JUSTICE FOR JAMES UPDATE:

“Scott Sheen knowingly represented a pedophile in FAMILY COURT, Julie Pirtle knowingly advocated for a PEDOPHILE to receive full custody, JUDGE JOHN G DALTON knowingly gave FULL CUSTODY to a PEDOPHILE, JUDGE RENAE CRUZ knowingly FORCED me into a 50/50 agreement with a PEDOPHILE. THIS IS SICK!!!! They all knew the ONLY REASON THOMAS JERRY BIEL WASNT CHARGED AND PUT ON A SEX OFFENDER REGISTRY was due to a 3 year statute.”

UPDATE

Finally today we have some clarity and answers. The Father of my daughter is a sick deranged pedophile, all the content on this hard drive was his. The material greatly concerned the prosecutor assigned to the case, 5 of the images, no longer 3 were considered child pornography. The ONLY REASON my ex was not charged with child pornography is due to the fact that there is a 3 year statute in IL regarding photographs, this extends to the attorney general. This pornography was all confirmed to be my exes. All the little girls who’s privates were exposed or were in just their underwear were APPARENT PREPUBESCENT

The post ILLINOIS: “Judge John G. Dalton Knowingly Gave Full Custody to a Pedophile” appeared first on Fighter Cries.

Never Miss A Story

Subscribe to Journal Star Subscribe Now

By Phil Luciano
Journal Star
Posted Jul 11, 2020 at 2:32 PM   

PEKIN — In an extraordinary and scathing court order, a Tazewell County judge admonished the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and one of its contracted providers in a child-welfare case.

FamilyCore, a Peoria-based organization that has done social-service work for more than 100 years, was removed from the case — an extremely rare judicial intervention — after acting “recklessly” and being “grossly negligent,” according to the order. Further, the judge faulted FamilyCore’s “entire chain of command” and lambasted DFCS’s “cavalier attitude.”

The order suggests that FamilyCore is at risk from being removed from more child-welfare cases.

“Without substantial systemic corrective processes being undertaken, it appears that Family Core’s actions and inactions as brought out in this case may warrant their removal from all active juvenile abuse and neglect cases in Tazewell County,” Judge James Mack wrote in his May 22 order.

The case’s entire history is unclear. But child-welfare cases generally arise via two scenarios:

‒ After an alleged crime, such as criminal abuse by a parent, that prompts state intervention for the safety of a minor.

‒ After a credible report to the DCFS alleging neglect or abuse of a child.

In either situation, a county’s state’s attorney takes civil action on behalf of a minor, often seeking counseling, alternative housing or other intervention. Meantime, the child is represented by an attorney known as a guardian ad litem, while parents can choose to be represented by a lawyer, either private counsel or a public defender.

From hearings and documents, a judge weighs all parties’ information before determining any intervention services, which are conducted and monitored by the DCFS and/or a contracted provider. Such services can change and develop as a case moves forward.

By state law, child-welfare cases are largely kept out of the public eye, to protect the privacy of minors. Such court files are not open to public view, and court officers are prohibited from discussing such cases publicly outside a court proceeding. As such, State’s Attorney Stewart Umholtz did not return a Journal Star call for comment about the case.

However, the order by Judge Mack was obtained by the Journal Star. The order does not sketch out the entire case, nor does it specify the age or gender of the minor. But it does reveal that the minor had been physically abused by their mother and by “multiple paramours of the mother.” The minor was involved in a “juvenile and abuse case” in 2016, the same year the minor was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, the order says.

The minor, who suffers from nightmares, had what the order calls a “psychiatric event” in 2019, the same year the current case began. The minor has been in foster care, during which time the minor at times lacked mental-health “medication refills,” the order says. Apparently, the minor is now in the care of a relative.

After the case was initiated last year, FamilyCore was named as the legal custodian of the minor.

Started in 1900, FamilyCore and its 80-plus employees work with schools, courts and other agencies in Peoria, Tazewell and Woodford County. The not-for-profit, which had an operating budget of $5.8 million last year, offers services that include adoption, counseling and child welfare. In the latter regard, FamilyCore is one of multiple providers sometimes contracted to act on behalf of the DCFS in neglect and abuse cases..

FamilyCore’s website touts that the organization’s credentials with the Council on Accreditation of Services: “Accreditation assures you and our community that FamilyCore demonstrates effective management and provides high levels of service, quality community programs, knowledgeable personnel and safe, accessible facilities.”

The site also says that the organization last year “touched over 15,719 lives in the area.” It’s unclear of the number of active DCFS cases involving FamilyCore in Peoria, Tazwell or Woodford counties.

On April 20, the guardian ad litem in the Tazewell County case filed a motion called “Emergency Motion to Remove Agency,” referring to FamilyCore. A hearing was held May 7, at which multiple FamilyCore employees were called to testify. The judge’s order recounts some of that testimony in addressing allegations of the motion.

Included among the judge’s findings, including quote from the judge’s order:

‒ The minor’s caseworker, a relative new hire by FamilyCore, gave testimony that “was not credible.”

‒ When a minor in a child-welfare case has a court-granted visit by an adult, caseworkers routinely prepare a visitation log to document the interaction. As part of the hearing in this case, the court wanted to review the log regarding a Dec. 15 visit between the minor and their mom. However, the caseworker provided one log, while a DCFS attorney provided a different log. The caseworker “had no credible explanation for the disparity.” Further, neither log mentioned that the visit was joined by a particular adult male, an omission the judge deemed “disturbing.”

‒ Caseworkers routinely perform what are called home safety checks, to ensure the appropriateness of a minor’s surroundings. The caseworker claimed she performed such a check on April 10, but the judge disagreed: “The court finds this statement … not credible.”

‒ On April 24, in regard to the original motion yet prior to the hearing, the judge ordered the removal of the caseworker from the case. However, she continued to work on the case beyond that date — as known by FamilyCore coworkers, including her supervisor.

‒ The caseworker failed to run proper background checks on adults who were to have interactions with the minor. The caseworker offered excuses for this failure, including placing blame on internet problems, a claim the judge rejected: “This court does not find her credible on the issue.” Further, the judge called the failure to run background checks to be “grossly negligent and obstructed the ability of the court and parties to order/provide timely services to all parties and most importantly to protect the minor.”

‒ The caseworker made “inaccurate statements” in at least one report, while FamilyCore “failed to keep appropriate records of this case as required by DCFS policy and procedure.” Moreover, “FamilyCore failed to correct issues with (the caseworker) even after they had information about her lack of credibility/truthfulness.”

‒ On April 20, the caseworker had invited the minor into her car to take the minor for an unsupervised visit with a potential foster parent — a visit approved by a FamilyCore director. However, the director abruptly stopped the visit after being contacted at the last minute by a representative of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), a group that assists in child-welfare cases in the 10th Judicial Circuit, which includes Tazewell County. The CASA rep reminded the FamilyCore director of the DCFS’s COVID-19 visitation policy, which limits access to minors in child-welfare cases essentially to guardians and immediate family — guidelines that would not include the potential foster parent. The judge took a dim view of the director’s forgetfulness regarding the policy: “This testimony continues to bolster this court’s opinion and concerns about FamilyCore servicing this case and others if a director is not aware of DCFS policy and procedures.”

‒ FamilyCore failed to promptly arrange mental-health help for the minor, whose “issues” had led their removal from school. “FamilyCore failed to properly oversee the mental-health services of the minor,” the judge said. Further, he faulted multiple FamilyCore employees, including its chief executive officer, for not allowing the guardian ad litem and CASA from attending virtual meetings regarding the minor’s mental-health services. That decision “provides evidence that the whole chain command at FamilyCore failed to properly address the minor’s mental health.”

‒ A new caseworker was assigned April 20, but by May 7 had not reviewed the file, an indication of a “failure of FamilyCore to train their employees.”

In overall assessing the case, the judge used harsh language rarely seen in such matters. Regarding FamilyCore, he stated, “The agency failed to follow the Juvenile Act and DCFS police and acted recklessly in handling this case on multiple occasions.” Perhaps most damning, he wrote, “FamilyCore did not make reasonable efforts at any time during this case.”

Further, he upbraided DCFS for not only failing to keep FamilyCore in check, but never showing concern about potentially serious missteps in the case — a position the judge suggested essentially attempted to defend FamilyCore: “The court also finds disturbing the cavalier attitude and argument by DCFS that DCFS policy and regulations are some sort of guidelines and do not need to be strictly followed.”

Sources say FamilyCore’s lapses and transgressions, as outlined in the order, did not cause the minor to suffer immediate ill effects. However, they say, trouble could have arisen, had the judge not intervened.

DCFS did not respond to the Journal Star’s multiple requests for comment.

In removing an agency from a child-welfare case, the judge’s decision stands as almost unheard-of in the 10th Circuit. Further, the order’s language indicates that, should similar motions arise regarding other minors, FamilyCore could be removed from its other Tazewell County cases — there are dozens, if not more — “without systemic corrective processes being undertaken.” The order does not spell out how FamilyCore could perform or prove any such remedies.

To the Journal Star, FamilyCore CEO Ann Lading-Ferguson offered a statement regarding the order:

“While we can’t comment on ongoing legal proceedings (especially considering the confidentiality requirements associated with juvenile cases), what I can tell you is FamilyCore has seized the opportunity to reinforce and improve our processes going forward. For example, we’ve instituted additional regular training sessions with our staff, have beefed up our documentation oversight, and have recommitted to ensuring our reports are both accurate and timely in order to most effectively assist the Court and the parties in juvenile proceedings.

“We feel very excited as an agency to have strengthened our processes and procedures and know we are well-poised to continue our self-assessments and continuous improvement processes going forward. FamilyCore has been serving children and families in the Peoria region for more than 120 years. We were there on Day One when the first juvenile court in Peoria was formed, and we’ll bend over backwards to make sure we continue providing the community with the greatest level of support both now and for years to come.”

Meantime, it’s unclear if the Tazewell County order could reverberate into other counties with cases serviced by FamilyCore. Peoria County State’s Attorney Jodi Hoos declined to discuss the matter.

PHIL LUCIANO is a Journal Star columnist. He can be reached at pluciano@pjstar.com, facebook.com/philluciano and (309) 686-3155. Follow him on Twitter.com/LucianoPhil.

Hello reader, our article commenting that you would normally see here is temporarily shut down. We still want to hear from you, so we invite you to go to our Facebook page or submit a letter to the editor.

The post Luciano: In scathing order, judge faults DCFS and Peoria agency in child-welfare case appeared first on Fighter Cries.

REUTERS ILLUSTRATION/Jason Schneider

Secretive and cozy judicial oversight systems enable judges to subvert accountability in many states. Exhibit A: Oklahoma, where not a single judge was publicly disciplined in 14 years. When the state finally did charge a judge with wrongdoing, he was allowed to resign, his record pristine and his pension intact.

By MICHAEL BERENS and JOHN SHIFFMAN in BARTLESVILLE, OKLAHOMA

Filed July 9, 2020, 10 a.m. GMT

District Court Judge Curtis DeLapp was renowned for his hair-trigger temper. Mispronounce his name, come to court a few seconds late, fail to rise as quickly as he’d like – no slight was too small to set him off.

For almost a dozen years, DeLapp used his power to terrify people who appeared before him, pressing contempt charges against defense attorneys, prosecutors and even a prospective juror who brought children to court when she couldn’t find daycare, court records show.

Another juror was fined $340.70 after she objected to how DeLapp was treating people who appeared before him. “I never want to be a juror or ever go back to court again,” said Carolyn Duffey Love, now 68. “He treated me like a dog.”

In 2015, DeLapp grew incensed when he learned someone had dropped sunflower seeds in his courtroom, according to witnesses. After scouring footage from a courtroom security camera, the judge summoned a spectator to his chambers, charged her with contempt and ordered her jailed for four days.

Local attorneys had grown convinced that DeLapp was violating the state’s judicial conduct code by abusing his authority. But they felt it would be futile to file a complaint with the Oklahoma agency that investigates judicial misconduct, because the state hadn’t filed charges against a judge for misconduct since 2004. The lawyers also say they worried that crossing DeLapp risked retaliation against both them and their clients.

Not until 2018 – after DeLapp sentenced courtroom spectator Randa Ludlow to nearly six months in jail for talking to her boyfriend during court – did local lawyers find the courage to act.

They enlisted a lawyer from 50 miles away who seldom practiced in DeLapp’s courtroom. And they worked collectively to build a voluminous complaint alleging that DeLapp had unlawfully jailed not just Ludlow but also many dozens of people in the prior two years alone. The complaint also contained an explosive charge: that the judge may have fabricated a court document to justify jailing Ludlow. 

Had DeLapp fought the charges, he risked more than disgrace. If it could be proved that he submitted a forged document to the supreme court, he might land in prison.

Instead, DeLapp, 53, struck a deal. He resigned and agreed never again to seek office as a judge. The case against him was dismissed. His state pension and law license remained intact. And DeLapp received a written assurance that neither his departure nor the settlement constituted an admission to the “validity of any of the allegations.”

In leaving the bench, DeLapp became one of at least 341 judges across the United States to escape punishment or further investigation in the past dozen years by resigning or retiring amid misconduct allegations, Reuters found.

DeLapp, who is still practicing law in Bartlesville, declined to comment. In court documents, his attorney said the former judge denies any wrongdoing.

The DeLapp case shines a light on one of the most opaque and dormant judicial disciplinary systems in America. In Oklahoma, repercussions for wrongdoing have been so unlikely that judges could behave with impunity.

Although each U.S. state has a judicial oversight agency to screen and investigate misconduct complaints, their powers are often limited. In most states, the ultimate disciplinary authority over a judge rests with other judges.

In Oklahoma, the chief justice wields enormous discretion over judicial misconduct cases. After the state’s Council on Judicial Complaints completes a confidential investigation of a complaint about a judge, the chief justice has the power to handle discipline privately – except in rare cases serious enough to justify removing the accused judge from the bench.

During their tenures, two former state supreme court chief justices told Reuters, about one or two wayward judges a year were quietly summoned to the supreme court. There, they received a tongue-lashing behind the closed doors of the chief justice’s chambers. No official record was kept of those meetings, the justices said.

As former Chief Justice Joseph Watt put it: “I’d much rather woodshed my brethren in private and not in public.” He added: “How does that judge feel, knowing he’s being taken to the woodshed in front of God and everybody?”

Confidential justice for judges is common in America. At least 38 states – Oklahoma among them – issue private sanctions when judges misbehave. The name of the judge remains secret, and most of these states keep from the public details of the transgression and the discipline. At a minimum, most states release summary statistics of how many judges are privately disciplined each year. Oklahoma doesn’t make that information public.

This practice – law professor Stephen Gillers calls it “judges judging judges” – undermines the system’s ability to prevent misconduct on the bench.

Gillers said the killing of George Floyd, the Black man who died in May under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer, has fueled concerns about how judicial misconduct is handled, too. “The public has been alerted as it never has been before to the way police misconduct is concealed,” said Gillers. “The same is true for judges.”

When judges are the ones evaluating misconduct by other judges, they “tend to be more sympathetic, more understanding, more forgiving” to their own, said Gillers, a scholar on judicial ethics who teaches at New York University.

Privacy also robs the system of a deterrent effect: Concealing the punishment fails to discourage bad conduct by other judges, who may never learn of the consequences, Gillers and other ethicists say.

That’s precisely the dynamic that played out in Oklahoma, local lawyers say. Until Chief Justice Douglas Combs petitioned for DeLapp’s removal, Oklahoma hadn’t publicly filed misconduct charges against a judge in 14 years – the longest stretch of inaction of any state in recent decades.

In its investigation into judicial misconduct across America, Reuters sought to quantify the personal toll inflicted by judges who break the law or violate their sworn oaths. Over a dozen years, Reuters found at least 5,206 people who were directly affected by a judge’s misconduct. The victims ranged from individuals who were subjected to racist, sexist and other abusive comments from judges to those illegally jailed.

“This is a broken system that absolutely empowered judges like DeLapp to operate with impunity,” said Josh Lee, the out-of-town attorney who led the effort to rein in DeLapp. “For more than a decade, not a single judge was publicly disciplined. What kind of message does that send?” Lee said that DeLapp “had no reason to fear that anyone would stop him.”

Masking misconduct

The state of Washington is among a dozen states that handle judicial discipline more openly.

In 1989, Washington voters abolished the practice of private sanctions. Since then, every case brought against a judge by the Washington judicial conduct commission is made public. Reiko Callner, the commission’s executive director, said judges should be treated the same as anyone who appears before them.

“The norm is that anything that happens in a court has the name of the participants on it – the names of a criminal defendant, the crime victim, people involved in a lawsuit,” Callner said. “Why should a judge who has been found to have violated the code that governs their conduct be allowed to keep that fact from the public?”

Many state commissions say there are sound reasons to discipline judges privately. “It’s quick, it’s inexpensive and you don’t have to hold a public hearing,” said Cynthia Gray, director of the Center for Judicial Ethics at the National Center for State Courts, an independent nonprofit research and training organization.

Often, Gray said, states see benefits to keeping matters confidential. “If it’s one-time, minor misconduct by a judge, and the judge shows remorse, you can issue a private sanction or letter and then move on,” she said. That means commissions can focus “on the judges who are out there committing patterns of misconduct and are fighting every step of the way.”

Still, a Reuters investigation found that private discipline has been used to mask significant violations of the law. For example, in 2018, state records show, a Texas judge failed to “maintain professional competence” and illegally jailed indigent defendants. And in 2017, a California judge engaged in sexual harassment and showed a “lack of candor” when accused of misconduct, records show. Neither their names nor their punishments have been made public.

In Colorado, the judicial commission has publicly disciplined four judges since 2008 but has privately sanctioned 52. Among those whose names and other identifying information remain hidden from the public: judges disciplined for sexual harassment, for drunken driving, for delayed rulings, and for demonstrating a “pattern of errors in handling trials or issuing rulings that indicate a lack of competence.”

Granting anonymity to rogue judges is routine.

A Reuters examination of judicial misconduct nationally identified 3,613 cases from 2008 through 2018 in which states disciplined judges in private, withholding from the public details of their offenses – including the identities of the judges themselves.

Over the same period, 26 state oversight councils resolved more judicial misconduct cases privately than publicly, the news agency found. In Massachusetts, for instance, reviews of judicial conduct commission annual reports show that about 9 in 10 judges disciplined were privately sanctioned.

Some judicial oversight agencies take their independence and secrecy to extremes.

California’s oversight agency went to court to try to prevent an audit of its records, a review that ultimately discovered sloppy investigations of judges. In Illinois, the agency misplaced or lost hundreds of complaints, which have not been recovered or investigated.

Kathy Twine, who directs the Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board, declined to comment on the lost files. Twine also would not provide routine complaint and investigation statistics to Reuters – statistics disclosed to the news agency by almost every other state. “We’re like an island,” the official said. “We don’t have to disclose anything.”

A comparison between Oklahoma and a state of similar size highlights the discrepancies in how judges are treated.

From mid-2004 to mid-2018, Oklahoma did not file misconduct charges against any of its 600 judges, Reuters found. By contrast, the state of Mississippi – with virtually the same code of judicial conduct and almost the same number of judges – publicly sanctioned 75 judges in the same period.

“I’m sure every state would like to think it has a judiciary that is above reproach, but every profession’s going to have a few bad apples,” said Darlene Ballard, who retired last week as director of the Mississippi commission. “It sounds like other states like to keep their problems in-house so that it appears to the public that they don’t have any bad judges.”

Steve Scheckman, who investigated misconduct cases in Louisiana and New York, said states that report so few cases are failing in their primary mission: to defend, before the public, the integrity of the justice system.

“To think that there’s no misconduct in your state, you’re either really naive, in denial or protecting people,” he said.

Former Oklahoma Justice Steven Taylor disputes such characterizations. Taylor, who served on the state’s top court from 2004 through 2016, said he was proud that the state had so few cases of public discipline. To him, the small number of cases doesn’t demonstrate weak oversight. It shows “a judiciary in Oklahoma that is ethical, doing their work and highly disciplined.”

“If we had 60 or 70 cases, I would be ashamed or embarrassed,” Taylor said.

As chief justice in 2011 and 2012, Taylor recalled, he visited the Washington County courthouse in Bartlesville, where he met Judge DeLapp and others. Taylor said no one mentioned any concerns about how DeLapp ran his courtroom.

But Reuters identified scores of contempt charges issued by DeLapp in traffic and other cases before, during and after Taylor’s time leading the bench. Some dated back a decade. In 2008, for instance, DeLapp charged a defendant with contempt for “being vocal” after the man protested because he had “no money to pay towards his fines & court costs,” according to a court record.

“To think that there’s no misconduct in your state, you’re either really naive, in denial or protecting people.”Steve Scheckman, who formerly investigated misconduct cases and now represents accused judges

Taylor said he was “extremely disappointed” when he heard in 2018 that DeLapp had acted so inappropriately for so many years. He also was surprised that lawyers had remained silent for so long.

“Why didn’t someone report this?” the former justice asked.

The local lawyers who kept quiet for years offer a simple answer, rooted in the state’s desire to keep judicial misconduct secret: An unchecked judge has the ability to cow his community.David Sachar, director of the Arkansas Judicial Discipline & Disability Commission: Without transparency, the public sees “a whitewash.”

In Bartlesville, the Washington County seat, four judges hear criminal and civil cases, with traffic infractions representing the bulk. The city of 36,000 is an hour north of Tulsa. The courthouse is convenient for visitors, who park for free just steps from the entrance. It also is an easy place for a judge to escape scrutiny.

That’s because in Washington County and thousands of other courtrooms nationally, there is no requirement to record or transcribe most proceedings. Employing a stenographer or recording the proceedings is considered too expensive and largely unnecessary for the assembly-line pace of misdemeanor cases that make up most of the court’s business.

This lack of an official and detailed record posed an obstacle to the local attorneys alarmed by DeLapp’s behavior. Absent transcripts or recordings to corroborate their concerns, six lawyers told Reuters, they worried that a complaint alleging misconduct would come down to their word against the judge’s.

The local lawyers say they felt vulnerable to reprisal. DeLapp wielded authority to appoint attorneys to cases involving indigent defendants. They say the per diem pay for this work made the difference for some lawyers between insolvency and eking out a living.

That explanation bothers Taylor, the former state high court justice. “It’s sad that the lawyers were intimidated,” Taylor said. “Part of the hallmark of being a lawyer is speaking truth to power. They should have spoken up.”

But many of those lawyers say they weren’t simply concerned about themselves. They worried that, if DeLapp got wind of a complaint, he might take it out on defendants as well. “It’s not just your livelihood at stake. It’s also clients,” said defense attorney Marty Meason, who practiced before DeLapp and once ran unsuccessfully against him for district judge. “Nobody wanted to take on the system.”

That changed in early 2018, when DeLapp ordered Randa Ludlow jailed for five months and 27 days in jail. Her alleged offense: talking during court with her boyfriend, a traffic defendant. Ludlow declined to comment.

The sentence seemed outlandish to Meason and other lawyers who had questioned DeLapp’s behavior for years. They suspected DeLapp broke the law by failing to afford Ludlow a hearing to challenge the contempt order, violating a basic constitutional right. They also believed he’d failed to properly document his reasons for jailing her. Whether DeLapp followed proper procedure in punishing Ludlow would become a key component in the misconduct complaint against him.

A few days after Ludlow was jailed, the lawyers decided to reach out to Lee, an attorney whose office was about an hour’s drive from Bartlesville – and thus had less to fear because he didn’t regularly appear before DeLapp.

Lee remembers the call his firm received from a Washington County lawyer. The message was clear: You have to help us stop this judge.

“Everyone feared retaliation,” Lee said. “I worked far enough away that I might be safe. Plus, I was the only one crazy enough to do it.”

A disputed document

About seven weeks after DeLapp had jailed Ludlow for contempt, Lee sought her release by filing a writ of habeas corpus with the state supreme court challenging her detention. The high court quickly heard the case in Oklahoma City.

At the hearing, DeLapp told the court that he had been unable to locate the specific document legally necessary to jail Ludlow. In the document, called a Contempt Court Minute, judges must lay out the rationale for the order. The document must also be time stamped and signed.

Shortly after the supreme court hearing, DeLapp notified the high court that he had located the missing record. Nonetheless, the high court voided DeLapp’s contempt order, and Ludlow was immediately released.

The case as it related to Ludlow was over. But now, Lee had grown suspicious of DeLapp, in particular the judge’s claim that he had so quickly located the missing Contempt Court Minute he used to justify jailing Ludlow. When DeLapp produced the missing Contempt Court Minute, the document seemed odd, Lee recalled.

It included a stamp that made no sense. It was dated two days before DeLapp claimed to have created the document. In other words, it appeared to be backdated, and poorly at that.

Lee wondered: Had DeLapp fabricated the document because one had never been filed in the first place? In late March, Lee received a call from Meason, the Bartlesville attorney who was quietly helping him build a misconduct case against DeLapp and harbored similar suspicions.

“I found the evidence,” Meason recalled telling Lee. “We’ve got him.”

DeLapp, Meason explained, had often used security cameras to monitor the conduct of people in the courthouse. He had used footage from one camera to identify the sloppy sunflower-seed eater.

There was also a security camera in the clerk’s office. Playing a hunch, Meason went to the sheriff’s office and requested a copy of weeks of video beginning in February 2018. To his surprise, he said, a staffer quickly handed over the footage on a flash drive.

Reuters reviewed the video, which has never been made public. It shows DeLapp leaving the clerk’s office with files. A clerk then leaves her desk. She returns later with what appears to be a single-page document. The clerk examines the page, then stamps it in two places.

Meason and Lee say they were convinced that the document shown on the security tape was the same Contempt Court Minute that DeLapp submitted later that day to the high court. The footage, they believe, showed the clerk backdating the document, apparently to make it look as though it had been filed at the time DeLapp issued his contempt order.

Lee submitted a 44-page complaint against DeLapp with the state judicial council, characterizing the contempt document as “suspect at best.” Meason mailed a copy of the unabridged footage to the oversight council. Lee captured key frames and created a video presentation, which he also submitted. “I wanted to make it simple for them,” Lee said.SECURITY FOOTAGE: Lawyer Josh Lee used frame grabs from security camera footage from inside the Washington County clerk’s office to build this presentation alleging that Judge Curtis DeLapp committed misconduct.

The state’s judicial council investigated Lee’s complaint about DeLapp. According to council director Taylor Henderson, the matter was then forwarded to Chief Justice Combs with a recommendation that DeLapp be removed from office. The council director declined further comment but records show that a short while later, Combs moved to oust DeLapp, publicly filing a 20-page petition with the Court of Judiciary, the nine-member tribunal that has the authority to remove judges.

In the petition, the chief justice accused DeLapp of “gross neglect of duty,” “oppression in office” and “complete disregard” for the law. The justice also criticized DeLapp for abusing his judicial power and declared him unfit for office.

“I’m sure every state would like to think it has a judiciary that is above reproach, but every profession’s going to have a few bad apples.”Darlene Ballard, former director of Mississippi’s judicial oversight commission

In a section titled “Falsified Court Documents and Misrepresentation,” Combs chastised DeLapp for “gross misrepresentation” of the contempt of court document. If DeLapp created the document and pretended it was “newly discovered,” it may have constituted “a grossly intentional misrepresentation to the Oklahoma Supreme Court” – one that could be construed as a felony.

This was not the first time that DeLapp had failed to properly file a contempt of court document, then produced it after the fact, Combs concluded. In the 2015 case of a woman jailed for eating sunflower seeds in court, DeLapp waited more than two years before he “drafted” a required sentencing order. DeLapp filed the missing document “only after” his misuse of contempt powers came to light in 2018 in the Ludlow case, Combs wrote.

Combs detailed more allegations against DeLapp. One involved a father and son who became lost in the hallway of DeLapp’s courthouse. The boy asked DeLapp for directions to another courtroom, and the judge yelled at him, according to witnesses. DeLapp threatened that if the boy couldn’t find his way, “he could sit his ass in jail,” Combs wrote.

And the chief justice cited evidence that DeLapp had inappropriately contacted the county attorney’s office about a deferred prosecution agreement for DeLapp’s son, who was charged with traffic violations.

Rather than fight the misconduct allegations, DeLapp resigned without admitting to any wrongdoing.

Not every state is forgiving of judges facing misconduct charges who opt to resign. California, Texas and a dozen other states have pursued disciplinary cases and impose sanctions even after judges leave the bench.

West Virginia is among them. On average, West Virginia disciplines about four or five judges each year. Often, one or two of these cases involves a judge who resigned during a misconduct investigation, said Teresa Tarr, counsel for the state’s judicial oversight commission.

“It would be very easy for us to dismiss cases if they resign,” Tarr said. “I think the right thing to do is to hold them accountable, because it gives the public the understanding that the judiciary as a whole is not going to tolerate misbehavior. It also lets the other judges know what’s acceptable conduct and what’s not.”

Not so in Oklahoma, where the focus is on protecting the judge, not informing the public. “We want to try to self-police,” said Watt, the former chief justice. Handling matters informally is “the best way to take care of” wayward judges, “and not drag them through the mud.”

Settlement agreements like the one Oklahoma approved for DeLapp do more than permit accused judges to walk away without admitting guilt. When an accused judge leaves the bench, the commission’s investigation into misdeeds ends – even if other wrongdoing is suspected. 

Because state judicial investigations are sealed, the public is left to wonder about a judge’s culpability. Potential victims of misconduct may go undiscovered. And commission officials are prohibited from discussing cases under penalty of law. That silence can empower an accused judge to declare his or her innocence without citizens ever knowing the facts of the case.

DeLapp resigned to preserve his livelihood, his wife posted on Facebook. “He could’ve fought it, which he wanted too [sic] but did not want to risk losing his retirement, pension, Bar license, etc.,” she wrote.

In one of his last acts as a judge, DeLapp issued a statement in which he praised his judicial accomplishments and said he was leaving the bench with “a heavy heart but clear conscience.”

Judges who were publicly disciplined – and what they did

In the first comprehensive accounting of judicial misconduct nationally, Reuters reviewed 1,509 cases from the last dozen years – 2008 through 2019 – in which state or local judges resigned, retired or were publicly disciplined following accusations of misconduct. Explore judges in your STATE by using the drop down menu on the left. Or, to find a specific judge, type in the judge’s LAST NAME. To read official records about the judge’s conduct, click on a judge’s name.

FIND JUDGES BY STATE

Choose a state  Alabama  Alaska  Arizona  Arkansas  California  Colorado  Connecticut  Delaware  District of Columbia  Florida  Georgia  Hawaii  Idaho  Illinois  Indiana  Iowa  Kansas  Kentucky  Louisiana  Maine  Maryland  Massachusetts  Michigan  Minnesota  Mississippi  Missouri  Montana  Nebraska  Nevada  New Hampshire  New Jersey  New Mexico  New York  North Carolina  North Dakota  Ohio  Oklahoma  Oregon  Pennsylvania  Rhode Island  South Carolina  South Dakota  Tennessee  Texas  Utah  Vermont  Virginia  Washington  West Virginia  Wisconsin  Wyoming  OR

The Teflon Robe

By Michael Berens and John Shiffman

Contributing reporting: Andrea Januta and Caroline Monahan                

Data: Michael Berens, John Shiffman and Isabella Jibilian

Graphic: Matthew Weber

Photo editing: Corinne Perkins

Video: Craig Hettich

Design: Troy Dunkley and Pete Hausler

Edited by Blake Morrison 

• Follow Reuters Investigates

The post With ‘Judges Judging Judges,’ Rogues On The Bench Have Little To Fear appeared first on Fighter Cries.

My daughter is victim of harassment and false accusations..

She is in her 2nd fight with DCFS. She was awarded fit. Given her children back from foster care in 2016..

It’s 2020 and still being harassed and has lost kids to Foster Care again!

Daughter is accused of environmental neglect. Judge Tim Cusack refused to listen to testimony of parent. Has completely ignored any questions for daughter to plea her case.

Dug up research on Judge Tim Cusack

He has been accused of tampering with evidence and fraud of some cases.. The charges were dropped on him. But he still remains in power. He refuses to let Attorneys and parents defend themselves.

Only after Attorney put in a motion for a different judge. Was my daughter able to defend herself and show she was falsely accused in 2016.

Now in May of 2020. She is back in his court room. Same thing is happening.

This time she has no Attorney. Her questions and concerns are pushed aside. She is ignored in his court.

On July 8, 2020 DCFS did not appear in court.

He did not listen to any concerns of parent or I foster parent. Only continued case to allow DCFS more time using COVID 19 as an excuse.

Even though the State Of Illinois is open. And threat of COVID 19 is minimal.

As a foster family caregiver, I was promised beds for children and clothes and shoes school supplies which none has been given.

Caseworker lies said our court was in another courthouse 18 miles away. Her paperwork was wrong. So we had to rush to court. Then no one from DCFS was there. She sets video visits with parent and children and then does not follow through.

We and parent of children are being ramrodded through the court.

DCFS is not providing any support. Caseworker is being secretive and shady.

Peoria county has long history of investigations on wrong doings against juvenile court and DCFS.

Need help with Attorney and advocates..

Evidence Summary:

Have all necessary documents and court and JA case numbers.. will provide in email if someone will help..

The post Ramrodded and Harassed appeared first on Fighter Cries.

The post Faces of Corruption | Get to Know CPS Caseworkers & Judges appeared first on Fighter Cries.

I’m educated. Holding a BA and J.D. ( I did not study family law. Not all attorneys are created equal. And I am not admitted to the bar yet. )

I have no history of mental illness. Have no addiction issues. I’m a breast feeding. Make my own baby food. Homemade birthday cake maker. Pinterest party planner. Volunteer at my son’s school. Play date making. read a book every night at bedtime. Get on the floor and play and/or sleep in a “fort” kind of mom. I am a boy mom – so we bug hunt, adventure seek, and get dirty. I am a very good mom.

My son and I share an amazing relationship. That’s slowly being destroyed by Kane County Judge Grady. Opposing Counsel- John Chapski. My son’s father who I will be referring to as Mr X… for now. If you don’t know. Family court cases are public so I am not revealing parties that the general public cannot access itself.

WHY I HAVEN’T SEEN MY CHILD IN 9 MONTHS

Short Answer:

From August 2011-June 11, 2019 I was my son’s primary care giver. During large portions of time his sole physical & financial care-giver. It took Mr X 3 judges, 3 attorneys (his), 3 mediators (he picked), a GAL (he stipulated to), 2 experts, and 8 years to finally find the right recipe of family court bad actors to assist him. Can you imagine going through 8 years (with no end in sight)? Can you imagine the emotional, physical, and financial impact that has on someone? You can’t just walk away- that is your baby.

If you don’t care to hear more- stop here.

Longer Answer:

Disclaimer: please know we are trying to keep this short so “longer answer” doesn’t mean complete. I will be sharing more (with evidence) as this group moves along.

• In April 2018 Mr X and I entered an Agreed Order. I will go into detail more later. For these purposes the Agreed Order and bargained for exchange was I would remain residential parent. R & I would move back to IL. Anything not addressed in Agreed Order reverted to our 2013 Joint Parenting Agreement (“JPA”).

• On May 6, 2019 IN AN UNNOTICED (OR IMPROPERLY NOTICED) EX PARTE HEARING. John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that April 2018 agreed order and materially misrepresented to Judge Grady. That I would not agree to April 2019 vacation dates. Even though Mr X and John Chapski KNEW we had agreed in April 2019 to vacation dates in writing. Judge Grady entered an order without me being present. Without evidence, without verifying I received notice. Based solely on material misrepresentations from John Chapski on behalf of Mr X (who was apparently standing right there).

• On May 10, 2019 John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that April 2018 Agreed Order. Filing a petition to modify and make Mr X residential parent. (IL now calls it parent with the majority parenting time – for ease I will continue to say residential). On May 11, 2019 I graduated .

• On June 1, 2019 my son was in Mr X’s care. Per our agreement in April 2019 for vacation dates. That UNNOTICED, EX PARTE MAY 6, 2019 Order.

• On June 3, 2019 John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that April 2018 Agreed Order. Filing a petition to temporarily modify. Making Mr X residential parent.

• On June 11, 2019 WITHOUT AN EVIDENTIARY HEARING AS REQUIRED BY LAW. WITHOUT GIVING ME 30 DAYS TO RESPOND AS REQUIRED BY LAW in a “hearing instaner”. (Which barring emergency. Is not supported by law or the Kane County local rules.) Judge Grady entered a 1 sentence order. That said R would “reside” with Mr X until further order of the court. He has kept that order temporary denying me appeal rights. That 1 sentence, ambiguous order does not address parenting time. Judge Grady refuses to clarify that order. As he has been requested to do over and over and over. To-date Judge Grady refuses to re-appoint GAL. To-date Judge Grady refuses to hear my motion to reconsider. (Which was originally scheduled to be heard 7/22/19.)

• August 22, 2019 I file to remove Judge Grady for cause. We are to appear in front of Judge Cruz on August 27, 2019.

• On August 25, 2019 I email Mr X a very professional email. (I will post original later.) Stating that June 11, 2019 order is ambiguous and doesn’t address parenting time. Thus, the governing document is our JPA. His time with R resumes per JPA allocated time (it would have been Wednesday August 28, 2019).

Email to Mr X

“[Mr X]

Upon the advice of counsel and after careful review of the June 11 Order and JPA. The June 11 order is temporary. And simply states that for the time being R resides in Kane County with you. It does not alter or address visitation. Thus, the governing doc for parenting time remains the JPA.

Per the JPA your time with R resumes Wednesday after school. R will remain with me tonight. I will be taking him to school and picking up R Monday and Tuesday from school. In addition, I will drop him off at school Wednesday morning. Your time resumes Wednesday after school. Please ensure you are there Wednesday for school pick up.

Thanks,

Haley”

Continuation of injustice

• On August 26, 2019 even though John Chapski and Mr X had notice of my motion. To remove Judge Grady for cause. Appeared in front of Judge Grady in an emergency EX PARTE HEARING. Materially misrepresented I was keeping Mr X from R. Mr X did not know where R was. (Mr X admitted in a later hearing. Our son was dropped off at school. As he called the school to verify.) Materially misrepresented the contents of that August 25, 2019, and had an emergency order of protection entered against me.

• September 3, 2019 Judge Cruz held my hearing to remove Judge Grady for cause. On September 3, 2019 due to John Chapski’s delay tactics it got continued to September 4, 2019.

• On September 4, 2019 before any party spoke Judge Cruz said he stayed “late”. And changed his mind and granted John Chapski’s 9/3/19 request for directive verdict. I have my theories of what staying “late” means. But I have no proof so you be the judge on that. Judge Cruz admitted “hearing instaner” is not supported by law or local rules barring emergency. Judge Cruz expressed concern no GAL was appointed for my son and sent us down to Judge Grady “instaner”. Who refused to re-appoint GAL. To-date refuses to re-appoint GAL. Mr X does not want a GAL. I begged for one- I feel that speaks volumes.

• On September 11, 2019 was the hearing on the emergency order of protection. John Chapski does these epic delay strategies. That needlessly increase the cost of litigation due to hearings having to be continued over and over. This happened (as typical) on 9/11/19. Judge Grady attempted to continue the hearing. My counsel not only told Judge Grady and John Chapski that as a matter of law. Judge Grady cannot extend the emergency order of protection. (Under IL law 21 days for emergency order of protection), but showed both the rule and supporting case law. Judge Grady said he was going to do it anyway. And continued the hearing and unlawfully extended the EOP until 9/30/19.

**September 30, 2019 Judge Grady is removed from the family law bench and the Kane County Judicial Center. Listed as a “special action” judge at the old Geneva Courthouse. However in spite of him removed from the family law bench Judge Grady refuses to give up my case. He says it is due to most of this case being in his “memory”. But from experience he doesn’t seem to remember key facts like. What the June 11, 2019 order says or even my son’s age. Also, if you look him up on http://www.therobingroom.com/illinois/Judge.aspx?id=4193 more than one review discuss his memory issues. (I didn’t write any of these reviews, but they are consistent with my experience).**

• On September 30, 2019 at the conclusion of the hearing Judge Grady said harassment is construed broadly. Under Illinois Domestic Violence Act (“IMDVA”). I should have “known” that August 25, 2019 email would upset Mr X. Found that I harassed Mr X by that August 25, 2019 email. However, he did not want to enter a plenary order of protection. Instead he wanted the parties’ counsel to draft an injunction. So Mr X and I could not harass each other. Having the counsel come back on October 2, 2019 to have that language entered.

• After September 30, 2019 hearing at the old Geneva Courthouse. That is virtually empty. Nearly everyone gone my mom and I witnessed Judge Grady and John Chapski engaged in Ex Parte Communication. Walking out of the courthouse together and to or near Judge Grady’s car.

• On October 2, 2019 Judge Grady did a 360. Entering a TWO YEAR order of protection against me where I cannot see my son for 2 years. Illinois law explicitly states “the court shall not place any restrictions on parenting time… Unless it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that a parent’s exercise of parenting time. Would seriously endanger the child’s physical, mental, moral, or emotional health.” 750 ILCS 60/1 et seq.(emphasis added). No such finding has ever been made and no such allegation has ever been pled or given evidence of. Why? Because it would be impossible – I am a really good mom. Further, on December 27, 2019 Judge
Grady admitted on the record he never made such a finding.

• In late February or early March 2020 Mr X sent me a permission slip. From R’s school for mother/son bowling. I immediately said I would attend. Mr X tried to back pedal saying why was I “demanding” this time. Basically I told Mr X you either sent that to me to be cruel. Or you intended for us to go. Mr X finally agreed to the time.

Longer Answer:

• In April 2018 Mr. X and I entered an Agreed Order. The bargained for exchange was. I would remain residential parent. R & I would move back to IL. Anything not addressed in Agreed Order reverted to our 2013 Joint Parenting Agreement (“JPA”).

•On May 6, 2019 IN AN UNNOTICED (OR IMPROPERLY NOTICED) EX PARTE HEARING. John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that Agreed Order and materially misrepresented to Judge Grady. That I would not agree to 2019 vacation dates. Even though Mr X and John Chapski KNEW we had previously agreed in writing. Judge Grady entered an order without me being present. Without evidence, without verifying I received notice. Based solely on material misrepresentations from John Chapski on behalf of Mr X (who was apparently standing right there).

• On May 10, 2019 John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that April 2018 Agreed Order. Filing a petition to modify. Making Mr X residential parent.

• On June 3, 2019 John Chapski on behalf of Mr X breached that April 2018 Agreed Order. Files a petition to temporarily modify. Making Mr X residential parent.

• On June 11, 2019 WITHOUT AN EVIDENTIARY HEARING AS REQUIRED BY LAW. WITHOUT GIVING ME 30 DAYS TO RESPOND AS REQUIRED BY LAW. In a “hearing instanter” (which barring emergency is not supported by law or the Kane County local rules) Judge Grady entered a 1 sentence order that said R would “reside” with Mr X until further order of the court. He has kept that order temporary denying me appeal rights. That 1 sentence, ambiguous order does not address parenting time. To-date Judge Grady refuses to clarify that order. As he has been requested to do over and over and over. John Chapski advocates for Judge Grady not to clarify that ambiguous order shouting in open court that its a “trick”. To-date Judge Grady refuses to re-appoint GAL. To-date Judge Grady refuses to hear my motion to reconsider (which was originally scheduled to be heard 7/22/19).

• August 22, 2019 I filed to remove Judge Grady for cause. And we were scheduled to appear in front of Judge Cruz on August 27, 2019.

• On August 25, 2019 I email Mr X stating that June 11, 2019 order is ambiguous and doesn’t address parenting time. Thus, the governing document is our JPA. His time with R resumes per JPA allocated time (it would have been Wednesday August 28, 2019).

Email to Mr X

“[Mr. X]

Upon the advice of counsel and after careful review of the June 11 Order and JPA- the June 11 order is temporary and simply states that for the time being [R] resides in Kane County with you. It does not alter or address visitation. Thus, the governing doc for parenting time remains the JPA.

Per the JPA your time with [R ]resumes Wednesday after school. [R] will remain with me tonight, I will be taking him to school and picking up [R] Monday and Tuesday from school. In addition, I will drop him off at school Wednesday morning. Your time resumes Wednesday after school. Please ensure you are there Wednesday for school pick up.

Thanks,

Haley”

Continuation to the corruption

• On August 26, 2019, even though John Chapski and Mr X had notice of my motion. To remove Judge Grady for cause. Appeared in front of Judge Grady in an emergency EX PARTE HEARING. Materially misrepresented I was keeping Mr X from R. Mr X did not know where R was. (Mr X admitted in a later hearing. He KNEW our son was dropped off at school. As he called the school to verify.) Materially misrepresented the contents of that August 25, 2019, and had an emergency order of protection entered against me.

• September 3, 2019 Judge Cruz heard my motion to remove Judge Grady for cause. John Chapski moved for directive verdict- it was denied.

• On September 4, 2019 before any party spoke. Judge Cruz said he stayed “late” and changed his mind. Granted John Chapski’s 9/3/19 request for directive verdict. I have my theories of what staying “late” means. But I have no proof so you be the judge on that. Judge Cruz admitted “hearing instanter” is not supported by law or local rules barring emergency. Expressed concern no GAL was appointed for my son. Sent us back to Judge Grady “instanter”. Who refused to re-appoint GAL. To-date refuses to re-appoint GAL. John Chapski advocates against a GAL. Mr X does not want a GAL. I begged for one- I feel that speaks volumes.

• On September 11, 2019 the hearing on the emergency order of protection was heard. John Chapski does these epic delay strategies that needlessly increase the cost of litigation. Due to hearings having to be continued over and over. This happened (as typical) on 9/11/19. Judge Grady attempted to continue the hearing. My counsel not only informed Judge Grady and John Chapski that as a matter of law. Judge Grady cannot extend the emergency order of protection due to the 21 day statute of limitations. Both the rule and supporting case law were presented to Judge Grady and John Chapski. Judge Grady said he was going to do it anyway. And continued the hearing and unlawfully extended the EOP until 9/30/19.

Judge removed

**September 30, 2019 Judge Grady is removed from the family law bench. And the Kane County Judicial Center. Judge Grady is listed as a “special action” judge at the old Geneva Courthouse. However in spite of his removal from the family law bench Judge Grady refuses to give up my case. He says it is due to most of this case being in his “memory”. But from experience he doesn’t seem to remember key facts. Like what the June 11, 2019 order says or even my son’s age. Also, if you look him up on http://www.therobingroom.com/illinois/Judge.aspx?id=4193 more than one review discuss his memory issues. (I didn’t write any of these reviews, but they are consistent with my experience).**

• On September 30, 2019 at the conclusion of the hearing. Judge Grady said harassment is construed broadly. Under Illinois Domestic Violence Act (“IDMVA”). I should have “known” that August 25, 2019 email would upset Mr. X and found that I harassed Mr X by that August 25, 2019 email. However, Judge Grady ruled he did not want to enter a plenary order of protection. Instead he wanted the parties’ counsel to draft an injunction. With language preventing Mr X and I from harassing each other. And have the counsel come back on October 2, 2019 to have that language entered.

• After September 30, 2019 hearing. I witnessed Judge Grady and John Chapski engaged in Ex Parte Communication. While walking out of the courthouse together and to or near Judge Grady’s car.

Ex Parte Decision????

• On October 2, 2019 Judge Grady did a 360. And entered a TWO YEAR order of protection against me where I cannot see my son for 2 years. Illinois law explicitly states “the court shall not place any restrictions on parenting time… Unless it finds by a preponderance of the evidence. That a parent’s exercise of parenting time. Would seriously endanger the child’s physical, mental, moral, or emotional health.” 750 ILCS 60/1 et seq. No such finding has ever been made. No such allegation has ever been pled or given evidence of. Why? Because it would be impossible – I am a really good mom. Further, on December 27, 2019 Judge Grady admitted on the record he never made such a finding.

• In late February or early March 2020 Mr X sent me a permission slip from R’s school for mother/son bowling. I immediately said I would attend. Mr X tried to back pedal saying why was I “demanding” this time. Basically I told Mr X you either sent that to me to be cruel. Or you intended for us to go. Mr X finally agreed to the time.

I haven’t seen my son since March 2020– and it isn’t for the lack of trying. We speak via Skype, but Mr X monitors, records, and otherwise interferes with our calls. R has told me he is not allowed to tell me what goes on at Mr X’s house. The few times he has attempted Mr X has chased him around the house to hang up the phone. The worst time I even called the police to do a wellness check. I have the report. Mr X now only allows R to speak to me via Skype on his desktop computer.

Maternal family alienation

Further, Mr X will not allow R to see any of his maternal family. My mom and sister have tried on numerous occasions. He will not allow him to speak to any of his friends that he went to school with prior to “resid[ing]” with Mr X. In my opinion, this is textbook alienation and coercive control tactics. Isolate the child from anyone and everyone they love so you can control them.

I firmly stand behind that keeping R from the love of his mother. (A very good mother.) And his maternal family is child abuse. We will never get this time back. I feel strongly that Judge Grady, John Chapski, and Mr X are stealing this poor child’s innocence and it should be considered criminal. Further, keeping R from this “fit” parent is not supported by law. It certainly does not meet the legal standard “best interest of the child.” No innocent child or good parent should ever have to endure what we are.

If you made it this far, thank you for reading. #injustice4R

END STORY

NEW ILLINOIS EVIDENCE

CONNECTS ILLINOIS TO LAS VEGAS, NEVADA & POSSIBLY OREGON TO ILLINOIS VIA LAS VEGAS

The post Child Taken From Mother Without Cause, Withheld For 10 Months & Counting appeared first on Fighter Cries.

Our story, is different than others

It starts with trying to get Child A (11 year old) a psychological evaluation. Due to Covid-19 it was denied.

Child A, had developed a very disturbing homicidal and suicidal behavior with the last exit of the biological mother. We lost pet’s, I was hospitalized after ingesting rice she laced with mop soap.

Child A’s Aunt on father’s side then involved herself. She felt that we simply could not handle the situation. She began to incite the same mental and physical abuse she had used in the past to control Child A.

With witnesses on two separate occasions in the week leading up to Child A’s hospitalization. She made surprise pop up visits in which she would scream literal death threats, force her to watch other people eat but not allow to join, name calling, pokes to the chest and emotional abuse. This is all documented by the aunt herself via messenger as if attempting to brag.

The day Child A was admitted the aunt was waiting for the father to leave (he was to get rid of her before her next visit). Aunt called Child A in as a suicide attempt to 911 to force her removal. I was not allowed in due to not being the legal guardian and Aunt was shocked she was not either. Proceeding to make a scene in the ER that she was the Aunt and had a claim.

The admittance process was humiliating as both her father and I were kept separate treated as criminals. The intake nurse absolutely refused to look at the file that contained over 125 photos of evidence. She admitted, after 2 hour’s of sleep, after the 14 hour process, war is at our door.

No identification, wearing a Peoria County Sheriff’s shirt she invites herself in. Stating after already in the home that she was an investigator for DCFS Samantha Lambert. And that she was there to document and confirm our claims. As she insisted that the psychologist was ready to discharge the child and she was doing us a favor by holding her in the hospital.

While in our home, she made several references ” Not to be judgmental, is that a Trump flag on the table?” ” Not to be judgmental, are you Pagan? Just trying to be culturally appropriate.” She was more concerned with our political views, religious beliefs, and Conservative home-school curriculum that we had chosen and also protected by Peoria Home-school Secular.

Than documenting evidence of Child A’s hoarding of garbage, food, mice and overall destruction of a home. Which made our home inadequate and a potential safety hazard. She left Child B in place, asked us to correct Child A’s living conditions and she would be back for a home safety check.

She never returned, she failed to communicate with the biological father making claims he didn’t need to be informed of any chats via text, call or even any home visits. Samantha Lambert was the only one whom received the photo evidence, she called all of Child A’s medical decisions. We were simply not informed of most of the treatments.

As of today, Cassie the Case Manager admitted that this evidence had been withheld from everyone involved. Child B, was removed June 3rd as Samantha had called late June 2nd and revised her safety plan via speaker phone to us. She was removing Child A from a mental healthcare unit and placing her with the Aunt to ensure the safety of the family and pet’s.

Dad was immediately against this placement as Aunt had been abusive in the past and before hospitalization.

This is not how it occurred…

Samantha sat in her vehicle across the street and watched me for a good 30 or so minutes. As I was letting the dog’s out, then using household scissors to cut a rose per request of Child B as it was his rose bush. As I approached the front of the house to city police cruisers fly in screaming for me to drop my weapon ( household scissors and a flower) with their hands on theirs. Terrified and confused I complied ( this occurred during the riots) They informed me that body cams we’re on and that I had a weapon.

My instant response was ” We are Republicans, We are actually backing you.” I then turned to Samantha and asked “What the Hell?”

As, she replied she needed Child B that I had to go in and force him out. When asked if she had a order she replied ‘No, this is from a emergency letter from Dr. Perez that Child A state’s that it’s not safe for Child B, it’s my supervisors, supervisor.” I again asked one more time for an order she stated she could go get one.

In a desperate attempt to keep Child B safe from the same placement I asked if Child B could be placed with my family as my sister is married to a DCFS investigator Ashley King. She actually stated yes, that she and Ashley we’re on the same page as Samantha trained her.

Trying to cram all of this in, my own sister and her wife worked hand in hand to create a nightmare for us. We were never notified we were being investigated.

We have a live in witness that was never interviewed. Assuming due to him being Hispanic.

All credible witnesses we’re dismissed. No communication from Samantha. Aunt cut off communication immediately.

We did not receive the correct paperwork and location for biological dad to make it to the first appearance. The investigation letter came on the 8th for inadequate environment and food. However, both of the above are even clearly outlined in the amended petition to remove Child B that Child A was actually responsible for those claims.

The city has harassed us, issuing a “work order” and $200 fine not to cut the grass but to take down our tree line and plants along the house including Child B’s rose bush, a charcoal SUV actually sits in our yard and stares into the home.

After being notified that we hired a private attorney. A juvenile detective has been trying to make an in person appointment. In which she gives no information to us, only that it regards Child A. She state’s she’s not obligated to tell us anything. “I don’t make indications, I make arrests.

They did indicate Samantha failed to inform us of this officially, no paperwork it was the case manager’s slip. The longer they are in Kinship Care with Aunt more indications are added.

Example: Child A, has a benzodiazepine in her system… However, she has not been in our care since May. Child A can describe said benzodiazepine to a T a small white pill.

I find this interesting due to after being hospitalized my primary care physician thought the incident of vomiting blood was elevated stress from school and Child A’s behaviors. As nobody thought to test for household cleaners and no medical explanation as to why I became so ill by the ER, Primarily and their Gastrointestinal Specialist. I was in fact prescribed a benzodiazepine, prilosec, Zofran and Hydroxyzine to prevent what they thought was a stress related episode. However, my prescription does not match Child A’s description in color and shape.

My primary has established this to Samantha and the pharmacy as well and are now growing both annoyed and alarmed refusing to speak with them without their team of lawyer’s as they feel obligated to point out that DCFS or Dr. Perez neglected Child A’s mental health. As they assess the evidence and have not been documenting objectivity for a year and a half on the child creating stress and hazardous situations in the home.

They immediately put both the father and I in counseling with a social worker in the office for trauma and emotional distress due to DCFS and coping skills involving everything from Child A’s alarming treatment to the families constant worry and concern for Child B’s safety.

I know this is A LOT and almost unbelievable but bear with me, this situation has literally tore two families apart mine stands completely divided even as my sick mother is trying to reunite us before she passes. The only witness they took any credibility to is my sister whom is married to Samantha’s coworker she literally trained Ashley King to be corrupt. As me and my sister have had no standing relationship since 2016 the year a election divided our family. This system is so corrupt that my sister and Ashley King have Kinship care of my grandson, whom in retaliation on us fighting the system have stopped all visits between my grandson and his parents.

His story is Covid related but this is still a conflict of interest is it not? I have to withdrawal from my BSN degree that I was currently working on, and cannot use any of my certifications to work due to being in healthcare. Dad is currently holding 5 to 6 16 hour shifts in a steel mill to pay attorney fees our lives have been turned upside down over petty political and religious judgments? Samantha Lambert is an endangerment to children.

It’s July 7th, we go to court at 9 a.m. tomorrow but today we had a breakthrough. I managed to record 15 minutes of a conversation between the case manager Cassie, dad and I, in this she indicates Samantha and herself as she openly admits on recording that no background screening or drug testing is required to place children in foster care as we are heard pleading to test the entire house the children are placed in. She admits to the Aunt having open investigations in the past and this is also perfectly ok and the right thing to do by the children is to require literally nothing to foster a child. She admits to not being aware of photo evidence that would of been beneficial to Child A’s mental health treatment and also the biological mom’s rights to custody against dad’s will and advice.

For example: Neglect- She abandoned them at a early age with no regard for even a phone call is fit parenting to Cassie and Samantha. Biological Mom’s multiple suicide attempts are understandable to Cassie and Samantha accidentally causing harm during one of these breakdowns to Child A is fit parenting. Child A having Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and abandonment issues that may of led to these behaviors is fit and acceptable behaviors.

Dad was offered a supervised visit today by Cassie I was not allowed as in the recording as well she claimed Child B did not want to see me. Dad went confused by this to uncover that when asked in front of Cassie he stated that Aunt Ne’Ne had told him he was not allowed. Cassie was then shown for the first time the photos of our story and is now in “agreeance” that the investigation was personal and not done properly. That the aunt is in violation of Kinship Care for coercing the children what to say. All the way to telling dad they we’re no longer in her care and did not know where they had been taken.

As of the eve before court she has “appeared to flip her judgement in less than an hour. I am now supposedly allowed to call both children and a scheduled visit at the Zoo next Thursday with Child B, dad and I.

Today, is the first time any contact was allowed and at least dad could see his child but there is a problem. They lie, lie and lie some more. Tomorrow could be a ending of us being cuffed and held without due process or we have got them in a corner we will find out!

Thank you, for bearing through our very long story but these details need to be shared among parents. Constitutional rights need to be upheld by our governors and government worker’s they take an oath same as we do in healthcare ” Never intentionally do harm.” I am invested in these children and I’m not going away DCFS, not until the corruption ends with every single child or parent subject to you’re abuse of power!

Thank you, and best of luck from our family to yours we believe you, we are standing with you.

The post Fraudulent Removal and Placement appeared first on Fighter Cries.

I have been harrassed by DCFS 3 times. 3 unfound investigations against me.

They let me down as a child.

I heard my grandparents paid them off in the 80s.

I was never allowed to admit what was done to me.

False police reports

Stolen 14 year old dog.

I had to win back in court. My only win as the gal lied right to the judge as she even threatened me I was going to lose my child. My lawyer recused himself after getting my child taken.

I received a phone call I had to turn my child over. I have been following these court orders. Only to be threatened by officials. False police reports. False accusations. I prove other but see my lawyer laughed and stated I never had a chance.

Well I found paperwork that he was having meetings with my mother.

That’s illegal

Nothing has been heard for me or my daughter.

My mother paid all the father’s lawyer bills.

My daughter is coming with bruises on hips. Disturbing as we went to the er in December.

This is where it gets way tricky.

See I was the abuser. Not alleged. Already guilty. I don’t agree.

I have pictures

DCFS will not return my phone calls.

Even after taking pictures of my daughter twice now.
Never no paperwork regarding findings. Harassed as I will be charged with making false accusations. Well I called every week. Somehow without seeing any evidence. Refusing to acknowledge me as prior no problem harassing me.

Then our er visit. Mandatory

Had plenty of evidence.

Gal said that takes 9 months to come back.

I have false reports from a certain officer.

I’m not allowed to make a report against my mother which I have a order of protection.

Gal was there actually on my mother’s side. Biased

She also never checked any of my witnesses.

She threatened me also after awarding me full custody. May 2019 stated to me I was doing great and she had one minor complaint.

I listened.

So how can she lie on information?

She is not or has not done anything for my daughter.

Stating to a witness I don’t have enough money to keep my daughter safe? That’s untrue and she knows it.

Highly aware that I did not want my mother around my daughter.

So what changed? No explanation

Set me up with contempt. I was told I wasn’t needed. Then I received this news. My lawyer recused so I am just wanting them held responsible or what ever I can do to help my daughter before they get rid of her only protector, parent, caregiver.

Never felt as I had any say. That’s not justice to know blamed me but yet I have proof I can’t get no where.

I’m watching my daughter regress, sad, angry. Asking me to get help
Every week bruises on hips.

No explanation has to ever be given to me as gal made sure.

The post DCFS Keeps Letting Me Down As A Child and NOW As a Parent appeared first on Fighter Cries.