I'll Be The Judge of That

I was sent an email about how Judges are monitoring each other. Well, you be the Judge of this:

"Indeed, the judges’ official statistics for 1997-2006 show that they engaged in the systematic dismissal of judicial misconduct complaints without any investigation: In those 10 years, 7,462 complaints were filed, but the judges appointed only 7 special investigative committees and disciplined only 9 of their peers. They dismissed out of hand 99.88% of all complaints! Thereby they self-exonerated for doing what is forbidden and disregarding what is commanded.

"Thus, in the 219 years since the creation of the Federal Judiciary in 1789, of all the thousands of federal judges only 7 have been impeached and removed from the bench. On average that is 1 every 31 years, a period much longer than the average years of service of judges. This has fostered the mentality among them that they can do and not do anything because they do not have to fear any adverse consequences from either abusing their judicial power, having a disability, or engaging in illegal activity.

"Since they will cover for each other, they have assured themselves of impunity for their conduct. This explains why federal judges have felt free to institutionalize coordinated wrongdoing, for they have as a matter of fact placed themselves where no individual or class of people is entitled to be in our democratic society: Above the law.

"See links to the Act, the Rules, and the official statistics on impeachments and judicial misconduct complaints as well as graphs illustrating the latter at: http://Judicial-Discipline-Reform.org."

Dr. Richard Cordero, Esq.
Judicial-Discipline-Reform.org
Dr.Richard.Cordero.Esq@Judicial-Discipline-Reform.org

Whistle blower exposes Humboldt Mental Health again!

Here is an excerpt from a blog called, The Plazoid, which posted former Patients' Rights Advocate, John Webb's plea to to city officials. I encourage you to follow the link and read the whole damning testimony.

"We were also explicitly instructed not to advocate, without prior approval, for out-of-county mental health patients at Eureka Crestwood.

"In Eureka at Crestwood Behavioral Health on Buhne St. there are 47 persons who are being held against their will, behind locked doors, who have various degrees of mental illness and who, consequently, have very limited access to the outside world. Most patients in Crestwood are placed there by courts and agencies of
other counties. They frequently have very legitimate concerns (including issues of health and safety) that they need to communicate to their Public Guardians, Public Defenders, medical professionals and others who are responsible for serving and representing them. Those agencies are often hundreds of miles away from their clients and only infrequently make in-person visits to Crestwood. The patient’s ability to engage in phone communication with Public Guardians and others is challenged not only by their illness but also, due to the overly controlling and illegal action of Director Stein, who has chosen to erect an additional barrier for the mentally ill."

http://theplazoid.wordpress.com/2008/08/26/whistle-blower-exposes-humboldt-mental-health-again/

Stanford University Clamping Down on Big Pharma $$$?

27 August 2008, San Francisco Chronicle article:

“The Stanford University School of Medicine, in a continuing re-examination of its relationship with industry, said it will no longer allow drug and medical device makers to control the content of continuing education programs they fund at the school.”

and

“While pharmaceutical companies say they don't dictate the content of the programs they fund, said Dr. Brian Hurley, president of the student association, in reality they do control the outcome. ‘Pharmaceutical firms will only fund speakers who give favorable messages on the products they're trying to sell,’ he said.”

And just who is this Dr. Brian Hurley, President of the Student Association at Stanford University?

Dr. Brian Hurley is 29 years old. He helped co-coordinate USC's Medical Gay and Lesbian Organization (MedGLO), and serves as the National Coordinator of the American Medical Student Association People in Medicine. Brian Hurley is a MD/MBA graduate of the Keck and Marshall Schools of USC. He majored in Biochemistry and Neuroscience with a Political Science minor at UCLA before entering medical school.

Apparently he is pursuing a career in addiction medicine at Stanford although he is still undecided between doing psychiatry or combined medicine/psychiatry residency.

Stay tuned for more.

Judges Call for Extensive Reforms

In a San Jose Mercury News article from the other day:

"Santa Clara County's two top juvenile court judges are calling for sweeping reforms of the dependency courts far beyond what a statewide commission is considering, contending the current child welfare system designed to protect children from abuse ' often does more harm than good.' "

"Judges Patrick Tondreau and Katherine Lucero wrote to a commission studying problems in the state's dependency courts to highlight their firsthand view that removing children from their homes following allegations of abuse and neglect 'is not the silver bullet we may have led ourselves to believe.' Tondreau is the county's presiding juvenile court judge; Lucero, the supervising dependency court judge."

I received two comments on the article, both saying basically that it was lip service, where's the beef? Understandable.

Anyways, as a side note, a month ago or so I was speaking to someone in the Dept of Family & Children Services about the flak they were getting due to the over representation of latinos in the system. One of the suggestions I gave was that they needed to wake up the community churches and leaders to do everything possible to address the issues that result in DFCS coming into their home and not just leave it to the County. That the parents have NO idea of what could happen once they enter the System. They need to be told that DFCS does NOT want their children but are required to take them by law under certain circumstances. (And then ANYTHING can happen.)

That suggestion seemed to be well received; apparently the main type of public relations they have been involved in is to become a Foster Parent, but no real enlightenment on just how serious it is as above and just what the ramifications could be. I don't know if DFCS is now actually meeting with the community to let them know however.

Shut Up or You'll Be 5150'd

5150 of course is code for involuntary commitment used to help protect people from harming themselves or others. Of course, it happens that 5150 is used for other nefarious purposes. I've received no shortage of complaints about how this law has been used to deprive people of their human and civil rights.

Why, I just got another complaint about a certain educational facility of higher learning that has its own police using the 5150 to shut someone up. And once in the psych facility this person couldn't get released (discharged) until he/she agreed to not pursue the investigation.

Cover up? Not here in San Jose! No!

I've received other complaints about attorneys who use the 5150 to set their wife up as a crazy person so when divorce court comes along, the wife is labelled a complete loon and gets no custody of the children, receives no community property and ends up also having to pay child support to the husband who makes all the money!

Not to mention a certain Deputy DA in the East Bay who used the 5150 law to get an elderly neighbor locked up for about a week because she complained about his security light being too bright at night.

Of course, once these people got in the hands of the Psycho Iatrists, they were forcefully drugged against their will and or put in restraints.