Transcript Scandal: Court Reporter Seeks Witness Protection & Immunity After Admitting to Over Charging and Changing Transcripts in Family and Criminal Cases

Are Court Reporters Stealing From Children ?

MARTINEZ, CA- AVAILABLE  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -  Judge Mills, the latest Bay Area Judge to be  investigated by the CJP, has reportedly  had sexual relationships with court reporters who provided Mills with information he intends to use as blackmail against  Contra Costa Judges including: Judge  Humes, Judge  Haynes, Judge Landau and presiding Judge Austin,  and Jill Fannin as well as  Santa Clara County judges who have long held powerful positions at the Commission on Judicial Performance.

Mills has privately vowed to expose Judge Yew, Judge Pichon and Judge James Towery related to misuse of public funds, fee gouging and mail fraud  where court transcripts are concerned. Litigants in family courts of these judges have over paid for transcripts buried deep in attorney fee awards  gained by padding billing statements.  Court reporters have also acted to delay transcripts to obstruct the appeal process based on entanglement with these and other judges. 

Judge Mills  appears  to have evidence that will confirm that Judge Humes, Haynes  and Austin  have willfully engaged in altering transcripts to prevent parents in Contra Costa County from successfully appealing divorce and custody orders.   Similar conduct appears to have resulted in overcharging in divorce and custody cases in Sacramento, Napa, Solano, Monterey, Alameda and Orange County. 

The  investigation of Judge Mills may signal internal fighting as the State Auditor moves closer to reporting and auditing thousands of complaints against judges that have been dismissed and ignored  for decades. 

Court reporters who produced transcripts in Mills' courtroom may become  entangled  in Mills' defense and several are asking  for protection before they agree to assist  the FBI and the Department of Justice, some retired reporters note retaliation is real and many fear for their personal safety. 

​A Santa Clara County Court clerk   tired of Judge Stuart Scott's repeated sexual advances is reported to be assisting  investigators locate court reporters willing to come  forward to the media,  the FBI and the DOJ after complaints had been ignored by the CJP and Attorney General implicating  Santa Clara County Family Court Judges.  

​" Judge Scott doesn't even try to hide the fact that he is hitting on us in the court clerks office, where he regularly comes down to check on his "ex parte sign offs" . Court Staff and litigants have complained about Scott since the moment he became a judge, he got a pubic admonishment letter, and was transferred from criminal court to family court where he continues to harm the public and families trapped in Santa Clara County divorce and custody cases.  He openly tells reporters to change or delay transcripts in cases with certain lawyers. He  harasses us, expects us to do illegal things to make him look good  and Judge Emede and Lucas do nothing to stop him."

​The clerk has also assisted court employees and litigants   secretly record hearings in order to compare those recordings to the  transcripts produced by Santa Clara County Court Reporters.  The transcripts and recordings have been sent to the media, FBI and DOJ. Huge discrepancies and redactions in the transcripts do not match live recordings. 

Lawyers associated with the Santa Clara County Bar Association , SCCBA, have launched  a PR campaign  "Operation Lid On", to get a handle on the problem and  protect the judges awarding unprecedented fees and sanctions in Silicon Valley divorce and custody cases.

Judges have been working overtime issuing orders to stop the recording and delay transcript deliveries, but investigators report they have enough to proceed with investigations without court staff of judge assistance. 

​Court reporters who behave and keep the secrets of unethical lawyers and judges, have been routinely assigned to courts where high profile cases assure more money in income from transcript requests., Cases including the Persky matter, the Sierra La Mar Case, and the criminal and custody cases of former 49er Ray Mc Donald appear to generate massive fees as a form of kickback to court reporters willing to scrub transcripts or fix historical records  to make judges look more competent in the law. 

​The CJP investigation of Mills may expose far more than Mills' misconduct.  Mills is reportedly linked to large law firms where attorneys are routinely awarded lucrative private judging contracts. These assignments  bring in millions of dollars , where lawyers are given the power of immunity of a judge and where these firms retain court reporters and bill for transcripts upwards of 100% the legal maximum. 

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Over Charging for Transcripts Found Millions in Unreported Income 

​An underground sting in family courts shows that Santa Clara County leads the state in overcharging for transcripts, but Silicon Valley and Orange County private judge assignments and mediation mean even bigger bucks for court reporters. Most income court reporters are paid in these assignments appears to be in cash that is not reported to the IRS. 

Attorneys acting as judges in divorce cases have told court reporters to change or delay transcripts to block appeals. Requests for the Court of Appeals to intervene and ensure timely delivery of court transcripts in family and criminal cases, have been denied, giving an appearance the Court Transcript Scandal may extend into the court of appeal.

​" Judges have been asking for transcripts to be changed or delayed for decades, they all have benefited from transcript changes at one time in their careers, so they aren't going to speak up. What is sad is that small changes that seem innocent to a judge may mean a mother or father losing their children, or a elderly person losing their freedom and  life savings because an unscrupulous court reporter is willing to change a few important words."

​Fees charged for transcripts in California amount to billions of dollars.  Divorce cases these days show  judges and lawyers are driving  transcript costs up to over $5,000 in a single case, which serves to  benefit a core group of court reporters willing to break the law  and a powerful judge. 

John and Jane Q are moving to Proton Mail for this investigation where you can safely send recordings and transcripts for this investigation.