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, April 13, 2016

Meet the crooked Acting DA John Hubbard who is running for DA on the platform of "doing public good" - Part I


Here is Delaware County (NY) Acting DA John Hubbard (I believe, the picture is old and Mr. Hubbard looked a lot worse even when I last saw him about a year ago, but still - that's what he provided to newspapers as part of his election campaign):



Please, note that John Hubbard has an interesting feature - his steel-gray eyes turn blue when he is mad.  I know Mr. Hubbard for 17 years, saw it many times.  When he was talking to me, his eyes were mostly blue, by the way :).  Beautiful color :).

I wrote on this blog about John Hubbard's peculiar views on certain criminal laws.

I also wrote on this blog about John Hubbard's corruptness and lack of integrity in prosecuting criminal cases brought not against a nephew of the DA's investigator Jeff Bowie, but against the victim of that nephew, on falsified evidence - charges were, one acquitted by jury, one dismissed after revelation that Judge Gumo, of Delhi Town Court, lied under oath and issued an invalid warrant which invalidated a whole criminal case that Hubbard/Northrup stubbornly litigated for 1.5 years, at taxpayers' expense.

I also wrote on this blog earlier about the conflict of interest that John Hubbard or Delaware County then-District Attorney employing John Hubbard never disclosed while prosecuting criminal cases and appearing as a necessary party in child abuse cases in front of now-retired Judge Carl F. Becker - that John Hubbard was Becker's law partner.

It was reported first by Walton Reporter in January of 2016, without mentioning that John Hubbard, Richard Northrup, or Carl Becker never disclosed such conflicts of interest in child abuse or criminal proceedings, as required by ethical rules.

Now that John Hubbard officially started his election campaign at the beginning of April, 2016, Hubbard pushes his job for Becker as evidence of his alleged experience in private practice, see here and here.

As to Hubbard's pledge to make life safer for Delaware County residents - it is clear that the pledge is a sham.

I wrote in September of 2014, and then up to this time, about an attempted murderer Derek Bowie who Northrup and Hubbard refused to prosecute because he was the nephew of the DA's investigator Jeff Bowie.

I wrote in August of 2015 about a U.S. Marine, a favorite of Judge Becker, who made a death threat against Becker's enemy Barbara O'Sullivan, and John Hubbard bent over backwards to notify Ryan Adams before the arrest of the pending arrest so that he could escape if he wanted to, and then to have his charges dismissed, by use of fraud and by violating his own policy that he announced to me personally, even in cases involving violations, not violent crimes, the "policy" being that Hubbard allegedly never agrees to ACDs (adjournments in contemplation of dismissal) without agreement from the alleged victim.

That is baloney.  When the alleged victim is a government critic, especially a critic of Hubbard's beloved former law partner and benefactor Becker - all policies and all laws are off for Hubbard, and that's not what you want to see in your District Attorney.

I also wrote that John Hubbard and his boss Richard Northrup refused to investigate a burglary/arson in our home, and Northrup recused from that case when I confronted him before his elections.

I wrote here about Hubbard openly refusing to investigate and prosecute Judge Becker and public officials from Delaware County Board of Elections for an E-felony, let's say, filing a false public document, PL 175.35, among other possible criminal charges, for filing a false certification of Becker's alleged victory in elections of 2002, in 2011, 9 years after the elections, and 7 years after all original documents from those elections to be used for such a certifications, were gone.


Hubbard did not tell me at the time I asked him personally to investigate and prosecute Becker and the two public officials who filed a false certificate of Becker's elections, that Hubbard had a conflict of interest, having been Becker's law partner as per Walton Reporter (or associate, as per press releases in Hubbard's election campaign, makes no difference for purposes of conflict of interest).

Hubbard, a public prosecutor, simply asked me - "WHY DO YOU NEED TO DO THAT?"

Do what? Ask a prosecutor to prosecute crimes?  An odd request, I admit, when it concerns prosecution of public corruption in Delaware County.

Hubbard also dragged on a criminal case I handled for a client when he knew for a fact that his star witness disappeared in New York City (actually, Social Services obliged Hubbard by putting that witness on the bus to NYC) and will not be available for trial.

Hubbard stubbornly refused to agree to dismissal of charges, and instead colluded with Delhi Town Judge Gumo, so Gumo adjourned the jury trial because Gumo, a practicing attorney as well as a part-time judge, allegedly had a child neglect case that trumped his obligation to preside over a jury trial.

I did not buy the adjournment and demanded to assign another judge - any judge - but allow the jury trial to proceed.  And, I notified the County Court of Hubbard's misconduct, that he proceeds with a jury trial, and now manipulates adjournments, because his witness is not available.

Instead of a new judge assigned, Hubbard then agreed to the dismissal of the case.

He bluffed until the end - same as John Muehl, of Otsego County, did when his witness went missing - he tried to intimidate my client, charged with a B felony, into a guilty plea until he could bluff no more.  He acknowledged the lack of the main witness just before trial.

I understand, bluffing is the signature behavior of prosecutors in such circumstances, but it is a wasteful behavior as to taxpayer money (jury pools are convened, jury summonses are issued, people have to make arrangements), and it is fraudulent behavior for a public prosecutor, and prosecutorial misconduct to proceed on charges you know you cannot maintain.

Here are two documents upon which Hubbard refused to prosecute his former law partner Carl Becker and Becker's two accomplices in commission of an E-felony under PL 175.35, filing a falsified document with intent to defraud a public agency.

Here is a little timeline.

August 17, 2010.

The Delaware County Board of Elections answers my Freedom of Information Request regarding documents proving legitimacy of Becker's elections in 2002.

The Board says that they did not have, as of August 17, 2010, information about documents proving legitimacy of Becker's 2002 election at that time - and no certificate of election was filed by Becker immediately after his election, as was required by law to legitimately enter his service as a judge.


In March of 2011, I make a motion on behalf of a pro bono client in Family Court, to vacate all decision of Carl Becker because he is not a legitimate judge.

After I made the motion, on March 21, 2011 (see time stamp on document below)  Becker's accomplices


  • Paula Shermernhorn, and
  • William J. Campbell
file a certificate of elections below.




Of course, the certificate is false because, see above response of the Delaware County Board of Elections, the Board of Elections did not have documents any more upon which to base their certification.

A certification cannot be based on copies or on memories.

So, the document that has been filed on behalf of Becker by Paula Shermerhorn and William Campbell, constituted a commission of an E-felony under PL 175.35, because, using that certification, Becker has proven his legitimacy, received salary based on that falsified certification over 10 years, from 2002 to 2012



then won second election in 2012 claiming, also fraudulently, how good a judge he was in 2002-2012, and is now receiving retirement benefits.

And - non-prosecution of Becker and his accomplices was a gift from Hubbard and Northrup.

After all, when Becker "retired", he supported Northrup in his election and even swore him into office - while being a private attorney and having no authority to do that - demonstrating a close personal relationship to Northrup, too.

And, when Becker "retired" and Northrup was elected judge in his place, Hubbard succeeded Northrup in his position as a DA - at least temporarily, as an Acting DA, and is now using that position to advance himself in elections for the DA's office.

And, one does not prosecute the Republican Commissioner of Elections for a felony when both the DA and the Chief ADA want to run for public office on a Republican ticket.

So, Becker owes Hubbard and Northrup.

And Campbell, the Commissioner of Delaware County Board of Elections, owes Northrup and Hubbard.

Which puts up a big question - how legitimate are elections where the Commissioner is a person who has likely committed a felony, but whom the prosecutor refused to prosecute in the hopes of future elections.

As a bottom line of this story, when you hear and read about Hubbard's pledges to "make community safe" and that he "cares about public service", you will know that all Hubbard is seeking to do is - get into office that increases his salary from $79,716 per year


to $151,659 per year, a $71,943 increase, or, a 90% increase:


In other words, with election to the position of DA, John Hubbard's salary nearly doubles, and he gets the ultimate power to either charge or not charge local people with crimes, including felonies, and thus keep his friends happy and himself in power and well-supported.

Hubbard's run for office has NOTHING to do with his desire to serve people.

Had he had such a desire, he wouldn't be involved in fraudulent schemes and non-disclosures of conflicts of interests, as described above.

Had he had such a desire, he would have prosecuted corrupt public officials of Delaware County for their shenanigans with giving away the County money without public bidding, millions of dollars of those.

Or, does he have a cut that makes him focusing suddenly on heroin traffic and not public corruption?  Never public corruption?

Delaware County?  Public corruption? Cannot be.

Voters, beware.

You don't need another of Becker's dishonest hatchlings on your neck.

You don't need to give 4-year power to prosecute you to an already corrupt public officer who assures him he - what did he say in his press release? - "Giving back to our community has always been important to me" - giving to CERTAIN MEMBERS of the local community is certainly important to Hubbard.

Like to Becker.

Like to Campbell.

Like to Delaware County government happily immersed in giving friends and relatives and their businesses multi-million contracts, raising property taxes, taking people's homes in foreclosures, and "serving, serving, serving".  Themselves only.

Do not power in the hands of an already corrupt man.

He will not get cleaner from more power.


3 comments:

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  2. More evidence of DA John Hubbard's and other local corruption...

    https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10155005567551546&id=509911545

    ReplyDelete
  3. I feel up state courts are corrupt as well I was jumped at a bar with witnesses saying so had my teeth knocked out and head trauma and they got off with harassment with me having to pay for all my medical bills..

    ReplyDelete