Thanks to Ron Ewart for this well written statement.
The Honorable Judge Kathryn J. Nelson
Pierce County Superior Court, Dept. 13
930 Tacoma Ave. S., Room 534
Tacoma, WA 98498
cc: Mr. Thomas Larkin, Presiding Judge as well as the news media
Re: Paul Hiatt, Case No. 06 1 03844 6
Dear Judge Nelson:
I am not only a friend of Paul Hiatt, but I applaud his attempts to defend himself against the tyranny of a justice system that delivers little if any justice. He has been pushed, shoved and emasculated by a district court judge (Kenworthy) who clearly had no constitutional jurisdiction in the case and a prosecutor (Rose) who seems to have found some particular delight in persecuting an American citizen for a non-existent crime that they (judge, planning dept. and prosecutor) colluded to manufacture in order to make an example out of Mr. Hiatt for his alleged "crime" of putting a ditch in on his own property. This was made abundantly clear from a statement made in court by Judge Kenworthy, directed at Mr. Hiatt that went as follows: "Mr. Hiatt, that land has a past going back into the mist of time. It has a future going into the mists of time, long after you, and your momentary title to this parcel has faded into nothingness. But in the meantime, your intentional deprivations have violated the law, and for this, you are to be held accountable."
The judge then threw Mr. Hiatt in jail for over 60 days on trumped-up contempt of court charges with a $100,000 bond. While murderers, drug dealers, car thieves, burglars and the like roam free, we have a self-appointed district court judge who believes he is the torch bearer of the environmental "flame" and by God he will see that "his" land is protected from the likes of one Paul Hiatt.
I have read the transcripts and the briefs in this case. The issues for appeal are everywhere. Prosecutorial misconduct appears to be blatant and premeditated. How dare Mr. Hiatt defend himself on constitutional and common-law grounds. How dare he set himself up as his own attorney and take on the closed society that is our judicial system. How arrogant of him that he would enter the secret realm of attorney, prosecutor and judge to seek justice, where there apparently is none.
Mr. Hiatt, his wife and family have endured a 4-year emotional roller coaster and exhausted their life savings at the hands of a vengeful judge and prosecutor who are out to make an "environmental" example of this upstart American citizen who would dare to challenge their authority and allegedly "scar" their sacred Earth. All this while a car thief has to steal a car seven times before he goes to jail.
In light of the above, we respectfully request that you grant Mr. Hiatt a release of all charges with prejudice and put this miscarriage of justice to rest immediately. If you put him in jail and fine him for this manufactured crime by an out of control prosecutor and judge, you will be a party to the continued judicial travesty that the system has perpetrated on a law-abiding Mr. Hiatt and his wife.
Respectfully,
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Here is some extracts from the "State of the Court address" to provide you with some talking points to the court, i.e. a chance for them to eat their own words. I have underlined some of the more glaring comments.
2006 Presiding Judge Stephanie Arend, delivers 'State of the Court address' to County Council. (Pierce County WA
https://www.piercecountywa.org/pc/abtus/ourorg/supct/abtussup.htm
STATE OF THE COURT 2007
Chairman Lee, members of the County Council, citizens of Pierce County. I am Stephanie Arend, immediate past Presiding Judge of the Pierce County Superior Court. Judge Tom Larkin is the new Presiding Judge and I know you will enjoy working with him over the next two years. I would like to thank the Council for the support shown to me and the Court during my term as Presiding Judge. On behalf of the Pierce County Superior Court, I also thank you for this opportunity to appear before you to report about the progress the Court has made in its efforts to be responsive to public needs and administratively accountable as an independent branch of government.
In the past year, more than 136,000 proceedings were held before the 24 judicial officers of Pierce County Superior Court down-town and over 35,000 proceedings were held before 4 judicial officers at Remann Hall. In addition, over 2,400 cases were processed through diversion. These are not just attention grabbing numbers. Rather, these proceedings represent lives that have been impacted, often adversely, through the acts of others. One of those cases may be a teenager experimenting with the use of alcohol. One of those cases may be a child who is adopted into a family. One of those cases may involve a gang retaliatory drive-by shooting, resulting in an innocent victim’s death. We resolve all types of disputes, from a minor in possession of alcohol, to highly complex, multi-million dollar commercial transactions, murder cases, and everything in between.
Just as our cases are not mere numbers, the people who work for the judicial branch are also more than numbers. Today I would like to put a face on Superior Court; I would like to introduce you to some of those who serve the citizens of Pierce County in addition to the judges and commissioners.
Our Court Administration consists of 23 dedicated public servants who provide essential support to the Court. Court administration provides many essential functions, including assisting us in being accountable.
The primary tool used by the Pierce County Superior Court to improve and hold itself accountable is its Strategic Plan, which defines a set of goals that the judicial system works to achieve. The theme of our current agenda, "becoming the best court in the state of Washington," reflects our commitment to making Pierce County’s justice system the best system possible, a goal that we recognize we can achieve only through leadership and participation from the other two branches of government.
Our Strategic Agenda includes 11 major goals; I will briefly discuss a few of them today.
Another goal of our Strategic agenda calls for us to be more accountable, in recognition of the fact that the public expects accountability for government operations and administration. To this end we have been working with the Tacoma Pierce County Bar Association to develop judicial performance evaluations. The process will begin in March. Initially, lawyers and jurors will be given an opportunity to assess our performance. It takes some courage to ask people how you are doing, but more important is the commitment to act on what you learn from the answers. We, at Superior Court, have that commitment.Not only are we working to be more accountable, we are working to be more transparent. Several months ago we began examining files that had previously been sealed to determine whether they should remain sealed. While we recognize private interests that need protection, we also recognize that what we do must be open to public inspection. Our courtrooms are open, and we invite you to come and observe justice in action.
I would like to briefly touch on our efforts to respond to an issue you brought to us—how we create the record.
Early in 2006 we submitted to you a comprehensive feasibility plan on the need for stenographic reporters and the appropriate use of electronic recording devices. As is often the case, this plan generated further conversation and we are currently in the process of discussing the policy issues raised by Mr. Temmel in his report of November 2. We expect to have a response to the Performance Audit Committee by late April.
Every day the judges and commissioners of Pierce County Superior Court, supported by Court Administration, work to provide peaceful resolution of disputes, to protect constitutional rights, and to uphold the rule of law. I am proud of the work we do and what we have accomplished in the past two years. I am confident that under the leadership of Presiding Judge Larkin we will achieve our goal of becoming the best court in the state of Washington.
Thank you for listening to me so courteously and for inviting me to present this address.
Thank you for helping Paul Hiatt and the cause of freedom and liberty.
Jack Venrick Fighting For Freedom Again To Save Another Rural Friend From The Green Tide of Taking Enumclaw, WA "Awaken - One man awake, Awakens another. T he second awaken, His next door brother. The three awake can rouse a town By turning, The Whole place, Upside down. The many awake Can make such a fuss It finally awakens, The rest of us. One man up, With dawn in his eyes, Surely then...Multiplies Lawerence Tribble