July 30, 1998 e-mail to Bgreene@Tribune.com and first class mail Bob Greene CHICAGO TRIBUNE 435 North Michigan Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60611 Re: Gino DiVito's scathing commentary telling you there is far worse going on than Heiple and my letter dated 7/14/98 Dear Mr. Greene:The Tribune devoting a half page to [Editor's Note: attorney and former judge] Gino DiVito's commentary is scary. From personal experience, I know that everything DiVito said about the "justice" system is rhetoric. By lies and omissions, he tries to convince Tribune readers that you don't understand the facts or law as they apply to the case.
Currently, I'm one of DiVito's victims and a victim of the Illinois court system. Corrupt from top to bottom: lawyers, trial, appellate judges and the Supreme Court. It's not simply a matter of bad rulings or mistakes. The lawyers cut deals with each other and the judges.
DiVito claims that "a cardinal principal for an appellate court is that its decision must be based upon the law applied to the record made in the trial court," but he leaves out what he knows really happens in the trial court: in my case and many others, the lawyers and judges conspire together, deciding in advance who wins the case.
DiVito may be right that certain facts were never brought before the court's attention. Which facts and law that are brought before the court is often secretly agreed upon by the judges, lawyers, DCFS (their reputation for determining what is in the "best interest of the child" can lead to the murder of the child and to baby Joe -- look at the Burke case to see how DCFS makes decisions) and "expert" witnesses, that the judges' rulings can "appear" correct rather than fixed, as they really are. DiVito is aware of the corruption -- he was a part of it as an Appellate court judge and now as a lawyer at Quinlan & Crisham in my case.
How can it be so corrupt? There are no checks and balances -- only the illusion that there are. The Chief Judge and his so called, "watch dog over corruption", literally, watch the corruption. The State's Attorney, the FBI and the U.S. Attorney are as corrupt and politically run as the courts. I can prove it.
Look at Rolando Cruz, prosecuted for murder to further careers. What's the difference between his prosecutors and Harry Aleman whose career was murder?
Because of our "justice" system, Illinois has the highest rate of overturned murder convictions. In a recent survey of law students, Illinois was ranked last of states they wanted to practice in. The entire country knows how bad it is here. No one does anything about it.
In 1993, I first wrote you about my case. At the time, I didn't understand the facts because I didn't understand the law. Because my judges [fn1] and lawyers' conduct was so bizarre and seemed so wrong, I started researching the law. Based on understanding the law, I could see that my lawyers were undermining my case and covering up for the lawyer who prepared my father's will. An expert in trusts and wills, [attorney] Ronald Silbert prepared the will to create litigation after my father died, so he would inherit the estate by fraudulent needless legal fees.
After I reported one of my opposing counsel, [attorney] Alvin Meyers of Fagel & Haber to the ARDC (Attorney's Right to Defraud Clients) for representing multiple conflicting interests in the same matter, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, filing false pleadings, preparing fraudulent court orders and a litany of other violations, and submitted proof, they blew me off, saying Meyers had done nothing wrong.
Soon afterwards, Meyers and Fagel & Haber withdrew. GINO DIVITO and his firm, QUINLAN & CRISHAM, filed an appearance to replace Meyers. They are doing exactly the same thing as Meyers. They co-counsel with YH&R, who wrote my father's will and who are defendants for legal malpractice in the same lawsuit that I filed against my father's wife, Margaret Kalish, individually, and, as executor. They inserted a clause in the provision of my father's trust that says in the management of the estate, Margaret "shall not be liable for waste" even though that is against public policy -- established by a long line of Supreme Court decisions. That clause has been one of many causes of five years of litigation. Keep in mind that the executor, trustee and her attorneys have the well known fiduciary duty to preserve the assets of the estate and prevent waste.
Lawyers who are defendants (and their co-counsel) are prohibited by law from representing any other defendants. Yet, both firms concurrently represent the other defendants: Margaret Kalish, individually, and as executor. At the same time they represent the Estate generally. The lawyer[s], who represents the estate, is prohibited by law from having any interest that even might conflict with the estate. They have every possible conflict of interest. Do you think DiVito doesn't know this? He has filed a series of pleadings which are legally and factually lies and he knows it.
Many millions of dollars are being stolen in probate court by fraudulent needless litigation. The lawyers conspire with each other and the judges to ripoff the estates this way. Some lawyers just outright steal the estates without even the pretense of litigation. The ARDC, who rarely disciplines the thousands of lawyers whose misconduct is reported each year, actually investigated [attorney] James Gallagher. They determined that Gallagher stole over $150,000.00 from two estates that he was "administering." Gallagher voluntarily was disbarred.
Lawyers, who do what I have described are committing fraud, not practicing law. They should be subject to the same laws that protect people from garden variety fraud. Instead, they have been given a license to steal, not practice law.
I reported all of this, and more, to the ARDC, Chief Judge O'Connell's "watchdog over corruption", the State's Attorney [Richard A. Devine], the FBI and the U.S. attorney [Scott Lassar]. They all blew me off.
As to Gallagher, the ARDC investigated and found that he stole $150,000.00 (they didn't investigate any other estate he was "administering", so he might of stolen much more) and he admitted he stole the money and took a voluntary disbarment. Nevertheless, the U.S. Attorney and the FBI told me there wasn't enough evidence to investigate or prosecute. I asked the U.S. Attorney if he stole a fur coat from a store would that be a crime. They said, yes. (But stealing $150,000 from two estates is not enough evidence to further investigate or even prosecute him for what he already did.) Does what the U.S. Attorney said make sense to you?
They blew off all of my other allegations of fraud and corruption in probate court even though the conduct is flagrant and I can prove it.
I submit that we have the most corrupt "justice" system in the country and DiVito is part of the corruption. I would be happy to give you all of my letters to the authorities I've mentioned and all of my evidence including orders which are completely inconsistent with the court's rulings, but which the judge knowingly signed and the corresponding transcripts.
Will the Tribune devote any space to my story of what really goes on in courts here, not DiVito's fantasy version?
Sincerely, Renee Kalish
[fn1] My first judge was removed for cause. My second judge recused
himself amidst allegations that my lawyer told me that he took $5,000 from
a lawyer who appeared before him, and because I could prove that he signed
a series of fraudulent court orders in my case, starting from the first
time I appeared before him.
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July 30, 1998