I first became involved in this issue when a group of parents came to me and wanted their stories heard and asked me to find a journalist who would write them. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anyone I felt would tell their stories properly. So I began to take on the task and luckily I have a background in journalism. For those who are interested, the slides accompanying this presentation are located at the link below:
http://www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org/AnneStevensonPolicy-Solutions-Fraud-Corruption-in-the-Courts_Anne-Stevensonbmccxi.pdf
http://www.batteredmotherscustodyconference.org/AnneStevensonPolicy-Solutions-Fraud-Corruption-in-the-Courts_Anne-Stevensonbmccxi.pdf
What I did is I reviewed around 200 cases in CT and I concluded that many judges, many court personnel are not corrupt. But the question was, what happened when they were?
I asked the question, what happened in your case? Were there elements of fraud, was violent crime excused, did you lose everything you ever had in your whole life, your children, your jobs, your homes, your entire financial base, and sometimes your freedom. Some people lost their lives. Some people walk away with PTSD, depression, severe anxiety--quite simply, their brains don't work like they used to. Please know, this is not an anomaly. You are not alone.
This is the result of my work, the article which appeared in The Washington Times entitled: "CT Court Employees Face Tough Questions Over Conflicts of Interest" For instance, there was the Susan Skipp case where they took her children, knowing she'd fight tooth and nail to get them back, then appointed all sorts of experts to the case who then falsely billed her. Also about another case where the child had been raped and the child was given to his abusers and mother was denied access.
What I'd found out was that Judges and attorneys had established a private organization called the AFCC and were operating this organization out of the CT Judicial Branch and were getting federal grants for this organization to run programs and services within the Branch as well as training outside the branch. So when litigants came to family court, the employees would sift through the cases and find those that would be suitable for their schemes to force parents into business relationships with unvetted, untrained vendors.
Judges had conflicts of interests and the Court was acting as a collection agency for the GAL's associated with the AFCC. Judges were calling payments owed to GALs child support, parents were selling their homes and going into bankruptcy to pay these fees. GALs were accused of double billing, and not meeting with their child clients. They also charged for hundreds of thousands of dollars for problems they themselves had created. The result was the loss of parental rights, loss of employment, bankruptcy, bogus criminal charges, jail, and the loss of freedom if litigants didn't pay.
In Connecticut activists showed that a group of parents stuck with the same professionals and proof that the money doesn't add up can cause a raucous and get an investigation opened.
What are some of the bases for complaint:
1. Conflict of Interest: This is the real or seeming incompatibility between one's private interests and one's fiduciary duty. N.J. Judge Melanie Appleby conspired with a lawyer to help in her custody matter, then assisted him in his cases.
2. Fraud: This is the intentional perversion of truth in order to induce a person to part with something of value or give up his or her legal rights.
3. Racketeering: This is organized crime which involves extorting money through intimidation, violence, or other illegal methods. It includes a pattern of illegal activity such as bribery, extortion, fraud, and murder carried out as a larger conspiracy, etc. Pennsylvania attorney Danielle Ross of Lackawanna County served as a GAL paid to represent the best interests of the child in family and juvenile court cases and make custody recommendations. She was paid by court and family. The Court would order her to be appointed and forced parents to pay her hundreds and thousands. Then at the same time, the county paid her a $38,000 salary and if parents couldn't pay earned $50 per hour in those cases. She was earning $400,000 per year. However, it turned out she had billed the court and the family for services, double billed and did not report her billing to the IRS; this represented a form of racketeering.
2. Fraud: This is the intentional perversion of truth in order to induce a person to part with something of value or give up his or her legal rights.
3. Racketeering: This is organized crime which involves extorting money through intimidation, violence, or other illegal methods. It includes a pattern of illegal activity such as bribery, extortion, fraud, and murder carried out as a larger conspiracy, etc. Pennsylvania attorney Danielle Ross of Lackawanna County served as a GAL paid to represent the best interests of the child in family and juvenile court cases and make custody recommendations. She was paid by court and family. The Court would order her to be appointed and forced parents to pay her hundreds and thousands. Then at the same time, the county paid her a $38,000 salary and if parents couldn't pay earned $50 per hour in those cases. She was earning $400,000 per year. However, it turned out she had billed the court and the family for services, double billed and did not report her billing to the IRS; this represented a form of racketeering.
Organized crime operating within the justice system itself is not just unethical or unfair, it's a serious threat to public safety, particular when children are given to their abusers.
Billing fraud is a threat to public safety Children are put at risk when GALs don't investigate properly.
However, putting children in harm's way is more profitable for family court professionals. Thus, GALs and family court professionals get less money if kids are safe; they get more money if they knowingly leave children in a position where they can get hurt and then earn money investigating the injuries that resulted from their inaction or improper actions.
Corrupt GALs have no incentive to close cases. This is fraud, because the services would not be needed if not for the trouble caused by these service providers. In order to discredit the victims of these scams, the victims are falsely diagnosed with mental illness or deliberately traumatized so they appear irrational and incoherent. Violent and dangerous offenders are allowed to get away with their crimes, and victims end up being told they are making it all up.
However, putting children in harm's way is more profitable for family court professionals. Thus, GALs and family court professionals get less money if kids are safe; they get more money if they knowingly leave children in a position where they can get hurt and then earn money investigating the injuries that resulted from their inaction or improper actions.
Corrupt GALs have no incentive to close cases. This is fraud, because the services would not be needed if not for the trouble caused by these service providers. In order to discredit the victims of these scams, the victims are falsely diagnosed with mental illness or deliberately traumatized so they appear irrational and incoherent. Violent and dangerous offenders are allowed to get away with their crimes, and victims end up being told they are making it all up.
After reading of these outrages in my articles in The Washington Times, parents went to the legislature and complained about the false billing and started a task force. However, once the task force was put into place, low and behold the majority of people chosen for the task force were members of the AFCC. Eventually, there was a big hearing before the legislature, which included 100 people who showed up. These parents showed their representatives copies of their billing invoices, and this hit home with the legislature. When you saw the financial loss on paper, it was considerable.
The parents had a state auditors report which I had located through freedom of information act requests showing that significant money and resources were missing from the coffers of the family services. They also had evidence that the AFCC affiliated vendor CT Resources Group had double billed clients and improperly billed health insurance companies for services.
In Susan Skipp's case the psychologist billed the insurance company with a coding that indicating that the child had major depression, but in court he said the child was fine. It was clear that AFCC affiliation resulted in policies that protected vendors, attorneys, and providers, but not consumers. Judges made decisions based on business interests.
The problem with the AFCC: it was inbred, and funded with tax dollars and private donations. The AFCC is a trade association founded by family court judges, court administrators, and professionals who appear before these judges. This could be a court vendor hired to run vital services, conduct studies, for example mediation, dv screening, etc.
CT Resources Group also came up as a problem. This was a private practice of mental health evaluators who ran the GAL certification program, and conducted private evaluations of litigants, Parents provided invoices from this group indicating billing irregularities. Meanwhile through the FOI there was evidence in emails that providers were having private conversations with judges. Judges were approving payments for services not provided and there was no push to sanction these guys. Parents were afraid to come forward. Still, the end results was that legislation was passed to reel in the GALs.
What did parents do right? They focused on the billing not the right and wrong of their cases.
Currently, there is a federal law enforcement agency investigation into corrupt public officials in CT.
The parents had a state auditors report which I had located through freedom of information act requests showing that significant money and resources were missing from the coffers of the family services. They also had evidence that the AFCC affiliated vendor CT Resources Group had double billed clients and improperly billed health insurance companies for services.
In Susan Skipp's case the psychologist billed the insurance company with a coding that indicating that the child had major depression, but in court he said the child was fine. It was clear that AFCC affiliation resulted in policies that protected vendors, attorneys, and providers, but not consumers. Judges made decisions based on business interests.
The problem with the AFCC: it was inbred, and funded with tax dollars and private donations. The AFCC is a trade association founded by family court judges, court administrators, and professionals who appear before these judges. This could be a court vendor hired to run vital services, conduct studies, for example mediation, dv screening, etc.
CT Resources Group also came up as a problem. This was a private practice of mental health evaluators who ran the GAL certification program, and conducted private evaluations of litigants, Parents provided invoices from this group indicating billing irregularities. Meanwhile through the FOI there was evidence in emails that providers were having private conversations with judges. Judges were approving payments for services not provided and there was no push to sanction these guys. Parents were afraid to come forward. Still, the end results was that legislation was passed to reel in the GALs.
What did parents do right? They focused on the billing not the right and wrong of their cases.
Currently, there is a federal law enforcement agency investigation into corrupt public officials in CT.
So how do you get the press to listen to your story?
Put together a press list; look for journalists who are the right fit for the type of story you are pitching--do your homework on that. Make sure of the reputation and honesty of the reporter before you contact them. Blog for someone else re their story.
Send out an email making initial contact reviewing your story briefly. Never talk about your own case, focus on the money, don't bash fathers, include fathers, refer to parents, talk about violent crime rates, do not traumatize others with your knowledge. Keep it simple. Don't be a conspiracy theorist.
Buzz Phrases. Use sympathetic terms. For example, instead of domestic abuse talk about violent crime, instead of father's rights groups, talk about male offender advocacy groups, instead of judicial corruption, talk about extortion rings, organized crime, operating within the justice system. Talk about abusers getting custody, and professionals who deliberately place children in dangerous homes for profit.
When you meet with a journalist, be sure to appear credible, dress appropriately, i.e. dress like Arianna Huffington, clean, simple, no frills. When it comes to things to bring with you to a meeting, include a cheat sheet, and agenda. Bring your invoices, bills, contracts, vendor names, and evidence of financial fraud to illustrate your point.
In order to obtain information on the corruption make Public Record Requests to the judicial branch, to the public defender's office, state controller, etc. seeking copies of communications, invoices, contracts, bids, etc. IRS filings are available via Guidestart, plus there is the Secretary of State's Office Business filings.
Buzz Phrases. Use sympathetic terms. For example, instead of domestic abuse talk about violent crime, instead of father's rights groups, talk about male offender advocacy groups, instead of judicial corruption, talk about extortion rings, organized crime, operating within the justice system. Talk about abusers getting custody, and professionals who deliberately place children in dangerous homes for profit.
When you meet with a journalist, be sure to appear credible, dress appropriately, i.e. dress like Arianna Huffington, clean, simple, no frills. When it comes to things to bring with you to a meeting, include a cheat sheet, and agenda. Bring your invoices, bills, contracts, vendor names, and evidence of financial fraud to illustrate your point.
In order to obtain information on the corruption make Public Record Requests to the judicial branch, to the public defender's office, state controller, etc. seeking copies of communications, invoices, contracts, bids, etc. IRS filings are available via Guidestart, plus there is the Secretary of State's Office Business filings.
Resources: Reporter's Committee for Freedom of the Press which includes a FOIA Letter Generator, federal or state specific. There is information on how to draft motions, administrative appeals, and complaints, etc.
Afterwards say thank you, email to the reporters, send a hand written thank you card to the editor at the newspaper and include followup with a phone call.
Thank you Anne for clearly demonstrating the anatomy of a corrupted custody process. You hit the nail on the head in terms of what I have been hammering on in my own social media: We need to radically transform the dialogue around the issue of failed family courts nationwide with a new lexicon and vocabulary that captures the actual reality of judicial processes that lead to adverse outcomes for both children and their parents, if there is to be any meaningful social change.
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