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Census worker finds new way to count jail inmates

Where does one law end and another one begins?  America has long had tension between state laws and federal laws.  Now the feds are busy trying to spring one of their own from a state jail.  US Census worker Russell Haas was reported by the Huffington Post to have been arrested by Hawaii County police for trying to count someone in the census.  Federal law says everyone gets counted.  State laws say you cannot trespass on another’s property.  When Mr. Hass entered the residential property of a Big Island resident, he let himself in through a closed-but-unlocked gate.  The property owner ordered him to leave.  Mr. Haas apparently said he would leave but by federal law the resident had to first take the census form.  He refused, but instead called the police.  The police arrived, allegedly crumpled the census form on Mr. Haas’ chest, handcuffed him, and took him to jail for trespassing.  The property owner has not been identified other than that he works for the Hawaii County Police Department.

4th of July: It all started with a divorce

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

…when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

Judging

“Being a judge incorporates my two favorite things:  wearing a robe and judging people.  I missed my calling.”  -Aaron Karo

April 2010 – State Gets Nasty with Family Court

California is conducting an audit of family law courts in only Marin and Sacramento counties, focusing on the use of court-appointed specialists in cases involving children. The audit actually was created a year ago and only expected to take 4 months. However, the state claims that Marin County is stonewalling the audit. The state is now threatening to issue a subpoena directly against the court itself! Among the specialists under the microscope is the category of court-appointed counsel for minors. In our firm’s opinion, court-appointed minor’s counsel is a mission of utmost importance, and the site of perhaps the greatest failures in our system. Too often minor’s counsel picks a parent to side with, and seem to lose site of who is their true client…the kids. Of course, the other parent often then has no hope of getting rid of the corrupted minor’s counsel because their criticisms (or motions to dismiss counsel) are discarded as sour grapes rather than being carefully scrutinized. Once in a blue moon, such as the Seagondollar case, a review court overturns this nonsense. But such relief from injustice is all too rare. Does this mean the Marin & Sacto audits will fix anything? Who knows? But let us hope.

February 1, 2010 – WLG Welcomes New Attorney

Warren Law Group PC is pleased to announce that attorney Svetlana Couture has joined our family law staff. Ms. Couture has practiced law in California since 1997. She is fluent in English, Russian, Ukranian, and conversational in German and Dutch.

January 3, 2010

Hats off to Judge Gordon Baranco, Alameda County for the 2009 Benjamin Aranda III Access to Justice Award. Presented in January 2010, Judge Branco was recognized for presiding over the Homeless and Caring Court, holding court in soup kitchens and drug treatment centers, in effort to deal with problems such as mental illness and substance abuse.

For Alameda County, this is a breath of fresh air after the 2007 “severe censure” of another of their judges, Robert Freedman, found to have signed multiple affidavits that were false. An affidavit is a written declaration made under oath. The affidavits falsely stated that he had performed judicial work that over 4 years he had not in fact done and, it was reported, these affidavits had the effect of covering up his 21 violations of state law governing the performance of judges. With these shortcomings in performance, the judge was not eligible to be paid his salary. However, by signing these affidavits that falsely stated work was current, he received money.

If these affidavits were affirmations under oath, it would raise the obvious question of whether the judge committed multiple acts of perjury. But don’t look in the criminal division to see if Judge Freedman was arrested and charged with crimes, the way that ordinary people might be. It did not happen. He was not disbarred or suspended, the way that an attorney might (and should) be for signing false affidavits. And don’t look over at the unemployment office to see if he is collecting his checks. He is getting government checks, but not for unemployment. No, Judge Freedman is still sitting on the bench, still a judge.

The Commission on Judicial Performance found he has shown an “utter disregard for the truth or falsity of salary affidavits he signed when he knew he had delayed matters pending.” Yet only 1 of the 7 panel members felt that dishonesty could not be tolerated in our judges. Only one felt that judges are so much a cornerstone of our courts and our society that a commitment to honesty and integrity within our judiciary is of paramount importance. With only one member voting to remove the judge from the bench, the prevailing vote was merely for severe public censure.

The Commission did not address the question of when people who are neither judges or Paris Hilton, but who also break the law, might also arrange to be sentenced to severe public censure.