My attorney has yet another reason
to challenge this lawsuit: It was never legally served.
However, a process server in
California claims to have personally served me -- and described me (in a sworn statement)
as being 5 ft. 6 inches, with short gray hair. This is important, as you soon will see.
ABC'S second SLAPP suit was filed in
March 2000. This time it was filed in the names of the principals -- the LaMonda brothers
("Dr. Jess LaMonda, Ed.D." and C. Keith LaMonda). This time it was filed in
Orlando (Orange County, FL), a 4 hour drive for my current Florida attorney, if he took it
on. It appears to be a tactic to force me to my knees economically, either by forcing me
to get a second lawyer in Orlando or to lose by default.
This seems to be the motive, since
the Orlando suit was NOT sent by any means to my Florida attorney, Eric Stettin. Instead,
it was sent to me directly -- by regular mail. However, in the service attestation signed
by ABC'S attorney, Allen Heeke claims to have served it by certified mail. Neither of
these forms of service is legal. The complaint MUST be personally served.
On May 25, 2000 I was called to a
deposition "for the limited purpose of jurisdiction" in regard to the first
lawsuit. ABC's in-house counsel travelled to Orange County, Calif. The deposition was
scheduled at a location 30 miles from my home. Due to transportation problems, I arrived
one hour late. And walked into an ambush.
The Ambush (May 2000)
Allen Heeke, in-house counsel for
ABC, met me in the lobby and escorted me to the deposition room. I saw a court reporter
sitting at the machine at the end of a long table that was surrounded by many chairs. A
strange man sat in a chair against the wall. I wondered if he was from ABC and, since we
were not introduced, asked who he was.
"John Wilks," he said.
My immediate association (probably
the same as yours): Abraham Lincoln. I asked what role he played in these proceedings.
He said, "I'm the process
server who served you."
He grinned. I saw dimples in his
cheeks. He was a good-looking young man (age 31, I later learned). Far too good-looking to
be a LaMonda, and probably 100 lbs. lighter than either "Dr. Jess, Ed.D." or
Clyde Keith. Had I ever seen Wilks before this day, I would not have forgotten him.
I said, "Doesn't it surprise
you that I shrank 4 inches in 2 months?"
I wore sneakers, which did not
increase my height significantly, yet he replied, "You're 5-6."
I said, "You're judgment is not
very good." (Please note: I have never been 5-6 unless I stood on a chair.) Then I
said, "How about my hair? Color can be changed in hours, but how did my hair grow
this long in 2 months?"
At that point Heeke called Wilks to
the table for his deposition. My attorney monitored by phone from his office in Florida.
Wilks swore that he personally
served me on a number of occasions, and mentioned a company that I never heard of. (Never
mind that I have never been served with lawsuits other than SLAPP suits by viatical
companies.)
When he was done -- roughly 10
minutes later -- Wilks stood up and threw on the table in front of me a summons and
complaint for the Orlando SLAPP suit. I later learned from my Florida attorney that this
was a violation of Florida law, which prohibits misusing a deposition as a means of
serving a lawsuit.
To this day - June 26,2000 - they
have not contacted my Florida attorney directly about this suit. Last week ABC went into
court in Orlando for a default hearing. I received a copy of the Motion for Default, sent
by ABC's attorney by regular mail, one day before receiving the results of that default
hearing.
Banned, Censored, First Amendment
Rights turned into Putty
It is "standard operating
procedure" for attorneys to draft the decision that a judge signs. In this case, it
is clear from the wording of the decision that Judge James C. Hauser trusted the attorney
to be ethical and not to write anything illegal, and therefore signed the document without
reading.
I am certain the judge has no idea
what he signed because no judge in his right mind would make orders that so blatantly
violate the First Amendment: AND the state court in Florida has no jurisdiction outside of
Florida. Since judges do not like to be over-turned on appeal, it is unlikely that this
judge knew how Heeke wrote the default order:
"IT IS ORDERED, that defendants
shall, immediately, stop distributing or selling the book, Cash for the Final Days,
anywhere in the world and shall also refrain, permanently, from broadcasting, publishing
or disseminating information about the plaintiffs, as to the book Cash for the Final Days,
on the internet or any other medium of communication.
The court reserves jurisdiction to
determine and compensate for actual damages."
This would be funny -- if it
were not a wicked abuse of the legal process and the courts. It would be funny since there
is little in this book about Accelerated Benefits Corp.
I will not surrender my First
Amendment rights. I would sooner live in a tent than betray the sacrifices of those who
gave their lives so that we, today, have freedom of speech and freedom of press.
The LaMondas will have to do
something far more drastic, if they want these books kept from patients who need this
information. They will have to enlist their "licensees" to go into bookstores to
damage or destroy the books.
Regardless of how this turns out,
guess who has the last laugh: Most sales were to libraries. The book will remain available
to those who need the information.
To learn more about the battle for
First Amendment rights, please click HERE
To learn about ABC's problems with
regulators, click HERE
