Jim Bell
June 19, 2000
Court Clerk
United States Circuit Court of Appeals
Docket # CR 97-5270-FDB
Dear Sirs:
I am somewhat astounded that well over three weeks after I sent you a letter (see copy enclosed; copies also sent to CC�s below) I have received NO response either from the Court Clerk of the 9th circuit court of appeals, or Thomas Hillier of the Seattle/Tacoma area Federal public Defenders office, or any other official about this letter. Perhaps the fact that I am complaining about crooked lawyers has something to do with it.
I guess I have to be even more plain than I was before. First, Attorney Catherine Floit is apparently not going to represent me in this matter, contrary to the orders of the 9th circuit court to Thomas Hillier. Nor should she. I need a replacement attorney.
Second, the person who the court ordered to select an attorney (Thomas Hillier) is head of an office (Seattle Public Defenders) which has colluded wit!
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h various Federal government agencies (US Marshals; Tacoma prosecutors office; government investigators; ) to suppress an investigation into an assault on me by fellow inmate (an, apparently, informant) Ryan Thomas Lund (done on November 25, 1997) that was ordered by various government investigators possibly including IRS investigator Jeff Gordon. The public defender�s office has also colluded with prosecutors to suppress evidence being exposed at my December 12, 1997 sentencing that would incriminate various government investigators by exposing their illegal bugging and wiretapping, illegal searches and seizures, as well as exposing the government investigators� politically-motivated infiltration of a Portland Oregon group called the �Multnomah County Common Law Court� by a �plant� named Steve Wilson.
Indeed, my previous attorney in this matter (Judith Mandel; a private attorney who was chosen by the Seattle Public Defenders in a very unusual move) was selected withou!
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t my input, was appointed against my wishes, acted totally against my interests, neglected all of my instructions, suppressed the exercise of my rights, and virtually hijacked my entire defense each day of her representation. In a rather astounding move and a quite possibly coordinated effort, she made a show of attempting to resign at the beginning of the second day of my hearing in early June 1999 (motivated primarily because she would not call three US Marshals, or anyone else for that matter that I asked for, to testify about planting evidence and retrieving illegal bugs on June 23, 1998) but was ordered by Judge Franklin Burgess to remain.
In effect, she was being inflicted on me. The fact that Mandel did not file her resignation when she apparently knew she would be resigning, which may have happened at least a week before the second day of the hearing, appears to not have been an accident. Naturally, this meant that my hearing went forward without any witnesses !
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that I had repeatedly demanded, witnesses who might have been called by an honest replacement attorney, assuming that one could be found
The problem at this point is that the person who would otherwise be in charge of the office selecting an attorney for me has, in common with practically every other government employee involved with this case, a crucial interest in seeing these events (and others as well) covered up and not investigated. Any fair re-hearing of my case will necessarily involve a complete examination of the roles of Mr Hillier, Peter Avenia, and other attorneys in the Public Defender�s office in connection with the Ryan Thomas Lund incident as well as others. It would be quite a conflict of interest for Mr. Hillier or anyone else in his office to select a replacement attorney at this point. Already, Mr. Hillier seems to recognize this, which is why he is not replacing Catherine Floit.
While I could go on with further details, and will certainly !
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do so if you ask, I believe that I have told you enough to communicate that there is a great deal of dirty activity associated with my case, on the government�s side. I am sending copies of this and my previous letter to various regional newspapers, to ensure that your court�s knowledge of this situation is well-established for the future.
With Concern,
James D. Bell
Jim Bell
May 24, 2000
Court Clerk
United States Circuit Court of Appeals
Docket # CR 97-5270-FDB
Dear Sirs:
I would like to protest the inaction and delay of Thomas W. Hillier, Federal Public Defender, 1111 Third Ave, Suite 1100 Seattle Washington 98101. He was served with an order, 99-30210, copy included, filed March 13, 2000, which directed him to appoint a counsel to represent me in the above-numbered case. Only over a month later, in late April (approximately April 30) I received my first and so far only letter from attorney �Catherine Floit,� which as I recall was dated no later than April 19.
It is now May 24, and essentially NOTHING has been accomplished, and there is good reason to believe that this is purely intentional on the parts of both Mr. Hillier and Floit. I am alleging fraud and collusion (with various other government agents including prosecutor and investigators) by Peter Avenia and his replacement, Judith Mandel, in their original mis-representation of me!
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up to and including approximately June 3, 1999. I am demanding of Mr. Hillier that these allegations and supporting evidence be fully investigated and included in the appeal, which I believe will incriminate not merely Avenia and Mandel, but the process by which Mr. Hillier selected and selects attorneys for this case.
I am also accusing government officials or investigators of making a deal with fellow inmate Ryan Thomas Lund (DOB 10/27/71, BOP# 27329-086) to have him assault me, which he did on November 25, 1997, for the purposes of putting me in SHU (�the hole�) thus limiting my telephone access to attorneys, investigators, and others, as well as extorting my very hesitant approval of a phony, crooked plea agreement shortly before my final sentencing on December 12, 1997. There is also a current attempt by staff at the Tacoma Federal Public Defender�s office to cover-up the existence of an investigation into this and other issues by Sharon Callas, who worked for Peter !
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Avenia, in which she drove 130+ miles and visited the Portland Metro area in about January 1999. Thomas Hillier now claims that no investigation report exists, and Sharon Callas is mysteriously unavailable for consultation on this matter. I believe that Callas discovered material that incriminated various people, and they are helping to suppress that information.
I believe that Mr. Hillier is attempting to �run out the clock� on this matter, and Catherine Floit is carrying out his wishes in this matter. There is much research and preparation left to be done, and so far I am essentially unrepresented despite the court�s March 13 Order. I request that that all scheduled deadlines so far set be set aside due to this turn of events. I am anxious to prepare a real, genuine appeal in my case, one that actually addresses the serious issues involved. I am being prevented from doing so unfairly.
James D. Bell
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