When Justice Violates a Person's Rights

August 18, 2010


Today is 6 years and 22 days since I was wrongfully arrested. This is my 38th Court Appearance and my 58th request for an explanation as to how I was involved. I have never received an answer. My case still has not been heard. Information has not been verified and there is no evidence I committed a crime. See probable cause below.

I have made numerous attempts to seek help in finding the truth and in obtaining a fair hearing from the people listed below.

  William Beamer, Court Appointed Attorney
  Officer Joyce Cavallo, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU)
  Marianne Bell, State Prosecutor
  Judge Susan Lebow, Criminal Judge
  Judge Bidwell, Mental Health, until 12/2007
  Judge William Haury, Jr
  Captain James Mann, Law Enforcement, OIG
  Adria E. Quintela, FBA, Chief Branch Discipline Counsel
  Michael Satz, State Attorney, 17th Judicial Circuit
  Daphne Gauthier, Court Appointed Attorney
  Prosecutor Silver
  Jonathon Dickstein, Court Appointed Attorney
  Bill McCollum, Florida Attorney General, current
  Court appointed Psychologists


Not one person took the time to review the evidence I provided or the possible violations of my rights. Everyone took the word of Officer Cavallo, even though she was on probation by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for not providing complete and accurate information. Cavallo never took the time to question me or verify any information about me during the investigation. The first time we met was the day she arrested me.


I am innocent and I have never been considered incompetent, until I entered the Broward County Court System. I have been violated by the prosecutors, judges, court appointed attorneys, court appointed psychologists and government officials who chose to turn a blind eye to the evidence (or lack of) and allowed this continued injustice. To charge a person with 10 counts of neglect without evidence or probable cause is a crime and a violation of my constitutional rights.


As I sat with Dr. Ratner this week, I told him I didn't believe it was possible to receive a fair hearing, after all that I’ve seen, heard and observed in the last six years.


1. Failure of the attorneys, prosecutors, judges and government agencies to inform the defendant of how she was involved in these cases. (See Amendment 4: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation.)

On December 3, 2009; almost 5-1/2 years after I was arrested; I thought I would finally learn what I had done. Judge Haury, Jr. asked Prosecutor Silver to explain how I was involved. The prosecutor stated, “The investigator knows the defendant was involved, but just does not know how”. Judge Haury Jr. ordered us back to court on January 13, 2010, giving Silver an additional 6 weeks to research my involvement or lack of.

On January 13, 2010, Judge Haury Jr. asked Prosecutor Silver again to provide an explanation of my involvement. Silver stated, “due to the incompetency of the defendant, we are not obligated to provide this information”.

I called the ACLU to verify if a defendant who is labeled incompetent losses their rights to be informed about the probable cause and the specifics of how the defendant was involved. ACLU stated “Whether competent or incompetent a defendant has the right to know why they are being accused of a crime.”

2. Failure of the legal, judicial and government officials to review the evidence that the MFCU violated my rights and their probation by neglecting to provide complete and accurate information, including financial records in an amount that exceeds 3 million dollars.

3. Prosecutor Bell withheld a taped conversation for almost 2 1/2 years and only after I filed a formal complaint with the FBA and a judge's order did Bell submit the tape to Beamer. Bell would resign a few months later.

4. By February 2007, Mr. Beamer still had not listened to the tape. I asked if I could review it. I discovered 30 minutes of the tape was missing and there were at least 19 transcribed errors. I informed Mr. Beamer, the court, FBA and OIG. Mr. Beamer failed to report the tampered evidence, stating Bell was retiring, so there is nothing you can do about it. No one followed-up.

On January 13, 2010, Judge Haury Jr. asked Prosecutor Silver about the taped conversation that was allegedly tampered with. Silver stated, “due to the incompetency of the defendant, we are not obligated to pursue this”. This response illustrates a flaw in the legal process, leaving a defendant who is labeled incompetent a victim of prosecutorial misconduct and civil rights violations.

5. Requested a speedy trial four times between July 2004 through February 2006. Judge Lebow denied my requests, once because the prosecutor had a prepaid vacation and I was told I would have to pay for her trip. Beamer threatened to withdraw from the case if I continued to ask for a speedy trial.

6. I was declared incompetent by Dr. Brannan in March 2006. This was about two weeks after my fourth request for a speedy trial; 17 months after I was arrested; and after I asked Judge Lebow, Prosecutor Bell and William Beamer if my 6th Amendment right to a speedy trial was being denied? No one responded. I was ordered to visit Dr. Brannan, who declared me incompetent because I did not know how I was involved; which is exactly what Prosecutor Silver said (she does not know how I was involved) almost four years later on December 3, 2009.

a. I was declared incompetent so Judge Lebow, Prosecutor Bell and Beamer would not be in violation of my 6th Amendment rights.

b. I was declared in competent because the Prosecutor and Beamer were not prepared to go to trial after 17 months.

c. I was declared incompetent, so the taped conversation between Officer Cavallo and me would not be submitted as evidence. The tape clearly shows Officer Cavallo failed to verify information and all financial records. How did Cavallo miss over 3 million dollars of Medicaid funds and still say she reviewed the financial records and is familiar with the circumstances of the offenses described? This is a clear violation of the HHS probation and has the potential to damage the prosecutor’s case.

d. What happens when a prosecutor or an attorney misuses an individual's incompetency to cover-up alleged tampering of evidence; withholding evidence; as an excuse not to move forward; and/or as a legal tactic to prevent the defendant’s evidence from being introduced?

7. Mr. Beamer threatened me and committed perjury in order to cover up his inability to function as my attorney. In his motion to withdraw (7/2009), Beamer accuses me of abusing his wife. This is an intentional lie. An attorney, who would deliberately commit perjury and makes an official statement in a legal document is a danger to others and possibly has psychological issues that need to be addressed. Beamer’s comment is defamatory and libelous and a response to the complaint I filed with the FBA.

I'm not sure which was worse, Beamer's accusation or the fact the Judge did nothing.

No one in the United States of America should ever have to bear the horror of a system that cares so little about the truth and the irreversible harm it can cause on innocent people and their families. Justice is not covering up the truth or ignoring evidence. Justice is the truth.



Probable Cause Document. I am not mentioned in any of the 10 cases. However 3 months after I was arrested, a sentence was added to each case to include my name.

Stop the Broward County Judicial Elite - Vote for Justice

As we reviewed the judicial candidates in Broward County, we realized many of the attorneys and the media were endorsing judges who have been sitting on the bench way to long. Yes, these are the candidates with experience.

They are also the Judges who have developed friendships and favoritism, thus creating a judicial system that provides preferential treatment to some and injustice for others.

We reviewed all the judges. We looked at the following criteria in order to make our decisions:
1. Who contributed to their campaigns
2. Florida Bar Judicial Candidate Voluntary Self-Disclosure Statement
3. Experience
4. News Reviews
5. FlyFishProductions
6. JAABlog

The Judicial Administration and Evaluation Committee developed The Florida Bar Judicial Candidate Voluntary Self-Disclosure Statement . The Florida Bar provides judicial candidates, both sitting judges and others, with the opportunity to provide information about themselves and their backgrounds to the public in preparation of an election. The self-disclosure statement is intended to give all candidates the opportunity to share information about their history, credentials, and other relevant information, with the voting public. The only drawback is the Voluntary Self-Disclosure Statement is not mandatory.

Cops and Judges Secret Code Of Corruption,
South Florida, Broward County

These are our recommendations:

County Court Judge

Group 3

Debra L. Steinsaltz

Group 4

Lloyd Harris Golburgh

Group 12

Melissa Beth Minsk Donoho

Group 13

Heidi Berkowitz

Group 14

Jordan Howard Breslaw

Group 15

Roshawn Banks

Judicial Candidates County

Group 2

Oliver Parker

Group 4

Alan B. Schneider

Group 6

Frieda M. Goldstein

Group 9

Jill Tamkin Rafilovich

Group 15

Robert Abraham Jakovich

Group 23

Alan S. Bernstein

Group 24

Olga M. Levine

Group 47

Laura Renee Seidman

Group 53

Rhoda Sokoloff

Change is needed to prevent judicial bias.

 

Six Years and 57 Requests for an explanation as to how I was involved and my case still has not been heard

July 27, 2010. Today marks the sixth anniversary of the day I was wrongfully arrested and my case has never been heard. I’ve requested 57 times an explanation as to how I was involved. I never received an answer. I’ve been ignored, denied the right to a speedy trial four times, declared incompetent (after 17 months), laughed at and lied too.

On December 3, 2009; almost 5-1/2 years after I was arrested; I thought I would finally learn what I had done. Judge Haury, Jr. asked Prosecutor Silver to explain how I was involved. The prosecutor stated, “The investigator knows the defendant was involved, but just does not know how”. Judge Haury Jr. ordered us back to court on January 13, 2010, giving Silver an additional 6 weeks to research my involvement or lack of.

On January 13, 2010, Judge Haury Jr. again asked Prosecutor Silver to provide an explanation of my involvement. Silver stated, “Due to the incompetency of the defendant, we are not obligated to provide this information”. The judge seemed surprised, but did not pursue it. Judge Haury, Jr. asked about the taped conversation that was allegedly tampered with. Silver stated, “Due to the incompetency of the defendant, we are not obligated to pursue this”.

Is it a violation of a person's civil rights for a Judge, Prosecutor and/or Court-Appointed Attorney to refuse or withhold the explanation of how a defendant was involved in a case (prior to incompetency and when declared incompetent)?


If it is not a violation of the law to withhold this information due to incompetency, does that mean a person who is declared incompetent has no constitutional rights?


What happens when a prosecutor or an attorney misuses an individual's incompetency to cover-up alleged tampering of evidence; withholding evidence; as an excuse not to move forward; and/or as a legal tactic to prevent the defendant's evidence from being introduced?

Because Mr. Beamer (original court appointed attorney)  failed to introduce information and evidence provided to him while I was “competent” the current prosecutor Silver is refusing to provide an explanation to the court as to my involvement or lack of as evidenced by her comments made on January 13, 2010. These comments illustrate a flaw in the legal process, leaving a defendant who is labeled incompetent a victim of attorney and/or prosecutorial misconduct and civil rights violations.

I was declared incompetent by Dr. Brannan in March 2006 while Mr. Beamer was supposed to be protecting my rights. This was about two weeks after my fourth request for a speedy trial; 17 months after I was arrested; and after I asked Judge Lebow, Prosecutor Bell and William Beamer if my 6th Amendment right to a speedy trial was being denied? No one responded. I was ordered to visit Dr. Brannan, who declared me incompetent because I “did not know how” I was involved; which is exactly what Prosecutor Silver said (she does not know how I was involved) almost four years later on December 3, 2009.

Mr. Beamer’s response to my incompetency was “It’s like winning the lottery, you’ll see”. Mr. Beamer had to lie to my doctor in order to obtain a letter from him. This can be verified by my doctor.

Does a defendant have the right to know what they did to be arrested?

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On July 10, 2009 Mr. Beamer submitted a motion to withdraw as attorney of record. Within this motion to the court and the documents submitted to the Florida Bar Association (FBA), Mr. Beamer clearly shows he failed to review significant evidence submitted by the defendant and the state, he failed to protect my constitutional and civil rights; he was careless and negligent in his responsibility and he committed perjury in order to cover-up his inability to function as my attorney.


The paragraph below is from Mr. Beamer's response to my complaint filed to the Florida Bar Association. Mr. Beamer’s comment reveals he never looked at the evidence or information I provided him. The conversation between me and lead Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) investigator, Officer Joyce Cohen Cavallo occurred after I was arrested, on July 30, 2004 and had nothing to do with why I was arrested. The first time I met Officer Cavallo was on the day she arrested me, July 27, 2004. I was never interviewed or contacted during the investigation. I did not know there was an investigation because I was not working at the facility at the time of the investigation.

I arranged to meet with Cavallo on July 30, 2004 in the hopes of learning why I had been arrested. The conversation was taped. I learned Cavallo was unaware I was not working at the facility during the time of the investigation and she never saw the Medicaid reconciliation for over three million dollars which I prepared for the court-appointed receiver, Alan Goldberg (in 2003). I provided Cavallo copies of the reconciliation, final pay stub, and documents showing I lent the facility my personal monies to pay for the patient's food and staff payroll. I was never paid back. Cavallo stated with this new information she would ask the state attorney to look into dropping the charges. That never happened. In addition, I still did not know what I had done to be arrested.

The following day, July 31, 2004 I received the written probable cause document; it further confirmed there was no probable cause. I was not mentioned in any of the 10 cases, though 3 months after my arrest they revised the probable cause document and added my name as an addendum to each case. The investigator failed to verify any information she had written about me in the probable cause affidavit. Example, the owner of the facility, Mr. Lampert, states in May 2003, "I was his fiancé and clinician" - neither were true and could have easily been verified had Officer Cavallo taken the time to check the facts. On July 5, 2002 (before the investigation began), Mr. Lampert beat me up and threatened to cause further physical harm to me and my son. There are police records, documentation by a physician and numerous eye witnesses who can verify Lampert’s abuse of me and my son. I was not working at the facility during the investigation, I was not Lampert’s fiancé and I had not worked as the clinician at Lampert's facility for many years, I had been working as a biller and journalist out of my home, so I could take care of my son who is a quadriplegia with Cerebral Palsy.

While I was researching the charges, I came across a series of Audits conducted by the Florida Auditor General which would further confirm the MFCU, of which Officer Cavallo represents failed to verify information and financial records. It was one of the original 12 deficiencies noted by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which placed the MFCU on probation and classified the agency as a “high risk” grantee from January 2003 through March 2004. These dates fall within the time of the investigation of the facility. Note, as of the last audit conducted this deficiency remains active (12/2008).

Auditor General, Department of Legal Affairs, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Report No. 2004-033. Reporting Period 07/2001 through 01/2003.  Describes the HHS Review, Probation and Deficiencies. http://florida-injustice.com/Support/audit2003.pdf

Auditor General, Department of Legal Affairs, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Report No. 2006-028. Reporting Period 02/2004 through 01/2005.  http://www.myflorida.com/audgen/pages/pdf_files/2006-028.pdf. This audit is a follow up on the findings from audit report No. 2004-033, dated August 2003, to determine whether appropriate corrective actions have been taken. The audit indicated that Department management has not implemented sufficient actions to resolve the prior audit findings. Specifically, the Department’s corrective actions have been insufficient to correct findings related to MFCU data systems, the distribution of restitution, staff analyses, fleet management, and evidence room inventories.

Auditor General, Department of Legal Affairs, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, Report No. 2008-012. Reporting Period 07/2005 through 02/2007. http://www.myflorida.com/audgen/pages/pdf_files/2008-012.pdf. Department records show that MFCU closed 1,270 cases during the period July 2005 through February 2007. Of the 1,270 cases closed, 392 (31 percent) were closed due to lack of evidence or no evidence of fraud or abuse; 487 (38 percent) were unfounded; and 88 (7 percent) resulted in convictions or settlements. The remaining cases were closed due to administrative referrals, pretrial interventions, or other reasons.

 These numbers are significant and show cases were opened without a review to determine the validity or viability of a complaint or allegation.

In the probable cause affidavit, Officer Cavallo makes a sworn statement she reviewed the financial records and is familiar with the circumstances of the offenses described. Yet in our conversation, she states she is unaware of the Medicaid reconciliation. The Medicaid reconciliation totaled over 3 million dollars. How did Cavallo overlook such a large sum of money and still say she is familiar with the circumstances of the offenses?

For 6 years I have fought to clear my name. It is beyond my comprehension that no one in all this time would verify my employment and other information I provided, including the taped conversation between Cavallo and me.  I have observed the actions of law enforcement, lawyers, prosecutors and judicial officials. I have asked for help in finding the truth and in obtaining a fair hearing from the people listed below.

William Beamer, Court Appointed Attorney
Judge Susan Lebow, Criminal Judge

Judge Bidwell, Mental Health, until 12/2007
Bill McCollum, Florida Attorney General, current

Marianne Bell, State Prosecutor
Captain James Mann, Law Enforcement Captain, OIG

Judge William Haury, Jr
Michael J. Satz, State Attorney, 17th Judicial Circuit

Daphne Ganthier, Court Appointed Attorney
Adria E. Quintela, FBA, Chief Branch Discipline Counsel
Prosecutor Silver
Jonathon Dickstein, Court Appointed Attorney

Not one person took the time to review the evidence I provided or the possible violations of my rights. Everyone was comfortable in taking the word of Officer Cavallo, even though she never took the time to question me or verify any information about me during the investigation and while she was on probation by the Department of HHS for not providing complete and accurate information. The legal, judicial and government officials, including Mr. Beamer failed to review evidence that might prove the MFCU violated my rights and their probation, Prosecutor Bell withheld a taped conversation for almost 2-1/2 years and when ordered to submit it to the defense there was 30 minutes missing, failure of Mr. Beamer to report tampered evidence and failure of the system to inform the defendant of how she is involved in these cases.

No one in the United States of America should ever have to bear the horror of a system that cares so little about the truth and the irreversible harm it can cause on innocent people and their families. Justice is not covering up the truth or ignoring evidence. Justice is the truth.

Competency Exam: The Role of the Prosecutor

Preparing for a Competency Exam: The Judge

Innocent Until Proven Guilty

Update: On August 19, 2009
Letter to the judge was returned by mail with a note stating needs lawyer to sign. At the time the letter was sent I was without an attorney for 6 months. The judge's assistant was the person who suggested I write the judge. Why did he waste $0.44 to let me know he was ignoring me?


Judge William W. Haury, Jr.
Broward County Courthouse
201 Southeast Sixth Street, Chamber 7790
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301

I am hoping this is an acceptable way to express my concerns. I was always taught a person is innocent until proven guilty. Yet while I was in your courtroom with my son, you asked the prosecutor if I neglected either my mother or son. The prosecutor said “No”, however I was surprised you asked the question.

I have never neglected anyone in my life. There are times when the SAO makes mistakes. This is one of those times.

July 27, 2009 marked 5 years since I was wrongfully accused and arrested. During the investigation I was never contacted or interviewed. At no time did the investigator verify information about me. Had she taken the time to review my employment, she would have realized I was not working at the facility during the investigation. Since my arrest I have provided my W2 and 1099 for that period of time to the investigator, prosecutor, SAO, attorney general, inspector general, numerous judges, and my previous attorney.

After five years, either no one has verified my employment history or it has been ignored. I do not understand why any of the public or elected officials would intentionally ignore evidence that would prove my innocence. I have tried to make sense of the judicial process, but I have been unsuccessful.

All that I know to be the truth is the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) neglected to verify evidence and fabricated evidence during a period of time when the MFCU was on probation from the Federal Department of Health and Human Services. Prosecutor Bell withheld a taped conversation for 2-1/2 years and when ordered by Judge Bidwell to turn the tape over it was missing 30 minutes and had at least 19 transcribed errors. The tape was made on July 30, 2004 between myself and investigator Cavallo. The tape revealed the investigator neglected to verify information she presented as evidence in the Probable Cause Affidavit.

I have attached an article written about me in today’s newspaper. It highlights the Public Service Award I received and the volunteer work I have done over the last 30 years.

I have always been a law abiding citizen, a devoted mother to a severely disabled son, no criminal history, involved in numerous charities, a journalist, and an educator with a doctorate degree in nutrition education and statistics. To be labeled someone who neglects another human being is devastating, especially since I dedicated my life to helping improve the quality of life for the disabled and elderly.

Even with all the legal problems, I continue to help others. The volunteer work I do gives meaning to my life and hopefully benefits others. The person who appeared in your court room has never neglected anyone, she is the person in the article.

Thank you for your time and attention.

With regards