MS. SUSAN SKIPP'S TESTIMONY BEFORE THE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE ON JANUARY 14, 2013

Testimony Jan 14, 2013

In opposition to Judge Robert Resha's reappointment:

Sen. Meyer before I begin, I'd like to comment on some issues raised during this hearing. Given your investigatory background, here's something worth investigating. With the exception of high noon shootouts, there is no hyperbole in the statement that Family Court in Connecticut is the Wild West, replete with racketeering and extortion; not only involving judges and attorneys, but mental health providers appointed by court. See addendum to this. Sen Doyle, the GAL issue is part of this corruption.

 A GAL is a function of the family court, a judiciary function. Some examples of this corruption and collusion are:

How can an arm of the judiciary, a GAL obstruct a DCF investigation which is an executive function? Also family GALs have no oversight; the only way of grievance is to file a complaint against an attorney, yet a GAL is not regarded as attorney.

Family court GALs aside from no oversight are given immunity - this in itself is a violation of the constitution as only an office, not a person can have immunity. Further, I was billed over 100k for a GAL who was neither agreed to or even appointed! She provided no time sheets, no affidavits of fees. The court just ordered payment for a services that were not even performed.

The reason I am before you is to inform you that Judge Resha is not worthy of promotion to senior judge. He is a metaphor for the existential crisis that faces the state's court system, especially in Family Court. The graft, corruption, collusion and unlawfulness that plagues Connecticut's Family Court System, an industry of incentivized conflict to extract as much money as possible from litigants, is symbolized by Judge Robert Resha.

I am speaking for many who have been subject to his court and fear further retribution as I have incurred retributive consequences when questioning the unlawful actions that have taken place in Judge Resha's court. Since he is recused, I can speak, although I still fear further retaliation.

Judge Resha cannot conduct court in accordance with the law of the people of Connecticut, nor respect the rules of practice nor the code of evidence. I invite anyone to consult my file UWY FA 10-422992s to find extensive examples of trier misconduct and collusion with attorneys. I have been denied due process, participatorial and testimonial access -and even the right to an attorney in Judge Resha's court room. Aside from allowing a non litigant to sue a defendant and be awarded sanctions in his court, Resha has ignored blatant child abuse in testimony of four mandated reporters. On another occasion In March 2012, Judge Resha ruled that picking up a child by the hair does not constitute abuse.

Judge Resha made an order about gun safety in my former husband's home, twice in February 2011 and yet did nothing when my former husband refused to cooperate with weapons surrender in a restraining order when it was before his court on August 1, 2011; even when testimony provided the still illegal status of weapons. Judge Resha continues to harm victims of domestic and family violence with abuse by proxy.

Since no one really seems to care --beyond ineffective committees-- to address gender bias in court, domestic and family violence, I will cite what people seem to care about because it is certainly not the safety and well being of my children and me. Here is something more palatable than the rampant child abuse and pedophilia that is unaddressed in not only Resha's, but many family courts in Connecticut:

Judge Resha violated the constitutional rights of Danbury Hospital when he made a judicial finding of fact on 28 December 2011, in which he found that Danbury Hospital did engage in unethical and illegal behaviour by terminating the employment of Dr. Shawn Tittle for speech of a third party. He did this in a proceeding of family matters.

However, when he made this ruling, Danbury Hospital was not party to the proceedings. No notice or summons for a complaint of the Hospital's conduct regarding employment law was given to Danbury Hospital.

No evidence entered on the record revealed the basis for the finding in regard to the termination of Dr. Tittle. Danbury Hospital gave no testimony as no representative from the Hospital was before Judge Resha. The Code of Evidence was willfully neglected by the judge.

Judge Resha has no knowledge of why or how Danbury Hospital terminated employment of Dr. Tittle. The court record contains no evidence. Yet this judge has the ability to create facts of the court where none exist. Then this determination was used to deny me my fundamental constitutional rights as a parent.

The judge made a conclusion that was not based on facts. He made many such conclusions based on plaintiff's allegations rendering them as facts without evidence and assailing my character thus affecting my professional life. The judge violated Canon and conscience in conducting a court hearing, without concern for proper proceedings, constitutional protections nor simple decency.

The State does not need to populate the bench with persons such as Robert Resha. He is merely tyranny personified. His conduct is an affront to the taxpayers of Connecticut.

I ask you today not to promote this mistake of jurisprudence to the level of senior judge. He deserves censure and to be thrown off the bench.

If there is any standard of care in the people's selection of its judges, then Robert Resha should not be selected as a senior judge by honest act of the people of this State. Our citizens deserve better, and it is your duty to serve the citizens. Having been only recently aware of the ability of making a complaint on a judge, consider this a complaint that I will follow up in writing.

Thank you in advance for not selecting Robert Resha for a position of senior judge in our state. It is difficult to encapsulate 18 months of egregious misconduct into three minutes.

Again, Please read for further issues plaguing court: the racketeering, collusion and extortion that takes place between judges lawyers and mental health providers. This is typical of my case.

Susan Skipp