Cops, Lawyers and the First Amendment - Alameda County Divorce Attorney Dominick Perrino Obtains Vexatious Litigant Order Against Pro Per

 

Vexatious Litigant Law Misuse Against Involuntarily Self-Represented Mother by Alameda County Judge Somnath Raj Chatterjee and Attorney Dominic Perrino Alleged

 

Sacramento Family Court Report Long-Form Investigative Reports

• Racketeering-Honest Services Fraud: Sacramento County Family Law Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers
• 3rd District COA Controversy: Third District Court of Appeal - Justice, Ideology & Conflicts of Interest
• Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye: Chief Justice Implicated in California Court Corruption Scandal
• California Attorney Misconduct Law: California Attorney Misconduct and Malpractice - Laws, Rules, Ethics and Moral Turpitude
• Sacramento Family Court Report Source Material Archive

CONTROVERSIAL JUDGE MATTHEW GARY PROSECUTED AND CONVICTED BY COMMISSION ON JUDICIAL PERFORMANCE - NOW THREE-STRIKER

Prominent judge misconduct defense attorney James Murphy arranges sweetheart plea bargain ("stipulation") ending CJP prosecution. Under plea bargain, Gary admits to multiple acts of misconduct, reportedly in exchange for reduced punishment.

More complaints against Gary reportedly are in the pipeline to the Commission on Judicial Performance. Sacramento Family Court Report is conducting a rolling investigation of misconduct by Gary. If you have made a complaint, or are planning to make a complaint against the judge, contact us.

Read more about Judge Matthew Gary:

• Judge Matthew Gary Serial Misconduct Saga: Court Watchdogs Stunned by Return of Controversial Judge-Clerk Team to Family Court.

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

JUDGE MATTHEW GARY PLEADS GUILTY BY "STIPULATION" IN MISCONDUCT PROSECUTION BY COMMISSION ON JUDICIAL PERFORMANCE

View the complete catalog of Sacramento Family Court Report posts about Judge Matthew Gary.

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

HORRIFIC FACTS OF NEW YORK DIVORCE CASE MIRROR TACTICS USED BY MANY SACRAMENTO COUNTY DIVORCE LAWYERS AND JUDGES, SAYS WHISTLEBLOWER

The federal lawsuit embedded with this post originates in a state court divorce case in New York. It describes illegal or unethical litigation tactics often seen in Sacramento County divorce and family court cases, according to local court watchdogs.

"The allegations in this new federal lawsuit, including misconduct by the judge, are virtually identical to what we've seen in Sacramento County for more than 20 years," said California judicial branch whistleblower Ulf Carlsson. "It is so bad here they made a documentary about the corruption. And Presiding Judge David De Alba has played deaf, dumb, and blind to the problems."

Learn more:

• Al D'Amato's ex-wife sues him for $100 million amid cutthroat custody battle. New York Daily News. 
• Alfonse D'Amato's estranged wife files suit against former senator. New York Newsday. 
• Former GOP senator accused of lying to cops to put his wife in a psych ward. Law & Crime.
• Sacramento County family law court operates as RICO racketeering enterprise, chare whistleblowers. Sacramento Family Court Report. 
• Divorce Corp documentary.  

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

SANTA ANA APPELLATE COURT JUDGE REPORTS ATTORNEY TO STATE BAR: MEANWHILE, SACRAMENTO FAMILY COURT JUDGES DEFY JUDICIAL ETHICS CANON 3D(2), IGNORE, COVER UP ATTORNEY MISCONDUCT

• Examples of systemic attorney misconduct in Sacramento family court.
• Judges are required - by law - to report serious attorney misconduct. 
• Common types of attorney misconduct. 
• Attorneys are required to tell the truth at all times, whether under oath or not. 
• Judge James Mize fails to report egregious misconduct by divorce attorney and temporary judge Paula Salinger. 
• Judge Thadd Blizzard fails to report egregious misconduct by divorce attorney and temporary judge Richard Sokol.
• Judges Thadd Blizzard and Matthew Gary fail to report attorneys who aided criminal child abductions. 
• Sacramento County Superior Court judges fail to report alleged racketeering and antitrust activity by divorce lawyers.  

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

16-YEAR RUN OF SERIAL MISCONDUCT BY CONTRA COSTA COUNTY JUDGE BRUCE MILLS BLAMED ON CODE OF SILENCE, COVER UPS BY COLLEAGUES

Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Bruce Mills is facing two new charges of misconduct by the Commission on Judicial Performance.

The CJP is the controversial state agency responsible for investigating complaints of judicial misconduct and for disciplining judges.

From the East Bay Times Report:

MARTINEZ — A Contra Costa judge with a history of ethics violations was charged with judicial misconduct that could warrant his removal from the bench, records obtained Tuesday show.

The two counts of misconduct include allegations that Judge Bruce C. Mills illegally doubled the sentence of a judicial rights advocate who Mills had found to be in contempt of court. Mills jailed the man for discussing his divorce online, a decision that First Amendment experts called, “outrageous” and a free speech violation.

Mills has an apparently unprecedented five prior misconduct actions against him, bringing his running total to seven separate offenses over 16 years. The first incident occurred in 2001 when Mills refused to appoint an attorney for a criminal defendant, and "made comments that disparaged the defendant's version of the case and fostered the appearance that the judge was attempting to pressure the defendant into pleading guilty," according to the CJP. 

JUDGE MATTHEW GARY REPORTEDLY IN SIGHTS OF STATE JUDICIAL OVERSIGHT AGENCY FOR ILLEGAL JAILING OF FAMILY COURT PARENTS

UPDATE MAY 14, 2020: Judge Matthew Gary Prosecuted and Convicted by Commission on Judicial Performance.

Sacramento County Superior Court watchdogs assert that Judge Matthew Gary is under investigation by the Commission on Judicial Performance and California State Auditor for ordering the illegal imprisonment of self-represented court users. In a similar case, Contra Costa County Judge Bruce Mills  recently was charged with ethics violations by the CJP. Gary reportedly has delayed his own day of reckoning with help from 3rd District Court of Appeal Presiding Justice Vance Raye, who has intervened to cover for Gary in the appellate court. 

• Disabled, self-represented parent jailed, financially ruined, and made homeless by Judge Matthew Gary.
• Whistleblower leaked courtroom security video of illegal in-court arrest ordered by Judge Matthew Gary. 
• Judge Matthew Gary articles catalog.

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

Commissioner Peter McBrien Misconduct Prosecution by the Commission on Judicial Performance: Records Catalog

• Judge Peter McBrien misconduct Commission on Judicial Performance prosecution documents catalog. 

• Judge Peter McBrien Sacramento County criminal prosecution documents catalog. 

• Sacramento News and Review: A view to kill for. 
• Sacramento News and Review: Peter McBrien articles catalog. 

Read our Special Report: Sacramento County Family Court Operates as RICO Racketeering Enterprise, Charge Whistleblowers.

Sacramento Superior Court Corruption Victims Take Advocacy to State Level at Commission on Judicial Performance

Sacramento County Superior Court whistleblowers this year have expanded their ranks, joined forces with similar groups in other counties, and taken their court reform campaign to the state level, according to Fatima Katumbusi, a group spokesperson. 

"Our local watchdogs have teamed up with the Center for Judicial Excellence, Court Reform LLC, the Commission on Judicial Performance Reform Project and other groups," Katumbusi explained. "We have testified at the State Assembly, raised awareness about court corruption at the Super Bowl, and engaged on social media. Mainstream media, including the Sacramento Bee, Daily Journal and San Francisco Chronicle have reported on several of our issues, and published opinion columns by people in our group," she added.

Yesterday, the San Francisco Chronicle published an op-ed criticizing secrecy at the state Commission on Judicial Performance, the government agency responsible for oversight and accountability of judges. The piece was authored by two court reform advocates, one of whom is a victim of alleged corruption in the family law division of Sacramento Superior Court.  

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Misconduct Victims Attend, Testify at State Assembly Hearing on Commission on Judicial Performance Problems

In the video clip above, Commission on Judicial Performance whistleblower and court reform advocate Joe Sweeney testifies at a California Assembly Budget Committee hearing on March 28, 2016. The CJP is responsible for judge oversight and accountability in the state. 

Several days before the hearing, Sweeney's court modernization and reform organization, Court Reform LLC, released a 78-page report which raised questions about CJP judicial misconduct statistical data and how the agency spends taxpayer funds.

Sacramento Superior Court Controversy: Judge Matthew Gary Orders Indigent, Disabled Parent To Pay Attorney Fee Sanctions Based on "Body Language"

Judge Matthew Gary assessed draconian attorney fee sanctions against a disabled, indigent family court parent without an attorney based on her "body language," according to court records from the case. 

The appellate brief excerpt embedded at the bottom of this post recounts one instance of Judge Matthew Gary's misconduct in the Susan Ferris case, in connection with an illegal attorney fee sanctions order. The appeal in the case is pending at the controversial 3rd District Court of Appeal in Sacramento. 

The embedded document package also includes the court reporter transcript from a hearing in the case recording that Gary ordered Ferris to pay $2,500 to the opposing attorney, Timothy Zeff, based on Ferris' "body language." Zeff's partner, Scott Buchanan, is a part-time judge in the same court. 

Court records indicate that the judge pro tem conflict of interest was not disclosed as required by state law. The conflict disclosure violation has occurred in hundreds of other cases involving temporary judge lawyers.

To continue reading, click Read more >> below: 

Sacramento Superior Court Corruption: Criminal Case Against Judge Peter McBrien - Investigator Report from Sacramento District Attorney

Criminal Investigation Against Judge Peter McBrien: Whistleblower Leaked Report from Sacramento County District Attorney's Office

In 2000, Judge Peter McBrien faced a felony
criminal charge for the destruction of
trees in a public park.

Friday Document Dump - SFCN Exclusive

The criminal investigation report of Judge Peter McBrien by Sacramento County District Attorney's Office Criminal Investigator Craig Tourte is embedded below. To view additional records from the 2000 prosecution and conviction of McBrien, click here. To read the Sacramento News and Review cover story about the case, click here. 

In 2009, McBrien was caught lying under oath to the Commission on Judicial Performance about the circumstances surrounding his 2000 criminal conviction. Court watchdogs allege that the judge also is responsible for a family court criminal racketeering enterprise involving collusion and kickbacks between judges and divorce attorneys who also work as part-time judges in the same court. Click here for our investigative report.   

McBrien retired from the bench in 2014, but was authorized to continue working as a family court commissioner by controversial Sacramento County Presiding Judge Robert Hight and troubled family court Supervising Judge James Mize. Hight testified as a character witness in support of McBrien at the judge's 2009 CJP prosecution. Mize also testified as a character witness for McBrien.

Criminal Investigation Report Judge Peter McBrien Sacramento Superior Court - Criminal Case Against Hon. Pe... by California Judicial Branch News Network - Independent Investigative Reporting on California Courts

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Misconduct: False Testimony Under Oath by Judge Peter J. McBrien at the Commission on Judicial Performance

Perjury and Lies by Judge Peter McBrien Documented by the Commission on Judicial Performance in Whistleblower Leaked Records

Wednesday Document Dump - SFCN Exclusive

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Peter McBrien's personal vendetta against Ulf 
Carlsson was detailed and reenacted in the 2014 documentary film Divorce Corp.

False testimony under oath by Judge Peter McBrien is documented by the Commission on Judicial Performance in this set of whistleblower leaked documents, embedded below. The CJP is the state agency responsible for the oversight and accountability of judges in California. 

McBrien's serial misconduct in the Carlsson divorce case led to his prosecution by the CJP and was chronicled in the 2014 documentary film Divorce Corp. To view a clip from the movie featuring an interview with Ulf Carlsson describing what a court of appeal judge called McBrien's "judicial reign of terror," click here.  

Sacramento Superior Court watchdogs allege that the judge also is responsible for a family court criminal racketeering enterprise involving collusion and kickbacks between judges and divorce lawyers who also work as part-time judges in the same court. Click here for our investigative report.  

McBrien retired from the bench in 2014, but was authorized to continue working as a family court commissioner by controversial Sacramento County Presiding Judge Robert Hight and troubled family court Supervising Judge James Mize. Hight testified as a character witness in support of McBrien at the judge's 2009 CJP prosecution. Mize also testified as a character witness for McBrien.   

Perjury and Lies by Judge Peter McBrien at the Commission on Judicial Performance: Whistleblower Leaked CJP... by California Judicial Branch News Network - Independent Investigative Reporting on California Courts

Sacramento Superior Court Controversy: Illegal Child Custody Order, Judge Approved Child Abduction Among Issues in Landmark Appeal

Judge Matthew Gary's authorization of a criminal child abduction by the client of attorney Timothy Zeff is one of several judicial misconduct issues raised in the Susan Ferris appeal. Zeff is the law partner of temporary judge divorce attorney Scott Buchanan. Court whistleblowers allege that judge pro tem attorneys receive preferential treatment that amounts to racketeering.  

Friday Document Dump

The opening brief filed in an appeal from orders issued by Judge Matthew Gary and embedded at the bottom of this post documents misconduct by the controversial judge in the Susan Ferris case. Court records show that Ferris - who is indigent, disabled and did not have a lawyer - was illegally stripped of her parental rights, subjected to draconian financial sanctions that made her homeless, and denied her constitutional rights to due process, access to the courts and equal protection.

For our complete coverage of the trial court proceedings which resulted in this landmark appeal, click here. For Sacramento Bee coverage of the case, click here. For complete coverage of Judge Matthew J. Gary, click here. To view an exclusive SFCN video of Ferris describing her ordeal in her own words, click here.

Judge Matthew Gary Misconduct, Collusion with Attorney, Accessory After the Fact to Criminal Child Abductio... by California Judicial Branch News Network

Judge Matthew Gary Misconduct: Illegal Arrest and Assault of Disabled Pro Per Video Gets National Coverage - Generates Record View Count at SFCN YouTube Channel

Leaked Sacramento Superior Court Security Video Goes Viral After Blurb by National Legal News Site Above the Law  

This blurb by the national legal news website Above the Law significantly spiked the view count of the whistleblower leaked courtroom security video posted at the Sacramento Family Court News YouTube Channel. 

A whistleblower leaked courtroom security video posted on YouTube by Sacramento Family Court News has logged a record shattering 800 views in less than a week. The view count is attributed to New York-based legal news website Above the Law coverage of our Aug. 21 article, which included the embedded video. By comparison, most videos at the SFCN YouTube Channel generally take a year or more to clock 800 views. SFCN Google Analytics statistical data show that the bulk of the Above the Law referrals originated at East Coast law offices in New York, Washington D.C., Boston, and Chicago. The Washington D.C. readers also included employees at federal government agencies, according to Google. The graphic security tape records the illegal courtroom arrest and assault of disabled, self-represented litigant and family court reform activist Robert Saunders. 

Controversial Judge Matthew J. Gary, responsible for ordering the unlawful arrest, has not been disciplined or otherwise held accountable by the Commission on Judicial Performance, the state agency responsible for the oversight of California judges. 

Click to visit Sacramento Family Court News on: Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Scribd, Vimeo, and Twitter. For additional reporting on the people and issues in this post, click the corresponding labels below:

Systemic Temporary Judge Conflict of Interest Disclosure Law Violations Confirmed by Supreme Court Committee

The Supreme Court Committee on Judicial Ethics Opinions has issued an important "Formal Opinion" confirming that conflict of interest disclosures by judges be made in writing when no court reporter is present.

Presiding Judge Robert Hight Responsible for Legal Error Tainting Hundreds of Cases

An attorney and Sacramento Family Court News reader provided the California Supreme Court Committee on Judicial Ethics Opinions Formal Opinion embedded at the end of this article. The opinion provides an additional legal reference confirming that family court judges must disclose potential conflicts of interest on the record. 

At court hearings where no court reporter is present, the disclosure must be in writing, according to the CJEO. A SFCN investigation last year revealed that family court judges were not in compliance with conflict of interest disclosure laws. Judges continue to ignore conflict laws, according to recent case audits conducted by SFCN.

To continue reading, click Read more >> below:

Sacramento Superior Court Judge Misconduct: Renewed Worldwide Interest in Judge Sharon Lueras Child Death Cases

International Interest in Ryder Salmen and Matthew Hernandez Deaths Remains Strong

In this KXTV Sacramento News10 broadcast about the Ryder Salmen and Matthew Hernandez deaths, reporter Gabriel Roxas credits Sacramento Family Court News for its exclusive coverage of a protest targeting Judge Sharon Lueras.

Recent readership data compiled by Sacramento Family Court News and Google Analytics indicates that worldwide interest in the Sacramento Family Court-related deaths of 8-month-old Ryder Salmen and 9-year-old Matthew Hernandez remains strong. In the past week, readers from cities in Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Sweden, South Africa, Spain, Estonia, Nigeria and other countries have all viewed articles about the case posted at SFCN. The parents and families of the victims blame Judge Sharon Lueras for the deaths. 

To continue reading, click Read more >> below...

Judge Misconduct: Criminal Case Against Hon. Peter J. McBrien - Informal Probation Order

Judge Peter McBrien Criminal Conviction for Destruction of Public Owned Trees at Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Ancil Hoffman Park - Leaked Probation Order

Tuesday Document Dump

Sacramento Family Court News has obtained the Order of Informal Probation and Minute Order from the criminal prosecution of Sacramento Family Court Judge Peter McBrien. McBrien was charged with felony vandalism for the destruction of oak trees at the Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Ancil Hoffman Park on October 28, 2000. The judge had the trees cut to improve the view from his home on a bluff above the park, according to Sacramento County District Attorney's Office investigator Craig Tourte. Click here to read the Sacramento News and Review cover story about the case. 

Less than 48 hours after the case was filed, McBrien worked out a plea bargain, pleading no contest to a misdemeanor violation of Penal Code § 384a, which prohibits the destruction or removal of public or private trees and other plants. As the probation order reflects, the judge paid a fine of $500 and restitution of $20,000, the estimated value of the public owned trees. McBrien made the payments the same day, and the probation was terminated. 

Many observers considered the plea agreement overly lenient and reflecting a form of professional courtesy because of McBrien's status as a judge and previous employment in law enforcement. The plea deal also reportedly outraged the Ancil Hoffman Park employees who initially discovered and investigated the crime. Before becoming a judge, McBrien worked for the California Department of Justice from 1972 to 1982, and was a member of the California District Attorneys Association from 1979 to 1987. For our complete coverage of Judge Peter McBrien click here. 

For additional articles about the people and issues in this post, click the corresponding labels below the document.   

Judge Peter McBrien Commission on Judicial Performance Whistleblower Leaked Transcript of Judicial Misconduct Prosecution - CJP Victoria Henley

Judge Peter McBrien Judicial Misconduct Prosecution Leaked Oral Argument Transcript

Friday Document Dump

Sacramento Family Court News has obtained a confidential court reporter transcript from the Commission on Judicial Performance prosecution of family court Judge Peter J. McBrien. The CJP is the government agency responsible for oversight and accountability of California judges. The document contains the complete 2009 oral argument by CJP prosecutor Andrew Blum detailing McBrien's misconduct in the Carlsson case. 

The published 3rd District opinion in Carlsson - authored by three appellate justices without past employment in Sacramento County Superior Court - "developed a certain notoriety" throughout the state, according to Sixth District Court of Appeal Presiding Justice Conrad L. Rushing. Justice Rushing characterized McBrien's conduct in the case as a "judicial reign of terror." To view Rushing's statements about the Carlsson case, click here. 

Court watchdogs point to the Carlsson case as one example of the preferential treatment family court judges provide attorneys who serve as temporary judges in the same court. Almost every ruling issued by McBrien in the case was in favor of the party represented by judge pro tem attorney Charlotte Keeley, according to the 3rd District. As a result of the appellate opinion, which overturned McBrien's decisions and ordered a new trial, the CJP charged McBrien with multiple violations of the Code of Judicial Ethics, including willful misconduct in office, persistent failure or inability to perform his duties, conduct prejudicial to the administration of justice that brings the judicial office into disrepute, and improper action within the meaning of article VI, section 18 of the California Constitution.

For further information about the McBrien CJP prosecution, and to view the confidential CJP transcript, click Read more >> below...

Vance W. Raye Third District Justice and Judge Peter McBrien Turn Over Court Operations to SCBA Family Law Section Lawyers

Leaked Transcript Indicates Vance Raye & Judge Peter McBrien Enabled Family Law Bar Control of Court in 1991

Vance Raye and Peter J. McBrien were the
architects of the current family court system.

In 1991, as a superior court judge, current 3rd District Court of Appeal Presiding Justice Vance Raye partnered with controversial family court Judge Peter J. McBrien and attorneys from the Sacramento County Bar Association Family Law Section in establishing the current, dysfunctional Sacramento Family Court system, according to the sworn testimony of McBrien at his 2009 judicial misconduct trial before the Commission on Judicial Performance. 

Behind closed doors and under oath, the judge provided explicit details about the 1991 origins of the present-day family court structure. 

In essence, McBrien and Raye agreed to effectively privatize public court operations to the specifications of private-sector attorneys in exchange for not having to run the court's settlement conference program. The SCBA Family Law Section agreed to run the settlement program provided they were given effective control over most court policies and procedures, including local court rules. 

As a result, the public court system was restructured to the specifications of local, private-sector attorneys, according to McBrien's testimony. To view McBrien's detailed description of the collusive public-private collaboration, posted online exclusively by SFCN, click here. To view an example of the same, current day collusion, click here. 

The 1991 restructuring plan began with a road trip suggested by the family law bar:   

"[T]he family law bar, and it was a fairly strong bar here in Sacramento, initiated the concept of a trip to Orange County and San Diego County to pick up some ideas about how their courts were structured. And myself and Judge Ridgeway and two family law attorneys made that trip and came back with various ideas of how to restructure the system," McBrien told the CJP. Click here to view.

Sacramento Family Court judges and local, Sacramento Bar
Association attorneys openly acknowledge their close relationship.

But before his sworn 2009 CJP testimony, McBrien gave the public a different account of the road trip and who restructured the family court system in 1991. As reported by the Daily Journal legal newspaper, McBrien dishonestly implied that the new system was conceived and implemented by judges alone after they made a county-paid "statewide tour" of family law courts. 

The judge omitted from the story the fact that the trip was initiated by the family law bar, and included two private-sector family law attorneys who took the county-paid tour with McBrien and the late Judge William Ridgeway. As the Daily Journal reported: 

"Around 1990, McBrien and a few other Sacramento judges went on a statewide tour of family law courts. At the time there were continual postponements of trials.

 'This is how we came up with the system today,' McBrien said. 'It was probably the best trip Sacramento County ever paid for.'

The judges changed the local system so that family law judges presided over both law and motion matters and trials, which used to be sent to a master calendar department and competed with criminal trials for scheduling.

'Now, if you're ready and unable to settle, chances are 99.9 percent that you are going out [to trial] the first time,' McBrien said. 'A lot of that is attributable to the willingness of the Sacramento bar to work as settlement counselors.'" Click here to view the Daily Journal report.

To continue reading the rest of this article, visit our special, updated 3rd District Court of Appeal page. Click here. For more on the alleged collusion between judges and attorneys who also serve as Sacramento Superior Court temporary judges and work as settlement counselors, visit our special judge pro tems page. For additional posts about the people and issues in this report, click on the corresponding labels below.