Fired California nanny refuses to leave former employer's home

UPLAND, Calif., June 27 (UPI) -- A woman in California who was fired from her live-in nanny job for refusing to work is now also refusing to leave her former employer's house and threatening to sue the family she briefly cared for.

"The first few weeks she was awesome," Marcella Bracamonte told ABC News. "She would come places with us, help out the kids. She was really great."

But eventually 64-year-old Diane Stretton stopped working, spending all day in her bedroom, only emerging when Bracamonte was serving meals.

"She wouldn't do anything," Marcela told CBS Los Angeles. "She would stay in her room 90 percent of the day. I really did try to work with her. She would just sit in her room all day."

"So I told her, you either have to perform or you gotta leave."

Eventually the Bracamontes served Stretton a written ultimatum, demanding she fulfill her responsibilities or get out. Stretton refused to sign that letter and a subsequent letter informing her of 30 days notice for termination. "When I asked her why she wouldn't sign the letter she said 'It's not legal,' and slammed the door in my face," Bracamonte said.

"Once she said the word legal, I knew it wasn't going to be fun."

Bracamonte called the police, but they told her it was a civil matter, explaining to reporters "generally, once somebody has established residency, you have to go through a formal eviction process."

Stretton is threatening to sue the Bracamontes for wrongful firing and elder abuse. Civil litigation is somewhat of a hobby for Stretton, as she has reportedly been involved in 36 lawsuits, earning herself a spot on California's Vexatious Litigant Lists for repeatedly abusing the Golden State's legal system.

"I worry there's obviously something not right in her mind, and the police won't protect us until someone gets hurt."