Judicial Retaliation: Judge Sends Joe Sweeney to Jail After CJP Audit is Approved- Updated

Disciplined Contra Costa County Judge Bruce Mills Leads Retaliation Campaign Against Joe Sweeney- Was Joe Put in  Jail  For  Exposing CJP's mismanagement?

With at least five CJP discipline actions in his own career,  and a scathing 2016  CJP misconduct report, Judge Bruce Mills appears to be the judge selected to do the dirty work of CJP. There is more than just an appearance that Millis is  retaliating   against Joe Sweeney by ordering  Sweeney to jail,  just two days after  the California state legislature  voted to demand an audit  of  CJP.

​With  attention turning to  CJP's failure to properly investigate and discipline  judges, the gatekeepers of the state's legal system,  judges in courtrooms across the state,  appear to be retaliating against litigants who dared to speak up against the judiciary.

Joe Sweeney, the sole private voice calling for an audit of California's Commission on Judicial Performance, now faces jail time and appears to be experiencing judicial retaliation in his own custody case after his noble efforts to help so many.

​On August 10, 2016 California's State Legislature voted unanimously to audit the state's  judicial watchdog agency, CJP . The audit was ordered largely based on the private efforts of Joe Sweeny and  the scathing report published by Sweeney  through Court Reform, LLC.

​Sweeney Investigates CJP After His Own Family Court Frustration

​After witnessing the horrors of family court, Joe Sweeny, a  level headed and educated man in his mid-thirties,  decided to apply his UC Berkeley science and math degree to explain what he experienced in family court  fighting for equal  time with his young daughter.

​Joe also decided to exercise his First Amendment  Rights  and took to publishing a blog about his family court experience, which was read by many,  including members of Jane and John Q. Public.  The blog was helpful to many struggling with similar family court issues.


​Joe Sweeney Filed Complaints to California's Commission on Judicial Performance- They were Ignored

​Exercising his administrative rights, Joe filed CJP complaints against Judge Weil and Judge Maddock, specifically noting that Judge Maddock is a current member of  CJP who  refused to  recuse himself from reviewing Joe's complaint before CJP.   Maddock . who  shares office space in proximity  to  near Judge Weil  has been reported by   Anonymous court insiders to have discussed Sweeney's family law and contempt cases with Judge Weil  and Judge Mills.  

​After four months of investigation, and no reasonable response from CJP,  Joe was deeply troubled by what appeared to be California's failure to protect its citizens in divorce cases from judicial misconduct.

​Joe immersed himself in the  mathematical assessment  of the facts behind CJP, where he  found those facts more than pointed to the fact  that California was not investigating judges at a pace even similar to that in other states. It appeared  CJP's mismanagement was wasting millions in public funds by failing to discipline judges when valid complaints  were lodged.

​Other groups connected with Joe's report, these groups organized and made extraordinary efforts  to present Joe's findings to the state legislature as early as  March 2016.

​At the time Joe Sweeney spoke up to protect public trust in the legal system, he could not have known that  the judge presiding over his contempt hearing, Judge Mills,  would have over five formal CJP complaints under his belt and  the power to hold Joe Sweeney in contempt of court based on charges brought by  the money afforded to his ex-wife.

​Judge Persky Sentences Rapist to 6 Months  - Judge Mills Tries to Sentence Sweeney  to 25 days for Bogus Blog claims In Violation of Due Process 

​In June 2016  public outcry raged across the world after a  Santa Clara County judge gave a convicted rapist  only six months in jail. Over a million people called for the removal of the judge, and for  CJP  intervention.

​Rather than address their paramount responsibility of protecting public trust in the judiciary , CJP went on the defensive, and spoke up against Joe and the groups who dared to shine a bright light on the dysfunctional management of CJP. A judicial effort to discredit Joe Sweeney through the legal system was clear.

​Ironically, as Judge Persky imposed only a 6-month sentence on a man convicted of felony rape (  of which only three months may be served), Sweeney faced nearly  a month in jail   for speaking up against CJP and for blogging about is experience in family court fighting for his daughter.

​Joe Sweeney's Vast Contribution  to Obtaining an Audit of CJP

By August 10, 2016 the circumstances were ripe, and California’s state legislature voted to demand a state audit of CJP, the publicly funded agency charged with judicial investigations.
 
It was no small coincidence that as Joe Sweeny received the news of the CJP audit,  he also found himself facing significant  judicial retaliation in his own custody case,

​On August 12, 2016,  Joe Sweeney, in a contempt hearing related to his divorce case,   was convicted and sentenced to 25 days in jail. 

During the hearing Judge Mills appeared to engage in prejudgment, and proceeded to cut off Joe’s testimony. Judge Mills also was seen giving nonverbal commands instructing that the bailiff take Joe Sweeney into custody. Joe Sweeney was handcuffed as Judge Mills trashed due process in his zeal to arrest and silence Sweeney.
 
Shocked by the flagrant violation of due process, imposed by a judge who had admittedly never jailed a family law litigant before, Joe found himself  handcuffed and appeared to be sentenced to 25 days in jail and sanctioned $25,000.

​His jail time was  stayed  only after  the clear violation of due process was so evident the court clerk processing his paperwork was unable to proceed.

​Is  Judge Maddock Organizing CJP Lynch Mob to Silence Joe Sweeney's Criticism of CJP?
 
Notably present during Joe Sweeney's contempt hearing  was Judge Thomas Maddock, the member of CJP, an unprecedented and unnecessary appearance.

​It  appears Maddock is acting more as  the organizer of a  CJP lynch mob,  charged to silence Sweeney forever, following the CJP audit decision.  

​After  Mills  had successfully  created a record  to send Joe  to jail, Maddock was  seen exiting the court through a side door, with Dense Johnson, the court clerk in Joe’s family law case,  under judge Weil.
 
​Judge Bruce Mills , who presided over the contempt hearing on August 12, 2016, has   been publicly disciplined by CJP in the past. And given the  events at the contempt  hearing , and the observations made by Joe’s  public defender, complaints over this contempt hearing will be immediately filed.

​Court Watchers, and those appreciative of Joe's efforts plan to witness Mill's retaliation  first hand on Tuesday. All  prepared to testify to CJP and other state officials in the future  if Mills retaliates against Joe Sweeney , as expected.
 
While  the legal options available to Joe Sweeny remain uncertain,  the public options are clear. The bogus charges, and flagrant  violation of due process currently being experienced by Joe Sweeney demand public outcry.

​The actions of California's judiciary also demand attention in the Court of Public Opinion. #NoJailforJoe

​Is CJP Punishing  Joe Sweeney's  Daughter and Mother Too?

​Judge Mills was  granted mitigating consideration during a CJP investigation,  for defending his child.  Apparently Mills believes that kind of consideration only applies  to judges.
 
Joe is scheduled  for his   summer visitation with his young daughter , with a visit from his elderly mother,  next week. The rapid  timing of  this sentence  is not only  suspect, it shows Judge Mills'  flagrant  disregard for the best interest of children.
 
The insidious timing and extreme judicial retaliation Joe now faces for speaking up for so many not only threatens Joe’s legal credibility and civil liberties, but the Contra Costa judiciary has clearly acted in a manner to  deprive Joe Sweeny the  precious , and limited, time he has with his daughter and elderly mother.
  
Please join us in signing the attached petition. Demand Joe’s freedom and protect his right to speak up against the unfair judges.

Sign Petition on Change.org: ​https://www.change.org/p/jerry-brown-pardon-joe-sweeney-he-shouldn-t-go-to-jail-for-getting-an-audit-of-cjp

​Click here to  Support Joe's Family during this challenging time , so we can get Joe back to seeing his mom and young daughter , not spending time in jail because he spoke up.



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