03142010 - Email to Judge Julia Jent - Magistrate James Johnson jeopardizing safety of DV victims -- Porter County Indiana -- Cause No. 64D01-0708-DR-7804

From: sur5er1998 <sur5er1998@aol.com>
To: d03 <d03@porterco.org>
Subject: PPO EXTENSION REQUEST
Date: Sun, Mar 14, 2010 1:24 pm
Attachments:
RICE1.jpg (1209K), RICE2.jpg (622K), SEPT_18A.jpg (1674K), SEPT_18B.jpg (1320K)

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Judge Julia Jent,
Since you issued me my first PPO against my ex husband [James Thomas] in August 2007, I thought you might want to know what happened with my case. I remember you stating how afraid you were for me.

Attached is a letter to Judge Thode, requesting that the PPO against my ex [from his criminal case] be extended. Yes, three years after my first escape from my abuser I am still stuck in Indiana.

Margie from the Prosecutor's Office Crime Victim Unit, informed me that there is a judiciary board, that reviews dv divorce cases, in an effort to improve the system in Porter County. How would I go about getting my divorce case reviewed by the board? The mistakes in my case illustrate the issues that need to be addressed by courts if they are going to insure the safety of victims.

For instance, were you aware that Attorney Donald Rice informs his dv victims that they cannot relocate during a divorce? How dangerous is that? But don't take my word for it. I've enclosed a letter from Rice informing me I could not relocate.

And the reason I'm still here in Indiana, within grasp of the abusing ex? I blew the whistle on attorneys not adhering to Local Court Rule 2100. But don't take my word for it. I've enclosed the court order vacating my property settlement due to Attorneys Rice and Shaw not adhering to Rule 2100.

Thank you for your time,
Renee' Harrington
219-734-6796


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Judge Thode,
RE: Criminal case #64D06-0808-CM-8254 [James Clarence Thomas].
Could you please extend my PPO, as my ex will be released from probation on March 21, 2010.
I will not have the funds to relocate home to Michigan [and be safe from my ex / James Thomas] until Magistrate Johnson issues the property settlement in our divorce case. However, I have been informed that Magistrate Johnson may take from 6-12 months to issue my property settlement. Thus I will be ‘stuck’ in Indiana until the end of 2010, and I am terrified that my ex will kill me, during that time.
An audio tape of one of my ex’s violent attacks against me is enclosed in the criminal case file for this case. It will demonstrate to you why I am terrified of my ex, and have every reason to believe he will kill me. Also, the audio from my original PPO ex-parte hearing, [Judge Julia Jent. August 03, 2007], will give you more insight into how dangerous my ex is, and my need for the PPO to be extended.
Right now, I am so terrified of my ex, that I am doing everything possible to get away from him / return home to Michigan. However, since my ex is not paying his maintenance [Attorney Shaw stated after court in January 2010 that he had advised my ex not to pay the maintenance / my ex was approximately $20,000 in arrears at that time]; I am unemployed; I have no vehicle; and I have no property settlement, fleeing to safety is very difficult for me. My hands are tied here.
Desperate to escape my ex, I will be in Michigan this week. An attorney friend of mine is reviewing my divorce case, to see what other legal action I can take, so I can have the marital funds to escape my abuser ASAP [instead of waiting 6-12 months on Magistrate Johnson].
My divorce case is riddled with both court and attorney mistakes. In September 2008, I exposed that attorneys were not adhering to Porter County Local Court Rule 2100. Magistrate Johnson vacated my property settlement on the grounds the attorneys did not adhere to Rule 2100, and on points concerning their dishonesty. However, Magistrate Johnson failed to report either attorney to the proper authorities, or report their possible violation of the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct [Indiana Code of Judicial Conduct RULE 2.15: Responding to Judicial and Lawyer Misconduct ].
Attorney Shaw continued to represent my ex in the divorce case, and he used the divorce to retaliate against me for blowing the whistle on the loophole attorneys were using to get around Rule 2100. Attorney Shaw’s questionable retaliatory actions left me with no funds to escape my ex and greatly increased my danger.
My hands are tied. The things that my ex and Attorney Shaw have been able to get away with in this divorce case are mind boggling. I have never felt so hopeless in my life. I have never felt so terrified. I have never felt so frustrated that I know my life is in danger and no one cares.  Here I am fighting to get out of Indiana and away from my ex, and I am trapped by an attorney and a court system.
There is no one here in Indiana that will help me. I am convinced, after what I have endured in the Porter County divorce court system, that there is no escape from an abuser. If anything, the divorce has only endangered my life more, instead of assisting me in escaping safely. That is why I have to turn to an attorney in Michigan to get me out of here alive.
In May 2007, my ex abused me for the last time. In June 2007 I escaped my abuser and returned home to Michigan. I was working on Michigan officer involved domestic violence legislation; I had job offers. In August 2007, Attorney Donald Rice informed me that I did not have a right to move home to Michigan / escape my abuser during an Indiana divorce.  This is how unsafe it is for victims of dv in Porter County. Were you aware that attorneys in your county were preventing victims of domestic violence from escaping their abusers?
Because of this, I need the PPO against my ex [James Clarence Thomas] extended until a Michigan attorney can figure out how to get  me out of here safely.
Thank you for your time,
Renee’ Harrington









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