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Sunday, November 27, 2005

The Parochial Parody... Michigan Family Courts.

As I was thumbing through a well-known text known as Burton's Legal Thesaurus; 3rd Edition I ran across two very common words that had a slew of appropriate replacements for describing many person's encounters with "Family Law" in Michigan. Even moreso with people describing their experiences with the Kent County Friend of the Court. The arbitrary decisions of these courts and the flawed processes that they implement to carry out their predetermined outcomes, can be described as both "parochial" in nature and a "parody."

Parochial, adjective. biased, dogmatic, fanatical, hidebound, illiberal, insular, intolerant, jaundiced, limited, literal, narrow, narrow-minded, one-sided, opinionated, opinionative, orthodox, parochialis, partial, partisan, predisposed, prejudiced, prepossessed, provincial, regional, restricted to small area, restricted to small scope, sectarian, small-minded, unbending, uncatholic, unimaginative, unliberal, untolerating.

Parody, noun. amphigory, apery, buffoonery, burlesque, caricature, cartoon, comical representation, distortion, exaggeration, farce, imitation, lampoon, ludicrous imitation, mime, mimicry, mockery, mummery, pasquinade, ridicula imitatio, ridicule, satire, squib, travesty.

One could certainly apply many of the words interchangeably with a recent hearing before a Kent County Circuit Court Referee, whereas the parochial and amphigory proceedings were a mere mockery of common sense and justice.

The appearance of process, for the sake of some already predetermined outcome, is not process at all. Let me know your thoughts on appropriate words concerning the various Judge's that use their foc staff to achieve arbitrary and unsupported rulings.

Thursday, November 24, 2005

What are Court Watchers?

Court Watchers are the eyes and ears of the public that observe and report the (mis) conduct of various Judicial Officers. In family law, the practice of court watching extends to include the monitoring of “Referees” and other “officers and employees” that have judicial influence. Court Watchers are concerned wit h how courts are responding to various social issues that have come into view of the Judicial system and aim to report their observations to the public.

Existing Court Watching programs monitor anything from audibility of proceedings to the behavior of court personnel as well as alleged misconduct and gender bias in the courts. The premise of most community programs is that while judges, jurors, and court personnel want to do the right thing, having residents, and citizens evaluating court proceedings encourages impartiality for parties involved in court cases and holds courts accountable to the communities they serve when those officials act in a arbitrary or unethical manner.

Court Watchers get involved when there are documented allegations of misconduct by court officials within a particular case or when there is moderate dissent about a particular official and his/her exercise of authority in an arbitrary fashion. Once Court Watchers get involved, the concern of how officers of the court perform their duty in upholding their Oaths to protect the Federal and State Constitution comes into view. Questions such as “Has Due Process been served in this hearing?” become valid questions to the Court Watchers, who many times have been exposed to adequate number of hearings to provide solid documentary evidence to the major questions that either support or rebuke allegations of (mis) conduct.

If you would like to get involved with a Michigan Court Watching program in your community, please contact us at courtwatchers@micustody.org. If you would like file a public complaint against an official and would like to provide documentary evidence to support your claims, please send your complete information to judicialcomplaint@micustody.org.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Kent County Friend of the Court/ Michigan Friend of the Court. The Incompetency, the Conflict, and Removing the Pork.

Many people have questioned the competency of the friend of the court [offices]/[employees] located around the state of Michigan. This is not a problem that affects only one person, but a serious problem that has affected many families involved in Domestic Relations matters involving their children and other private affairs of dissolving couples. The foc works diligenty to secure their own and their employer's interests first. I have seen countless complaints, countless negative articles, and have had my own experiences specifically. I know I have certainly questioned the competency of the Kent County friend of the court and their employer, the 17th Judicial Circuit since their disastrous involvement in my case, resulting from a "consent" order where I was trapped awaiting a promised foc investigation that was over a YEAR LATE and a continuous assault of contempt and other actions from Judge Steven M. Pestka, Attorney Peter Walsh, the foc, and now Judge G. Patrick Hillary, to place an unfair advantage against me and causing my children to remain in a city that was foreign to them. These people serve themselves in the name of our children.

I would encourage you to read my NOW pending Motion to Suspend Automatic Enforcement and Strike All Proceedings [involving the foc] in my case that Judge G. Patrick Hillary adjourned on Oct. 28, 2005 against my will and to my belief, improperly. This clearly shows a collaborative effort between the Judge and the foc to interfere with my other pending matters! This is not a suprise because the foc is the employee and the Judicial Circuit is the employer, and they are looking out for each other. Click here for the Motion and here for the Order and then look at my subsequent letter requesting reconsideration on the Judge's action. Needless to say the Judge did not respond and further collaborated against me by issuing a new Order to Show Cause after the last one had been Stayed. The excess Pork needs to be removed, I am trying to do my part.

THE CONFLICT OF INTEREST

Here is a short and simple fact. "The friend of the court is an employee of the circuit in the judicial circuit served by the friend of the court" _MCLA 552.503(4).

The friend of the court, as an agent or employee of the judges in your case, owes its primary fiduciary duties to its employer, which is not "the people." The friend of the court has a duty of loyalty and a duty to provide information to the judges involved with your case. Many people have eluded to misconduct of the various friend of the courts located throughout Michigan and, as a matter of fact, I BELIEVE THEM! The friend of the court wants its employer and its own office to receive operational money in the form of Federal Incentive Payments provided by our Federal Government. This means the higher and more support orders that a particular County has achieved and collects on, the more money that their County receives as a direct result. Both Federal Code and Michigan Statute lay out the "incentive programs." Title 42 USC 666 and MCLA 400.18a respectively.

Under sec. 6 of the Friend of the Court Act of 1982, ..."the friend of the court is only required to perform activities under this act or the support and parenting time enforcement act when a party in that case has requested title IV-D services." Most people do not even know what a Title IV-D service is, or that the friend of the court is really an employee obligated to the Judicial circuit in which it serves, but yet everyone unless they have fought like hell practically has an open "foc case" running side by side with their Family Court proceedings. This is an outright ploy to affect performance numbers and achieve more money for the County. The more open cases, the more money they are involved with regarding parents, the more money they are awarded for performance. Simple math, get everyone in the program, then claim that they are so successful, even the majority of people have no idea how to get out from underneath the "Automatic Enforcement" and "shakedown Extortion" tactics that the foc is engaged in to get your money. The most common shakedown method is for the foc to incarcerate you when you have no money, knowing that friends and family, frantic and not knowing what is happening, will "bail you out" of jail. In fact, the foc many times forces people to borrow more and more money or face a shakedown.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

What can you do? Help me help you. Attempt to opt-out, attempt to file Motions to Disqualify, and file grievances against the various foc staff that are engaged in shakedown processes. File Judicial Tenure Complaints against the Judges and Referees when they blatantly disregard the court rules, the statutues, and the Constitution they are charged with upholding. Send me copies of these efforts and the results. I am currently compiling a comprehensive list of employees that are engaged in these behaviors as it was found out that some of your grievances would be returned to you and not reported in the annual reports to the legislature. If you want your grievances and statements aired, simply send me an email to laryholland@sbcglobal.net and I will provide you with a fax number and/or a mailing address and procedure to get your grievances and stories heard. The friend of the court, despite their obvious conflict of interests, proceed with shaking down individuals that don't understand their rights, they pray on you. Let us air our grievances to the legislature and to the public and prevent these administrative processes from taking away our rights. Stand Up Today by not letting these derelict employees of the court grow to an administrative agency, costing the tax-payers and families millions. Stand Up Today by learning more about your rights and how the friend of the court frequently violates your rights and use your children and your fears against you to shake you down, so they can justify their own jobs and get more money for their County.

Saturday, November 12, 2005

Are you going to let them do this to you?

Kent County Circuit Court and its staff are monitoring
Internet activities of Michigan residents.

Title: Kent County Circuit Court and its staff are
monitoring Internet activities of Michigan residents.
Release Date: 2005-11-12 00:42:48
Summary: Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Kent County
Circuit Court and Kent County friend of the court
(foc) are monitoring Internet activities of
individuals involved in family court cases within
their jurisdiction or that are speaking out against them.
For_Immediate_Release:

PRESS RELEASE: Kent County Circuit Court and friend of
the court staff monitoring Internet Activities of
Michigan residents.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Grand Rapids, Michigan. The
Kent County Circuit Court and Kent County friend of
the court (foc) staff have been monitoring Internet
activities of individuals involved in family court
cases within their jurisdiction as well as court
reform activities.

“The Kent County foc, employed by the Kent County
Circuit Court bench, is working to protect what they
believe their employer’s interests are. The Kent
County foc is essentially taking their marching orders
apparently from the bench and providing information to
the bench behind the scenes. The conduct of these
officials has led me to believe they act unethically
in discharging their duties” states Lary Holland.
Holland is an individual involved in a domestic
relations case involving his two children and has been
outspoken to the operating procedures of the Kent
County Circuit Court Family Division, including their
friend of the court operations since late 2003.

Records produced by Holland demonstrated that
officials for the Kent County Family Division have
been monitoring a website accessible at
www.laryholland.org, visiting the website well over
one thousand times in the past few months. Upon
inspection of the address, the website provides
detailed information relating to the domestic
relations matter, the parties, attorneys, and
associated proceedings surrounding his two children.
“It certainly raises serious questions why the court
officials are involved with monitoring the site
[www.laryholland.org] which contains subject matter
pertaining to the case at hand as well as other issues
that have not been resolved yet” states Holland.

Holland indicated a growing number of individual
stories have been directed to him from people
experiencing similar situations , as described in the
website, of possible misconduct by court officials
involved in cases both in Kent County and throughout
Michigan. “Many people just don’t know where to turn
when they are faced with courts that are more
concerned with getting paid then what is best for
children.” Holland was able to demonstrate that there
exists a conflict of interest between State courts and
individuals because for every dollar collected by
courts they receive additional monies from the Federal
government, making child support profitable for State
courts and their foc employees. “It’s how they get
paid. High support orders, high arrearages, and long
delays mean more Federal money to justify their [foc
and judges] existence,” says Holland, when referring
to the various incentive programs established by the
Welfare Reforms of the Clinton years.

“The courts are uncomfortable with people being able
to collectively speak out on issues that can affect
their pockets. Why else would they be monitoring a
website pertaining to their possible misconduct while
being involved with my case?,” states Holland.

For more information pertaining to the Kent County
Family Division, including the friend of the court,
filings in the court, orders, attorneys, and other
information surrounding family issues are available at
www.laryholland.org.

For more details:
To contact the author:
5180 Cedar Lake Rd.
Oscoda, MI 48750
http://www.laryholland.org
989.747.0079

Keywords: Kent County Circuit Court and its staff are
monitoring Internet activities of Michigan residents.

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