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Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard Fine

Judge David Yaffe [1]
Los Angeles Judge David Yaffe

Judicial failure to file financial disclosures can be an indicator of a serious problem. The judges involved may be attempting to hide payments they received that could bias them. This at the heart of the controversy over judicial corruption involving allegedly illegal payments by the County of Los Angeles, California, to judges in the county. In that case, judges are being paid money directly by the county as “bonuses” in a manner viewed as subverting their objectivity. Despite the payments of around $46,000 per year per judge, the judges in Los Angeles County have allegedly systematically failed to file financial disclosure form 700 required by state law. One of these judges, David Yaffe, has also jailed Richard Fine, a leading critic of corruption in California courts. He’s been in jail for nearly a year, without any charges or trial, in apparent retaliation for his campaign to clean up the Los Angeles courts.

Some of these Los Angeles judges rule on law suits against the county or other matters involving the county government. According to Richard Fine [2], since this started these judges never rule against the county. Whether there is real bias or not may be a matter of debate, but these kinds of financial improprieties create an appearance of corrupt courts.

Reinforcing that appearance of bias is how Judge David Yaffe [3] threw Richard Fine into prison in solitary confinement in an apparent move to shut him up. You can find more on this disturbing story on California court corruption at Full Disclosure Network’s web page “COERCIVE CONFINEMENT” Judicial Benefits and Court Corruption [4] that includes a video featuring civil rights activist Fred Sottile, also active in family law reform, speaking to a reporter Leslie Dutton about the wrongful imprisonment of Richard Fine without reasonable due process.

Full Disclosure Network® compiled an eight minute video revealing the essence of what happened and demonstrated the growing unrest among the citizens over Court Corruption in Los Angeles. Specifically, the citizens kept focusing on the jailed attorney Richard I Fine and the controversial State Senate Bill SBX2 11 that was approved by the Legislature during the budget session that gave retroactive immunity from criminal and civil prosecution to Judges, Courts, and government officials who had accepted and or given illegal public funds from the County to the Judges. Richard Fine was jailed on March 4, 2009 after he attempted to disqualify Judge Yaffe who had accepted the illegal payments from the County, he remains in L.A. County Jail.

David Hernandez, an activist in Los Angeles who recently lost a court case against Los Angeles County, spoke with Leslie Dutton about how the money the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors pays to judges ruling on cases involving the county creates a perception of bias. In his view, it is little different than if he decided to pay judges because he liked what they were doing and then those judges made decisions beneficial to him.

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Richard Fine To Die In Jail?

As of early 2010, Richard Fine is apparently still rotting away in jail without a trial or being charged with any crime. There is apparently no time limit to how long he will be there, nor any intent to charge him with a crime or provide a trial. The Los Angeles Superior Courts and Judge David Yaffe, one of the judges taking allegedly illegal payments, apparently wanted to shut him up and has thrown him in jail on contempt of court accusations over what Fine contents is an illegal court order which he is opposing on principle.

Law enforcement has wrongly followed Judge Yaffe’s direction by executing his improper orders to incarcerate Richard Fine without reasonable due process for what are apparently political reasons. Yes, even in supposedly “free” America we have political prisoners. Richard Fine is on the hit list because he’s been poking away at corruption in California for years and recently started going after the corrupt Los Angeles Superior Court with increased intensity.


Richard Fine Discusses How California Counties Have Corrupted Courts

But this isn’t the first time California judges have struck back at Richard Fine. Shortly before being tossed in jail by Judge Yaffe, Fine was disbarred by the California Supreme Court in what also looks like a move to shut down his ability to continue to challenge judicial corruption in the state.

(from Supreme Court Orders Disbarment of Attorney Richard I. Fine [7])

The now-disbarred lawyer is also suing the State Bar in federal court, arguing that the statute that permits disbarment for acts of moral turpitude not amounting to crimes violated the Due Process Clause. That suit, pending before Judge Dale Fisher in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, has been on hold pending the outcome of the State Bar proceedings, Fine said.

“This is political payback for my having exposed the corruption in the judicial system,” Fine said yesterday. “….I would have to question whether the California Supreme Court ….even read the papers….This is on one of the greater travesties of justice…They want to take the lawyer who has saved the taxpayers more than $1 billion dollars and put him out of the bar when they have done nothing about the corruption in the judicial system.”

California Government Out for Revenge

Fine has been a thorn in the side of the government for years. Now the government is out for revenge.

During the 1998 California budget crisis, Richard Fine got an injunction that shut down the entire State of California government for a day, terminating pay for all state employees including judges. The legislature had to pass an emergency funding bill to get the government running again.

As another example relevant to many of our readers, Richard Fine worked to force the County of Los Angeles government to pay out $14 million in child support payments that they collected from parents paying it to the county as required by law. These child support payments that were supposed to go to families were being held by the County of Los Angeles and not being distributed. Amazingly, even though this is illegal, the county courts approved the action. Later, it was discovered that Judge James Chalfant who approved this illegal hoarding of funds was being illegally paid under the table by the County of Los Angeles.

(from transcript at Attorney Richard I. Fine Speaks Out on Judges, Corruption, Circumstances, video at Full Disclosure Network Interviews Richard Fine and David Hernandez on Judicial Benefits & Court Corruption [8])

RICHARD FINE: Well, this — this all started in a very innocent type of way. It started back in 1999, and in 1999, I brought a lawsuit called John Silva vs. Garcetti — Gil Garcetti, Los Angeles District Attorney. And that lawsuit was based upon the fact that John Silva had paid money as part of his divorce — child support money. And child support money was being paid into the County of Los Angeles because the County of Los Angeles, as you know, collects child support money. Now, what we found out is that he had paid his child support money in, but the child support money wasn’t going to his wife. The County was not distributing it. And the County wasn’t distributing about $14 million of child support money. What the County was doing is, the County was taking this money in and it was holding it. Now, there’s a law that says that the County must distribute the child support money within six months or give it back to the father. And they will only give it back to the father if they can’t find the wife or the children. Now, in John’s case, he knew where his wife was, and he knew where the children were, because his wife was friendly. You know, he was giving the money to the County support system; the County wasn’t giving it to his wife. His wife knew that the money was going in, so she was cooperating with us, and we found out that all these other women and children were not getting their money.

So I sued the County to have this money distributed. The County answered and told me how much money was there, where the accounts were. All they had to do was distribute it. They were refusing to do it. I went into court, and we got to the end of the trial. The County moved to dismiss, and the judge dismissed the case. And I was astounded. And I went up into the appeal, and after the trial was over and before I filed my first brief, I found out that the judge, Judge James C. Chalfant, had received money from the County of Los Angeles. That’s how it started. That was one case.

Most of California Judiciary Is Corrupt

Richard Fine believes that all judges in the State of California have been receiving these illegal payments except for Superior Court judges in Yolo County, Mendocino County, and San Francisco County, and judges on the California Supreme Court and Court of Appeal. In his view, nearly the entire judiciary of the State of California is corrupt and biased and beholden to the interests of county governments.

Citizens Campaign to Free Richard Fine

Supporters of Richard Fine have set up a website called Free Richard Fine [9] to help defend the man from the government that is intent on silencing him.

Others angered over the apparent willingness of the government and judiciary to unconstitutionally trample all over political opposition have set up the web site Right Trumps Might [10] to push for court reform. Their view is that the spreading corruption in American courts jeopardizes the rights of all citizens.

Report Your Judge, Check Before You Vote For A Judge

If you’ve got experience with a judge, fill out the surveys and comments at the web sites RateTheCourts.com [11] and CourthouseForum.com [12]. Your experiences can help others determine how to vote. An uninformed electorate is often incapable of eliminating problematic politicians which is exactly what these judges appear to be.

The next time you’re voting for a judge in elections in your area, do some investigation before casting your vote. Unless the public votes out of office judges like Texas Judge Suzanne Stovall [13] and California Judge David Yaffe, the public should be expecting the corrupt courts of this nation to continue to subvert public intent and to harm public interests for their own benefits.

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Further Reading

My Dad Tried to Right a Wrong, Now He’s Behind Bars Unjustly [14]

Did L A Times Miss the Mark On Judicial Bias & Richard Fine??? [15]

Does Texas Judge Suzanne Stovall Deserve Re-election? [13]

Supreme Court Orders Disbarment of Attorney Richard I. Fine [7]

Full Disclosure Network Interviews Richard Fine and David Hernandez on Judicial Benefits & Court Corruption [16]

Judge David P. Yaffe — Perched on a Throne in ‘Wonderland’ [17]

“Perspectives” Columns on Judge David Yaffe [18]

Eileen Lasher on San Diego CPS/Family Law Court Misconduct [19]

Stephen Doyne and San Diego Family Law Courts Under Fire [20]

California Legislature Orders Investigation of Family Law Courts [21]

Holding Family Law Judges Accountable [22]

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14 Comments (Open | Close)

14 Comments To "Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard Fine"

#1 Pingback By Does Texas Judge Suzanne Stovall Deserve Re-election? | angiEmedia On January 10, 2010 @ 12:35 am

[…] Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard Fine […]

#2 Comment By Bill Stoneking On January 10, 2010 @ 3:14 am

I think perhaps I need to talk to this judge and perhaps he should be eduated so he understands what the definition of the word accoubtability means.

Sentencing guides for judges mean they go to the general population of places they send people to. That might curb improper judicial behavior.

#3 Comment By Josh On January 13, 2010 @ 4:02 pm

Call the Judge yourself and let him know what you think:

YAFFE, DAVID Judge Stanley Mosk Courthouse (213) 974-5881

#4 Comment By Barbara Ann Jackson On January 14, 2010 @ 12:51 pm

The situation of what Judge Yaffe has done to Richard Fine is personally troubling. I know firsthand how despicably some judges can behave. For years I have been maintaining my [23] website on which I describe JUDICIAL COLLUSION and the horrendous abuse of power. Among other things, my site portrays and proves judicial persecution because of opposing false proceedings filed in courts through use of the identities of DEFUNCT mortgage companies. [Although it is not lawful / not possible to COMMENCE a lawsuit naming a non-existent plaintiff (or having no real interest), the judges inflict TORTUROUS CONSEQUENCES upon people who oppose fraudulent judicial proceedings –as the aim is to abet IRS and Securities frauds!]

I am sickened to learn how long Mr. Fine has been wrongly sitting in prison, as well as appalled because judges like Yaffe, and those named on my website are the primary reason why people without means to afford lawyers are less likely to obtain representation. While it pains me that yet another judge is abusing his power, I pray that Mr. Fine’s situation can serve a crushing blow to judicial wrongdoings, in that public awareness will become heightened to the point of PUBLIC OUTRAGE up to Capital Hill, and there will be DEFINITIVE JUDICIAL OVERHAUL & REFORM for all court systems! JUDICIAL DEPRAVITY has become as great a reason for national concern as foreign terrorism.

#5 Comment By Gerry On March 14, 2010 @ 6:13 am

Call it what you like “contempt of court”, whatever. What this rogue “judge” has done is nothing short of “kidnapping”, period!
10’s of thousands of people should “peacefully” surround the court house, (possibly blocking access?), while demanding Yaffe’s termination & the freeing of Richard Fine. They should “boycott” ALL California taxes until their totally responsible demands are met. The man was kidnapped! That is a felony/Federal offense! Yaffe should be in a Federal prison tossing salads for the next 20yrs! I figure if “Yaffe” ( I don’t recognize him as a “judge”) can cite Richard Fine for for “contempt” when he is really a “political prisoner”, instead of “tax evasion”, citizens should be able to call it a tax “boycott”.

#6 Comment By kat On April 15, 2010 @ 4:30 am

They need to let this man free , this is an outrage. Spread this story to the far corners of the US. How many more have been imprisoned that we don’t know about? This story will not go away. They would kill him if they could get away with it just to keep him silent .

#7 Pingback By CCFC Family Law Protest in San Diego Results in Arrest of Group Leader | angiEmedia On April 16, 2010 @ 3:35 pm

[…] held in prison in Los Angeles for doing exactly this. He’s been incarcerated for a year as a political prisoner of corrupt judge David Yaffe. Given that there are protests planned for April 20 against the LA courts for the political […]

#8 Comment By Janette Isaacs On April 20, 2010 @ 2:31 pm

As usual, you have done an outstanding job of reporting this story. I am astounded by the level of corruption prevalent in our judiciary. I commented once on a post that you wrote about Stephen Doyne, the unethical child custody evaluator in San Diego. We have one out here too. His name is Gary A. Chase. Our L.A. Superior Court knows about these paid off unethical evaluators and actually supports their corrupt practices.

Why? Because they are making money (matched Title IV incentives paid to the Court) when alienating great parents from their children every time they maximum a child support order. Of course, we have no due process in our civil and family courts. We must make progress now in our reform efforts.

One Judge should never be able to take someone’s children away when fraud and corruption are the foundation of their decisions. One Judge should not get away with incarcerating honest whistle blower attorneys like Dr. Richard Fine. One Judge should not be able to order us to be slaves and political prisoners without a trial by a jury of our peers. Still, this happens a thousand times every day throughout our nation.

The majority of our L.A. Superior Court Judges are as corrupt as Adolph Hitler. In fact, I believe they are his understudies. We must pool our efforts to make our community aware of the corruption prevalent in our Los Angeles Superior Courts. Come November, do not vote for any politicians (Republicans or Democrats) or any Judges now in office.

We need to start fresh and elect new leaders by voting for the long shots such as the small business owner, the school teacher, the fireman, the doctor, the librarian, the preacher, the locksmith, the welder, the builder, the farmer, the honest news editor, etc. If we are to achieve reform, we must go back to basics and find honest and moral independent Americans to decide our future. Judge Yaffe, Judge Gordon, Judge Lewis, Judge Marjorie Steinberg, Judge Charles McCoy, Judge Stephen Czuleger, L.A.S.C. Court Counsel Frederick Bennett and all of the current corrupt Judges who have accepted these illegal bribes must be voted out one by one.

We do not need “puppets or judicial sluts” which are what we have now. We need good old fashioned leaders, politicians, senators, council members, caucus members and honest judges who practice due process and oversee the integrity of our judicial system. We lack that right now. The only thing transparent in our government is “truth”. Let’s bring the integrity back to our government and judiciary. We must make the world a better place for our children. That is what this fight is all about. We can and we will win this war on public corruption regardless of the puppet show we have come to “buy off on and vote for”.

Money should not be able to buy justice or freedom. Judges should not be taking bribes. Senators should not be passing bills (SBX 211) giving corrupt judges retroactive immunity for taking bribes. We the people must vote these crooks wearing black robes out of office. November is just around the corner.

Every American should take Richard Fine’s case personally. It impacts all of us. He is our hero. Let’s get behind him. As for mainstream media? It’s time for some fresh press mainstream media executives too. The Los Angeles Times is an embarrassment to our intelligence and CBS, KTLA and much to my regret Fox News as well, is offensively censured.

Bottom line, thank you AngieMedia for reporting the truth and keeping us accurately informed on real news stories.

#9 Pingback By LA Protest to Free Political Prisoner Richard Fine on April 20 | angiEmedia On April 20, 2010 @ 10:18 pm

[…] Comments Janette Isaacs on Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard FineFrom Emad Tadros MD on Internet Evidence of Suspicious Timing of Court Awareness of CCFC Protest and […]

#10 Pingback By US Supreme Court Denies Richard Fine Appeal Stay Request | angiEmedia On April 26, 2010 @ 7:19 pm

[…] Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard Fine […]

#11 Pingback By FreeJabber | Blog | Exercising Your Free Speech Rights Despite Government Harassment On June 25, 2010 @ 6:40 am

[…] shroud their illegal actions as “contempt of court” jailing such as has been done to Los Angeles resident Richard I. Fine by Judge David Jaffe. Fine argued that payments by Los Angeles County to judges ruling on its cases were in violation of […]

#12 Pingback By San Diego Superior Court Seeks New Grand Jury For 2011 / 2012 | angiEmedia On December 14, 2010 @ 1:25 am

[…] Feedback on San Diego Judge Lisa SchallWhy Is San Diego Judge Lisa Schall Still On The Bench?Corrupt Judge David Yaffe Jails Political Prisoner Richard FineEileen Lasher on San Diego CPS/Family Law Court MisconductFlyer Protest in San Diego Family Law […]

#13 Comment By Daniel Snyder On November 16, 2011 @ 2:09 am

We need help in overturning a misguided ruling by Judge Yaffe. On your webpage it is stated that he retired November 2010, however, unless there is another Superior Court Judge with the same last name, he is quoted in a recent Court Case as ruling against our City inspection program with contrived commentary that flies in the face of a California Supreme Court Case where our program was found to be a legitimate and necessary inspection program designed to improve the basic habitability standards for tenants throughout the City of Los Angeles. Please contact me for more details, as this case is exploding this week! The Case is Darwish vs. the City of Los Angeles, and as stated in several stories on your website, he is once again ruling against City Government without merit! On behalf of 100’s of thousands of people that have found legitimacy and value in our program, I thank you for any help or guidance you may be able to offer in this travesty of justice. (Our program is under L.A.M.C. Sec. 161.101)

#14 Pingback By Exercising Your Free Speech Rights Despite Government Harassment | FreeJabber On February 12, 2012 @ 7:07 am

[…] shroud their illegal actions as “contempt of court” jailing such as has been done to Los Angeles resident Richard I. Fine by Judge David Jaffe. Fine argued that payments by Los Angeles County to judges ruling on its cases were in violation of […]