THE EVOLUTION OF JUDICIAL TYRANNY IN THE UNITED STATES:

"If the judges interpret the laws themselves, and suffer none else to interpret, they may easily make, of the laws, [a shredded] shipman's hose!" - King James I of England, around 1616.

“No class of the community ought to be allowed freer scope in the expression or publication of opinions as to the capacity, impartiality or integrity of judges than members of the bar. They have the best opportunities of observing and forming a correct judgment. They are in constant attendance on the courts. Hundreds of those who are called on to vote never enter a court-house, or if they do, it is only at intervals as jurors, witnesses or parties. To say that an attorney can only act or speak on this subject under liability to be called to account and to be deprived of his profession and livelihood by the very judge or judges whom he may consider it his duty to attack and expose, is a position too monstrous to be entertained for a moment under our present system,” Justice Sharwood in Ex Parte Steinman and Hensel, 95 Pa 220, 238-39 (1880).

“This case illustrates to me the serious consequences to the Bar itself of not affording the full protections of the First Amendment to its applicants for admission. For this record shows that [the rejected attorney candidate] has many of the qualities that are needed in the American Bar. It shows not only that [the rejected attorney candidate] has followed a high moral, ethical and patriotic course in all of the activities of his life, but also that he combines these more common virtues with the uncommon virtue of courage to stand by his principles at any cost.

It is such men as these who have most greatly honored the profession of the law. The legal profession will lose much of its nobility and its glory if it is not constantly replenished with lawyers like these. To force the Bar to become a group of thoroughly orthodox, time-serving, government-fearing individuals is to humiliate and degrade it.” In Re Anastaplo, 18 Ill. 2d 182, 163 N.E.2d 429 (1959), cert. granted, 362 U.S. 968 (1960), affirmed over strong dissent, 366 U.S. 82 (1961), Justice Black, Chief Justice Douglas and Justice Brennan, dissenting.

" I do not believe that the practice of law is a "privilege" which empowers Government to deny lawyers their constitutional rights. The mere fact that a lawyer has important responsibilities in society does not require or even permit the State to deprive him of those protections of freedom set out in the Bill of Rights for the precise purpose of insuring the independence of the individual against the Government and those acting for the Government”. Lathrop v Donohue, 367 US 820 (1961), Justice Black, dissenting.

"The legal profession must take great care not to emulate the many occupational groups that have managed to convert licensure from a sharp weapon of public defense into blunt instrument of self-enrichment". Walter Gellhorn, "The Abuse of Occupational Licensing", University of Chicago Law Review, Volume 44 Issue 1, September of 1976.

“Because the law requires that judges no matter how corrupt, who do not act in the clear absence of jurisdiction while performing a judicial act, are immune from suit, former Judge Ciavarella will escape liability for the vast majority of his conduct in this action. This is, to be sure, against the popular will, but it is the very oath which he is alleged to have so indecently, cavalierly, baselessly and willfully violated for personal gain that requires this Court to find him immune from suit”, District Judge A. Richard Caputo in H.T., et al, v. Ciavarella, Jr, et al, Case No. 3:09-cv-00286-ARC in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Document 336, page 18, November 20, 2009. This is about judges who were sentencing kids to juvenile detention for kickbacks.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

Marjorie Miller, the (conflicted) revolutionary of Delaware County, New York, and other members of the board of Delaware Opportunities, Inc.

In the documents provided by the New York State Comptroller's office in answer to my FOIL request, there was an interview report of the then member of the Delaware County Board of Supervisors Marjorie Miller, as well as interview reports of other people referencing Marjorie Miller.

 Marjorie Miller was listed as one of the members of the Delaware County Board of Supervisors who is also on the board of directors of Delaware County's largest no-bid contractor the Delaware Opportunities (a non-profit corporation), which is a conflict of interest, and which was not disclosed by Ms. Miller.

I have personally researched, as part of a court case, Ms. Miller's incestous relationship, along with other local public officials, with Delaware Opportunities.

 Ms. Miller has been also reported in 2013 in some controversy in her own town of Middletown in allegedly sneaking in a new town law bypassing the necessary steps as to introduction of that law, see her video-interview here.

 Against this background, it was interesting to see Ms. Miller described by other Delaware County officials and employees interviewed by the office of the New York State Comptroller as a "troublemaker" and rubble-rouser.

 Here is the full interview report of Marjorie Miller provided to me by the NYS Comptroller's Office:








What can I say...

 The report reflects, among other problems: 

  • in-fighting in the Board of Supervisors, 
  • branding members of the Board who complain about improper procedures or not following proper procedures as "trouble-making", 
  • obtaining "services" from friends of members of the board at inflated rates without public bidding;
  • awarding contracts to friends of members of the board;
  • encouraging members of the board to approve budget proposals without reading them, 
  •  removing members of the board from legislative duties (which is not possible under the law) when they start to voice concerns about improper actions of the Board and its members

Marjorie Miller was voted out of the office of Middletown Town Supervisor in this past election for the term starting 2016, but at this time, she still remains Middletown Town Supervisor and member of Delaware County Board of Supervisors.

 Here is the current list of the Board of Directors of Delaware Opportunities that I obtained just now from the Corporation's website:




The May 2015 audit of the New York State Comptroller mentioned conflicts of interest of  FOUR Delaware County Supervisors

  1. Samuel Rowe
  2. Wayne Marshfield
  3. Tina Mole, and
  4. Marjorie Miller
who combined their position as legislators of the Delaware County budget with their positions on the Board of Directors of the largest Delaware County's no-bid vendor (I will dedicate a separate blog to contracts of Delaware Opportunities).

 Out of the four, three remain on the Board of Directors of Delaware Opportunities, Inc., moreover, Delaware County Supervisor Wayne Marshfield is the corporation's Teasurer and Delaware County Supervisor Tina Mole is the corporation's vice-president.

 Here is information for all current members of Delaware Opportunities, Inc. Board of Directors (at least, what I could find on the Internet):

No. 1.  Frank Bachler - a local farmer who was awarded "a senior citizen of the year" award of 2013 by Delaware County Office of the Aging;

No. 2 Edward DuVal - died on August 22, 2015, but 4 months after his death is still listed as member of the Board of Directors.

Edward DuVal was, according to his obituary, an employee of the NYS Department of Corrections for 22 years.

 Edward DuVal's greatest reported accomplishment, according to his obituary, was that for 30 years he was a recoverING (not recoverED) alcoholic.  That was a great person to appoint to handle public funds (Delaware Opportunities is the largest no-bid contractor of the Delaware County).

No. 3  Arthur Edel - a Colchester Town Justice who handles evictions of tenants sponsored by Delaware Opportunities Inc. where he sits on the Board of Directors. 

 No. 4  James Ellis - a SUNY professor and member of Delaware County Board of Supervisors for the town of Meredith, NY; Delaware County Board of Supervisors is a legislative body that votes for the budget that funds operations of Delaware Opportunities, Inc., Delaware County's largest no-bid vendor.

 No. 5 Thomas Hynes - member of the Delaware County Board of Supervisors, for the town of Roxbury;

No. 6  Peggy Kearney - president of Senior Club, Fleishmanns, NY;  a "collaborative" in projects funded by NYS Department of Transportation

No. 7 Jean Krzyston - Town of Delhi Health Officer and, reportedly, a relative (wife?) to Village of Delhi council member Matthew Krzyston

 No. 8 Ann LePinnet - according to her own Facebook profile and according to seethroughny.net, a resident of Walton, NY and a retired (as of 7/1/2010) teacher from Walton Central School

No. 9 Wayne Marshfield - a Delaware County Supervisor; 

No. 10 Steve McKeegan - SUNY Delhi professor of applied technologies, and, upon information and belief, brother of attorney Bruce McKeegan, law school buddy of NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo and school attorney for Delhi and Andes Central School District involved in misappropriation of school funds, but not disciplined or prosecuted, obviously because of high protection by Cuomo.

No. 11 Marjorie Miller - Delaware County Supervisor;

No. 12 Tina Mole (Vice-President) - Delaware County Supervisor;

No. 13 Shirley Niebanck - a lady reportedly in her 80s;

No. 14 Nancy Olechnowicz - a teacher in Delhi Central School District (Elementary School) (personal knowledge, of a few years back) who, by her reports as a mandatory reporter, may be supplying children into foster care "served" by her corporation Delaware Opportunities Inc.

Here is the scan I took of Nancy Olechnowicz's LinkedIn profile today.

No. 15 Thomas Schimmerling - a local attorney in Delhi, NY who was was reported at a Village of Delhi meeting of the Board of Supervisors where I was present as a non-payer of over $14,000 in back taxes in the village of Delhi for over 8 years, using the loophole in the Delhi Village law that does not allow enforcement of delinquent taxes against non-payers' properties.  

Such a dishonest man who fails to pay over $14,000 for 8 years into public coffers of a poor town where he lives, is really a good candidate to sit on a Board of Director of a non-profit handling millions of dollars in public funds.

 Had that amount been in federal taxes, Schimmerling would be sitting in federal prison by this time and long disbarred.

Under the corrupt system of non-prosecution of "blue blood" attorneys who provide financial benefits to government officials, Schimmerling sits, but on a board of directors of a non-profit corporation, helping a local judge, four county supervisors and the relative of a councilman of the Village of Delhi engage in activities in violation of federal civil and criminal Sherman Act.

He can be trusted with that task for sure.

No. 16  Jeff Staples (Secretary) - a pastor of the First Baptist Church in Delhi, NY.  I guess, the Christian faith allows the Reverend to record all the self-dealings of local public officials at the expense of the poor county taxpayers.

 What a nest of corruption...










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