Also See:
Complaints filed against Magistrate James Johnson - Indiana Judiciary Commission
Amended Provisional Order - January 13, 2009
Court Transcripts - November 05, 2008 Hearing
Court Transcripts - November 19, 2007 Hearing
Court Transcripts - September 24, 2007 Hearing
This is what happens when you blow the whistle on the court and its divorce attorneys not adhering to Rule 2100 / being the only one who has ever had their divorce settlement vacated for non-adherance to Rule 2100: warning, this is not pretty. This hearing was about getting rid of me...
Prior to this hearing, I spoke with Attorney John Rhame. He agreed to represent me if the court would give him a larger retainer. Rhame told me to explain to Magistrate Johnson at the beginning of the hearing that I wanted a retainer for him. Rhame told me that Johnson would reschedule the hearing.
My ex had failed to abide by the November 5th order to provide me with an $800 retainer for an attorney. So Magistrate Johnson and Attorney Shaw knew I was going into this hearing without any legal representation.
I had Magistrate Johnson mad at me because I had blown the whistle on the court and attorneys not adhering to Rule 2100. And, Attorney Shaw was irate at me because I had managed to have one of his questionable divorce orders vacated on the grounds of his non-adherance to a Local Court Rule.
The Court had not ordered an investigation into Rule 2100 violations. They had not reprimanded attorneys Shaw and Rice. Instead, it became apparent during this hearing as if Magistrate Johnson told Attorney Shaw and my ex that they could do whatever they wanted to me and he would look the other way.
For instance, this hearing was supposed to be for the numerous contempt charges I had filed against my ex in October. Johnson instead decided that this was going to be a provisional order hearing. He openly denied me due process on the contempt motions.
I informed Magistrate Johnson that my ex was in contempt of the order to pay me $800 towards attorney fees. Johnson does not hold my ex in contempt. When I tell Johnson I cannot proceed without an attorney, he remarks, "sure you can".
Magistrate Johnson denying hearing on contempt charges. He determines that the hearing will be for a provisional order, in which I have no legal representation, due to my ex being in contempt of the order to pay my attorney retainer.
At the November 5th hearing, Attorney Shaw lied to the court and claimed he had my ex's Financial Declaration forms. Johnson did not hold my ex and Shaw in contempt of the September order to produce these forms per Rule 2100. Johnson did not charge Shaw with falsely claiming he had the forms. But the court is going to accept a W2 form from a year prior and my ex's word that his income is less than it was in 2007?
My ex was in contempt of all the provisional orders and the maintenance order. But, Johnson dismissed my contempt filings at the beginning of this hearing.
Purjury on the part of Shaw and my ex. The divorce was finalized in September when the settlement was vacated. I have no medical insurance through my ex. I have no insurance through COBRA, because my ex did not file the paperwork.
My ex was removed from the marital home in August 2007, by a protective order issued by Judge Jent [Portage Court]. My ex is on pretrial release for violating the PPO / threatening to kill me[Judge Thode]. What Shaw and my ex are requesting is that Magistrate Johnson override two separate court orders and allow my ex to return to the home. Johnson would honor this request in his January 2009 order. That's how powerful Magistrate Johnson is.
Attorney Shaw and my ex are requesting that Johnson throw me out on the street and cease the order for maintenance.
I put into evidence the audio tape of my ex's assault of me and my dogs [May 2007].This is the same tape that was placed in my ex's criminal case file. It is the same audio used for this website:
Domestic Violence in Portage Indiana
No one in the Porter County Court system has had to answer this question: WTF was a domestic violence victim, who was a Michigan resident since June 2007 doing trapped in Indiana for a divorce since August 2007?
Testimony regarding Attorney Shaw's, Attorney Rice's, and my ex's promise of a quick settlement in September 2007 if I agreed to $100 a week in maintenance. No, Magistrate Johnson did not report the attorneys to the proper authorities for this dishonest tactic.
My ex states on the stand that his net income is only $500 a week. This from a man who is in contempt of an order to produce his financial declaration forms, and who brought with him a W2 form from 2007.
I caught my ex lying to the court in regards to his income. I produced evidence that my ex was netting between $1200 - $1400 a week, not $500 a week. Johnson did not charge my ex with contempt.
Johnson, aware that I have no working phone to call for help due to my being in contempt of the order to pay for my phone, refuses to hold my ex in contempt. Instead, Johnson extended the order - gave my ex more time to pay for a phone - leaving me longer without a phone. How many other dv victims did Johnson keep from phone service?
Testimony regarding my escape from my abusive ex in June 2007, to Michigan. Attorney Shaw cuts off my testimony as I begin to explain how I returned to Indiana in August 2007 to collect my belongings and my dogs, with intentions of returning home to Michigan. However, Attorney Rice informed me I could not leave the state of Indiana during a divorce and Attorney Shaw and my ex kept me financially unable to flee back home to Michigan during the divorce.
Testimony regarind how I was financially trapped in Indiana during divorce, due to actions by both attorneys Rice and Shaw.
I had emailed receipts to Attorney Shaw for all the bills that I had paid with the $10,000. In addition, the receipts for the bills were attached to the contempt motions which I had filed. But, Johnson had denied me due process on those contempt charges that were to be held on this date.
In April 2008, my ex placed his sister on the marital home phone bill. He then had the phone bill redirected to his sister's home in Illinois. The phone bill showed all outgoing long distance phone numbers that I dialed out. My ex being able to monitor my outgoing phone calls while he had a PPO against him was a violation of the PPO.
I have run the Michigan Officer Involved Domestic Violence website since 2007. I am in phone contact with crime victims on almost a daily basis. Those victims' phone numbers are protected under state and federal crime victim confidentiality laws. However, their numbers are now in the hands of my abuser via him rerouting my phone bill.
Because the house phone was now in only my ex's and his sister's name, I could not disconnect it. I had a law enforcement capacity phone line installed for my use. My ex's phone line was simply disconnected at the entrance to the house.
My ex did not disconnect his phone line from the house during the remainder of the divorce. He changed the access code to the voicemail for this phone line. If a crime victim was not aware that I was no longer using that line, they still called into my ex's phone line. If the crime victim left a message with their contact info, my ex had access to this confidential information.
At no time during the divorce did Magistrate Johnson arrest my ex for violating the PPO in this manner. At no time did Johnson order my ex to disconnect his phone line from the house.
My testimony to the degrading manner in which I had to plead with attorneys Shaw and Rice for a pap smear and mammorgram in November 2007. Magistrate Johnson did not report Shaw and Rice for what they subjected me to.
My testimony regarding Attorney Shaw's lie to me in emails claiming the provisional orders were not in place after the property settlement was vacated in September. Johnson did not report Shaw's dishonesty.
My testimony to the medical care I was denied during the divorce.
My testimony that I was so fearful of my ex-husband, that I had my friend Sue stay with me.
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