Response from the governor's office, to request to pardon for thirty-year-old felon conviction

On May 4, I emailed Maine Governor Paul LePage about the unreasonable search and seizure at our home on April 28, 2011. I wrote "I fear that if you do not intervene, there'll be further violations by state agencies which will negatively impact the people of Maine." I included the following from the Maine Constitution: 

   Section 10. May require information of any officer. The Governor may require information from any military officer, or any officer in the executive department, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices.
    
   Section 11. Power to pardon and remit penalties, etc.; conditions. The Governor shall have power to remit after conviction all forfeitures and penalties, and to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons, except in cases of impeachment, upon such conditions, and with such restrictions and limitations as may be deemed proper, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law, relative to the manner of applying for pardons. Such power to grant reprieves, commutations and pardons shall include offenses of juvenile delinquency.

  Section 12. Shall enforce the laws. The Governor shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.

I got a read receipt, but that doesn't mean that the governor read my email; it could have been read by someone in his office. So, today, I called the governor's office, and spoke with Pat Condon, Director of Constituent Services. I told her that I had prepared my husband's application for a pardon; the pardon process does cost money, and takes six months to one year! Since my husband has been charged with being a "felon in possession of firearms," I asked if the governor would pardon him and bypass the pardoning board. I told Condon I had ordered my husband's criminal record, and obtained a copy of the original offense, and would send that to the governor. I told her that as long as he had the support of the people, he shouldn't have reservations about pardoning Pete.

So I received an email from Condon earlier today. There were two different fonts used in the text of her message; what I've italicized is the part that I think is a generic message used to respond to people who write in. Condon suggests I contact Pine Tree Legal. Huh, they don't take criminal cases! And, they only take about twenty percent - well that's what they claimed a few years ago anyway - of all civil cases people turn to them for help regarding.

May 25, 2011

Good afternoon!

Thank you for your e-mail dated May 4, 2011 to Governor LePage as well as your call to our office today.

The concerns you indicated in your e-mail is an ongoing investigation.  Unfortunately, the Governor is unable to intervene. 

If you have not already and desire to hire an attorney (at your expense) to represent your interests in this matter, the Maine State Bar Association offers a referral service – their number is (800) 860-1460.  This lawyer will assist you in navigating the rules of court, the relevant laws of the State, and help you in your efforts to obtain a favorable result.

If you are unable to afford an attorney, Pine Tree Legal Assistance offers free legal representation for qualifying people – their number is (207) 764-4349 at their office in Presque Isle, Maine.

I hope this information has been helpful.  Again, thank you for contacting Governor LePage. 

Sincerely,

Patricia A. Condon

Director, Constituent Services

Office of the Governor

1 State House Station

Augusta, Maine  04333

(207) 287-3418

patricia.a.condon@maine.gov

CONDON LISTED HER DIRECT PHONE LINE. THE TELEPHONE NUMBER TO THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE IS (207) 287-3531; BUT SINCE HE'S BEEN ELECTED, I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO SPEAK WITH HIM.

Traffic tickets

I'll be very busy in the months ahead. I have several court issues to deal with including how to deal with a traffic ticket which Judge David Soucy says I owe $185.01 to the Violations Bureau for. D.A. Todd Collins never provided me the evidence to review, and I didn't get the trial by jury which I demanded. Furthermore, Collins never answered my challenge to jurisdiction. Under the guise of public safety, D.A.'s prosecute and judges "commit" the innocent to fines for victimless crimes. 


Also, I have a brief due in a matter in which I've appealed a decision by the Department of Labor, denying me unemployment benefits in September of 2009. Then we have the credit union's lawsuit; it's a debt which dates back to 2004. In July of 2004, Augusta District Court Judge Rae Ann French ruled against us, and we were unable to get the decision turned around, so we couldn't collect the money owed us by the contractor. Due to that, we couldn't meet all of our obligations.


Well, I'll leave you with this quote from Voltaire:

We must bear in mind, then, that there is nothing more difficult and dangerous, or more doubtful of success, than an attempt to introduce a new order of things in any state. For the innovator has for enemies all those who derived advantages from the old order of things, whilst those who expect to be benefited by the new institutions will be but lukewarm defenders.

Feds strongarming the states regarding medicinal marijuana

I just signed a petition at the Drug Policy Alliance, asking A.G. Holder to stop the war on medical marijuana growers. Clicking on the headline will take you to the petition. As well, I'll add it to the "Petitions" tab. 

Cuffed for the first time.

It finally happened... I was handcuffed. 

Regarding the "felon in possession of firearms" charges, Pete was scheduled to make an appearance on 5-19-11. So I went with him to Superior Court in Caribou. told the judge that I was assisting Pete until he received counsel, which we had just applied to get. Some states let you assist a friend or family member as long as you aren't being paid; well, according to Judge Hunter, Maine doesn't allow it. Nancy Grant was jailed for "Unauthorized Practice of Law" in Florida a few years ago. 

Well, Hunter didn't want me to help my husband. It all happened so quickly. There hadn't been any bail conditions set after the search on 4-28-11, and seizure of our guns; and Pete hadn't been arrested. The prosecutor and judge didn't disclose everything to him, tricked him into signing. I called out "Don't sign it." Hunter then banned me from the courtroom. I made a comment while leaving and he sent the bailiff after me. I spent about 45 minutes in cuffs, during which time a woman lawyer came to speak with me... the judge had sent her. She suggested I apologize. I asked her a few questions, including how the grand jury gets chosen. A lawyer for over thirty years, she didn't know! She was very nice though, and asked one of the clerks; apparently the names are chosen from the list of driver licenses. 

I thought Pete would be so mad at me for getting in trouble. I'm not the enemy, I told him. The very individuals who are supposed to protect us are working under Color of Law to deprive us of our rights!  

UCADIA - help!

Someone posted a good comment about UCADIA at it's link at Talkshoe:

UCADIA has deciphered the Slave Code that entraps us in our daily lives and has provided for us new models of society which are Lawfully superior.

God knows we need new models. Frank (UCADIA's host) mentioned that he's in the process of moving and needs some support... $$$$$. Please go to www.ucadia.com and click on "About," then on "Help Ucadia." He's been doing UCADIA for free since January and really needs help now. If everyone gives a little, it will add up to alot! 

Maine Open Government - Handy website!

The Maine Heritage Policy Center has a website where you can access payroll records of government employees! I just looked up the payroll records of the warden (Jeffrey Spencer) who was the affiant - that is he's the one who made the affidavit, which was required for the search warrant on 4-28-11 at our home. In the past ten years, Spencer's pay more than doubled, and his benefits more than trippled! His overtime pay alone for 2010 was nearly $10,000, for a whopping total compensation of $84,530. I'm gonna post the link in the "Maine Blogs/Websites" tab, as well as place it in the right hand column. The website address is http://www.maineopengov.org/

Face Up To Fred! Judges - GUILTY!

Fred Sotile helped circulate the S.A.V.E. petition to disbar Mary Kellett. He's on BlogTalk Radio right now, Sunday at 11 pm eastern time. Fred is reading a letter, regarding prosecution of those involved in the illegal payments to Los Angeles judges... 430 of them! The letter is from Judicial Watch Inc. (a public-interest law firm) to District Attorney Steve Cooley. After exposing the illegal payments to the judges, Attorney Richard Fine was jailed for 18 months! He was released in September of 2010. Click on the headline to get to the BlogTalk link, or you can call 1 (619) 789 4319 to listen. Californians need to put pressure on Cooley to get on the ball and prosecute! And the rest of the country needs to get behind this too!    

Last night I tuned into Jack Bauer's show on TalkShoe at 9 pm est. 1 (724) 444 7444 (PIN 74235#). It was great! Jack let me say a few words about the raid at our home, and confiscation of our guns by law enforcement on April 28.

"Vladek Filler" case update

The Bangor Daily News ran a story about Filler who was prosecuted by Assistant D.A. Mary Kellett for rape and assault, which it appears he will likely be found innocent of. S.A.V.E. delivered a petition to the governor to get Kellett disbarred. Quoting from the story, a solution...

SAVE President Edward Bartlett said Thursday that funding for criminal prosecutions in Maine should be reduced to help lower the number of what he said are frivolous prosecutions brought against innocent men.

S.A.V.E. also wrote to the Maine Criminal Justice Academy regarding it's predominant aggressor curriculum, which portrays men in a most unfavorable light, and called it "gender-profiling." Here's a link to the petition, which it appears is still open to signing. 

Lawsuit - U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe's husband - former Maine Governor McKernan

The U.S. Dept of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Education Management Corporation; Senator Snowe's husband is the chair of its board of directors, and until 2007 was CEO of the company. The problem: aggresive recruiting of students and incentives for recruiting. Apparently the rate of students defaulting on loans with EDMC is much higher than other lenders. If you click on the headline you'll get to a more detailed story, by the Bangor Daily News. Click here for a shorter one by Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN), which includes a video.

"Petition" page added

I've added a new tab where you'll find petitions which I've signed and encouraged others to sign. I just added one by the National Whistleblowers Center to help get legislation passed that will protect whistleblowers who expose dirty secrets of their corporate bosses.

BE IT RESOLVED: That Congress enact into law a National Whistleblower Protection Act which protects all Americans who lawfully disclose waste and fraud in government spending, violations of law or threats to the public health and safety. The law must provide all whistleblowers with the right to federal court proceedings, a trial by jury and reasonable damages. It must also reward employees who risk their careers to serve the public interest.

Petition to disbar Assistant D.A. Mary Kellett

S.A.V.E. (Stop Abusive and Violent Environments) has sent letters to Maine's governor, attorney general, the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar, and more! The Bar Complaint is calling for Kellett to be disbarred. And S.A.V.E. does more! It's letter to A.G. Schneider asks him to put an end to "no-drop prosectution" in Maine. No-drop prosecution policies require prosecution without giving much consideration to probable cause, the wishes of the accused, or past false accusations by the accuser.

I've blogged about the Vladek Filler case in the past and posted video of Mrs. Filler. Click here to read the story and sign the petition!

Click here to read a recent article about the Filler case, written by Attorney Robert Franklin with Fathers and Families. He states:

I’d bet good money that Vladek Filler is an innocent man railroaded into prison by an unstable wife threatened with the loss of her kids and an unscrupulous prosecutor who believes all claims of rape.

Medical marijuana case - Illegal search? Fowler may sue

I thought I'd post this update regarding a raid last year in Maine, of a medical marijuana patient's plants... another case of abuse of power by law enforcement. It's time to cut their budgets. 

Unlawful search?

Our home in Lille was raided on the morning of April 28, 2011. The raid was conducted by six individuals employed by the Maine Warden Service, assisted by two Aroostook County Deputy Sheriffs, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (also known as ICE), and a Border Patrol agent.


I was on the telephone with a friend when I noticed a few men dressed in green at my door. My husband and his friend were in the basement of our home, where they often sit and talk. The officers let themselves in without permission. Guns drawn, they ordered me to hang up the phone. I asked if they had a search warrant, and was told (eventually) that they did; however, it wasn't presented until about 40 minutes into the search. Though the warrant stated there was an affidavit attached to it, there wasn't one. One of the wardens assured me that the warrant was legal, and that the affidavit was available at the courthouse. A judge had signed the warrant. 

I wasn't satisfied that there was probable cause to search our home, and noticed that the address at the top of the warrant was for the "SANFORD RESIDENCE OF PETER MICHAUD", but we live in Lille (also known as Grand Isle). The description of the premises further down the warrant did list our  home in Lille, however. The affidavit mentioned in the warrant was that of Game Warden Jeffrey F. Spencer, who was present. I asked him what was in his statement, and what had prompted him to look at Pete's records. Then Bill Livezey, a special investigator for the Maine Warden Service, asked Spencer to step outside with him... no doubt to coach him on what not to say. I told all of the officers that they had to leave because of the discrepancy with the address, and the missing affidavit, but they would not.  

The search warrant was signed by the same judge (David Soucy) who recently held a bench trial in my traffic case though I demanded a trial by jury (see post last month); when I wouldn't participate, he entered a default judgment. Soucy had not responded to a motion I'd filed asking for proof of jurisdiction; and the police video/audio of the traffic stop, which I'd requested from the District Attorney, Todd Collins, was never provided to me, so that I could prepare for trial. Opportunity to review evidence must be more than just a few hours before trial; but D.A. Collins said he didn't have a copy, although a letter from the State Trooper's office mentioned he had been sent one.


Anyway, back to the raid. The reason for the search, we were told, was that Pete was a felon (convicted in 1981), so he couldn't possess firearms or get a hunting license. He was drunk, and 19 years old at the time; he'd gotten into a fight with a Canadian and taken the guy's money. He spent a few months in jail for that. We started dating in 1982. Here's a photo of us then:

We moved to Southern Maine after we married in 1983, and Pete completed the required contacts with his parole officer before we moved to New Hampshire. In 1989 we moved back to Maine; and not knowing he needed to have his right to possess a firearm restored, Pete must have answered "No" to the question on the Maine hunting license application asking if he was prohibited from possessing firearms. I'm sure he didn't even know what the word "prohibited" meant anyway. 

Officers took all rifles, shotguns, ammo, hunting license, two deer mounts, and more. The search lasted over four hours. I requested a list of the names of the officers who participated in the raid, and was told the information would be provided before the search was completed, but I had to leave before they were gone, and no list was left with Pete. A few officers did leave their "business cards." The Deputy Sheriff gave Pete a summons to appear in Superior Court in Caribou on May 19, at 9:00 a.m.

Amazingly when I asked two of the wardens "Who signs your paycheck?", they didn't know, or wouldn't say. For a good majority of the time, five officers stood at the edge of our driveway, just talking. Apparently they had a dog with them. I've heard that these police dogs are trained in only one area: drugs, firearms, or bodies. Which type of dog did they have with them, and why didn't they use the police dog? Probably because it would eliminate most of their jobs! And, they wouldn't get to search for what wasn't listed on the warrant: marijuana and drugs. 

Only a few officers were needed once it was determined that we were not going to try to protect ourselves from what we believe are violations of our right to bear arms and right to privacy in our home. An audio recording was being made of the search, I was told. Though I was eventually told I was free to leave (I asked), that is not the impression I got when they entered my home; and when I tried to leave my property to speak with my husband who was sitting in the Deputy Sheriff's car at the edge of our driveway, one of the wardens threatened to arrest me for interfering with an investigation, and grabbed my shirt sleeve as I began to walk towards the car. 
 
Here's some information about gun laws in Maine. Quoting from the article:

Among the 50 states, Maine consistently has one of the lowest violent crime rates. And while any figures on the level of gun ownership would be conjecture because there is no registration requirement here, Maine takes among the most permissive positions on gun regulation and has a long tradition of hunting and self-protection with firearms.

Maine's gun laws are pretty lenient. In fact in 2003 and 2004 my husband purchased firearms from an outfit called Joe Jones in Windham Maine, which was apparently licensed as a firearms dealer. Was there no background check? And the state has been issuing hunting licenses all along. Here are some headlines from Maine Citizens against Handgun Violence. My husband has proven himself to be a responsible hunter and gun-owner. Should he be punished for life... be forbidden to possess firearms due to a three-decades-old fist fight/petty theft?