Prosecutors on Wednesday afternoon dismissed an elder-abuse and embezzlement case against 66-year-old Bolinas resident Martha Wax, who was accused last year of allegedly pursing over $200,000 from her mother, Charlotte Speight, between 2009 and 2014. Ms. Wax was held for eight days in county jail following her arrest, which occurred just three weeks after her mother’s death on her 96th birthday. Her attorney, James Sutton of Stinson Beach, called the case an act of overzealousness on the part of investigators who failed to understand the close relationship between Ms. Wax and her mother that led the two to share a bank account. He referenced a letter from a friend in North Carolina who wrote that a Marin County Sheriff’s Office investigator had misrepresented statements made in an interview and included in a police report. “The whole thing was not carefully investigated,” Mr. Sutton said. “The sought to build a case, so they ignored lingering questions.” In an email to the Light, Deputy District Attorney Geoff Iida disavowed any inaccuracies. “The case ultimately was dismissed because of a lack of evidence to prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that Ms. Wax committed this crime,” he wrote. “We by no means believe Ms. Wax is innocent; the dismissal is based on a lack of evidence to overcome this high burden of proof.” Outside the courtroom on Wednesday, Ms. Wax expressed conflicting feelings of relief, sadness and frustration. She also said she felt support from friends who knew her as a caring daughter. “The main thing, for me, is my mom and how we were unusually close,” she said. “We were like sisters. She was my mentor and role model and the person I have loved more than anyone in my life.” According to court records, Ms. Speight—who suffered from dementia and legal blindness—had appointed her daughter as caretaker prior to her removal from Bolinas in 2013 by Marin County Health and Human Services, which allegedly discovered disquieting home conditions in which Ms. Speight was kept while in her daughter’s care. Ms. Speight lived in a trio of elder care facilities before her death in 2015. During that time, the county assumed conservatorship over her estate and denied Ms. Wax access to the joint account. The county also secured a restraining order against Ms. Wax to prevent the possibility of her mother’s removal from elder care facilities. Mr. Sutton said the pair had agreed to change their spending patterns to enjoy their latter years, which he said explained why investigators found that over $66,000 in cash had been withdrawn from a joint account between 2009 and 2013, including over $33,000 during a five-month period in 2013. Mr. Iida, however, maintained that there was no written documentation of any arrangement granting Ms. Wax full access to her mother’s money. “As to the spending pattern, the only witnesses on that issue were Ms. Wax herself and her friends, who possibly benefitted from the spending pattern,” he wrote. Mr. Sutton stated that Ms. Wax retained ownership of her mother’s Bolinas home, contrary to court records. He produced letters of support for Ms. Wax from friends and a Coastal Health Alliance physician. “The agreement between them was never violated,” he said. “That’s the whole point.”