of unauthorized transactions from Lineman’s accounts before and after her death was $3,715,318. Investigators found that much of the money was spent on traveling, hotels, gourmet restaurants, theater tickets, wine and spirits, shopping at high-end stores, and plastic surgery.
With the exception of a single $150,000 payment to a beneficiary named in Lineman’s will, Batt did not distribute the estate as directed by Lineman or as required under Pennsylvania law.
“This defendant took advantage of an elderly woman suffering from senile dementia by stealing more than $3.7 million from her and from her estate, thereby draining the assets available to Ms. Lineman, her estate and her heirs,” said District Attorney Kevin R. Steele. “Through our prosecution of this egregious crime, we will hold Batt accountable for living extravagantly on money that should have gone to Ms. Lineman’s family.”
Batt is charged with multiple felonies, including financial exploitation of an older adult, theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, misapplication of entrusted property, and theft by failure to make required dispositions. He was arraigned on April 21 before Magisterial District Judge Dara A. Nasatir, who set bail at $99,000 cash.
At a bail review hearing, Judge Wendy G. Rothstein left the bail unchanged and added a provision to ensure Batt could not use funds from Lineman’s estate to post bail. Batt was unable to make bail and was taken to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 6 before Magisterial District Judge Katherine E. McGill. The case will be prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Gwendolyn Kull, Captain of the Economic Crimes Unit.
