The sudden, surprising development of "disability inactive status" for attorney Jill Clark--who was facing and continues to face lawyer disciplinary proceedings--leaves a number of her clients and cases in uncertain and disadvantaged status. It has been said (by me) that Clark's cases and clients are like felines adopted by some crazy cat lady. When the men with butterfly nets haul away the crazy cat lady, who wants the diseased, malnourished cats?
Very likely...nobody.
Well, I guess it's possible Morris "Cuckoo" Klock might find new legal counsel, because he's a slumlord and slumlords have money; not that you can tell from their crappy buildings, but they do.
So with the possible exception of Morris Klock, who might miraculously possess a green floatation device, most of Clark's cases and clients are left gasping and floundering in water way over their heads.
Here's the passenger manifest of individuals and corporations believed to have gone down with the S.S. Clark...
Criminal Complaints, As Follows
* Nicole "Miss Nicky" Yzaguirre, charged in an incident that involved a forged check and was investigated with assistance from the Secret Service, click here for details.
Nicole is pictured below. Her next hearing is scheduled on 8/9/2012. Clark is still listed as Nicole's defense attorney.
* Eric James Yzaguirre, sibling to Nicole, charged in some pathetic alleged "Craigslist thefts" involving electronics, click here for details. He has a previous conviction involving drugs, click here.
Eric's next hearing is 8/10/2012, the day after Nicole's hearing, and Clark is still listed as his criminal defense attorney. Eric is pictured below.
* Daniel Drljic,who is charged with driving after suspension as well as no insurance. You might wonder why, of all the attorneys in the world, he picked Jill Clark to represent him. Well, turns out she was also his lawyer when he was convicted of six counts pertaining to aiding and abetting burglary, possessing burglary tools, etc.
Drljic has a pretrail hearing scheduled on July 11.
* James Andre Woodward, DOB 9/18/84, charged with being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm in case 27-CR-10-45623. Woodward has a jury trial scheduled for July 31.
Civil Cases, As Follows
* Arlynn C Parker and Troy Parker vs Spire Federal Credit Union, Crystal Collision Inc, North Suburban Towing Inc, XYZ Corporation and/or John Doe #1, American Family Insurance, and ABC Corporation, Wilson Mutual, and DFG Corporation
Clark represents the Parkers. This case has been previously written about here on Johnny Northside, since Parker is an "also ran" political candidate.
Parker is pictured below with his wife, Arylnn, who apparently goes by "Chrissy." This may be derived from her middle name, which starts with a "C."
* Michelle Gathje vs CITY OF RICHFIELD, James Schlemmer, Sheri Schlemmer, Rick Regnier, Tim Kirk, John Does 1-5. I am not sure what this case is about, but this case is in the pretrial phase with a trial scheduled February 5 of 2013.
* State ex rel. Peter Stephenson a/k/a Peter Rickmyer, Peter Rickmyer vs Joan Fabian, in her official capacity as Minnesota Commissioner of Corrections, and her successor, Tom Roy, in his official capacity, Jeff Peterson, in his individual capacity, William McDonald, in his individual capacity, John Hoff, an individual, Megan Goodmundson, an individual, Michael "Kip" Browne, an individual, and John Does 1-3
Of all the legal passengers who went down with the S.S. Clark, few have so little ability to swim right now as Semen Fifth Class Peter Rickmyer, a/k/a "Spanky Pete." Spanky has been declared a frivolous litigant and recently had a more restrictive order slapped upon him which prevents him from filing ANYTHING without a licensed attorney signing off. Peter is facing a motion for summary judgment from a raft of defendants on July 17, and already lost in the lower court against Defendant Michael "Kip" Browne. Nobody is so screwed as Pete and, in my humble yet legally trained opinion, nobody would have such a great malpractice case against Clark as Pete would.
But that would mean some attorney would have to deal with Pete, day after day. And that's just not likely to happen. Pete's lawsuit, along with Pete himself, is going to end up in Davy Jones' locker.
As stated in the previous blog post, it seems likely Jill sought the "disability inactive" status herself. If she hadn't done this, she'd still be active and practicing on July 17 since the referee's findings in her disciplinary matter probably wouldn't have been filed until August. There's just no nice way to state the facts. Clark has betrayed Pete. Though Pete's case didn't have a snowball's chance in hell, anyway, Clark had the loony lawyer skills to keep the case in court for a long time and forestall or even mitigate the inevitable harsh consequences. BEYOND THE SHADOW OF A DOUBT, Pete would have never been in this position if Clark hadn't signed off on his wacked out lawsuit so he could be in court. That's undisputed. Frivolous litigant Pete couldn't be in court against all those defendants if Clark hadn't signed off on his lawsuit.
Now all the defendants' attorney fees Spanky Pete will end up owing are Clark's fault for signing off on Pete's suit, and then leaving him bobbing in the briny blue waves.
* Ramb Enterprises Ltd vs Patricia M Gearin, Wipers Recycling LLC (TO COX)
This case is a reopened default judgment where Clark represents the defendants. Clark now leaves Gearin to fend for herself and/or find another attorney. There is already a judgment against Gearin for $24,495. An Order To Show Cause hearing is scheduled for July 23.
* Airizes Samuel Miller vs Jill M Waite. Clark is still listed as the attorney for Jill M. Waite, who is the "other Jill," an attorney who at one time was often collaborating with Jill Clark but in recent years had her own lawyer disciplinary troubles which caused her to be suspended for a period of time. The Miller case has been previously covered here on Johnny Northside but my coverage was more about Jill M. Waite than the case itself. Speculation is Miller was a former client of Waite's. One commenter put forward the following info, take it for what it's worth.
Bryan Battina said...
The Miller v. Waite suit was a breach of contract claim for return of fees paid by Miller for a case Ms. Waite was to prosecute on behalf of Mr. Miller. She was unable to do so because of the suspension. We won at the conciliation court level and Ms. Waite removed to District Court. She hired Ms. Clark and it has been one delay after another. It's been difficult finding a judge who will hear a case involving Ms. Clark. Hopefully we will get resolution soon.
May 9, 2012 9:40 PM
Jill Waite is probably in a good position to recover from the loss of Jill Clark as an attorney since she's a wacky, half-functioning, on-again, off-again attorney herself and can certainly act as her own attorney. There was a court trial scheduled for 6/11/12 but it was cancelled and another trial has not yet been scheduled.
*Melony Michaels and John Foster vs First USA Title LLC, Centennial National Bank d/b/a Centennial Mortgages Services, Centennial Inc, Centennial Mortgage and Funding Inc, Gill Construction Inc et. al.
Clark represents some of the "et al," which is Jerry Moore and J.L. Moore Consulting. She is also listed as the attorney for slumlord Keith Reitman as part of the same case, but as near as I can tell Reitman has settled out of this case, which is the civil suit spawned by the mortgage fraud at 1564 Hillside Ave. N.
A check for $5,000 was issued for J.L. Moore consulting out of the fraudulent deal. The case has been covered extensively here on Johnny Northside Dot Com and, of course, Jerry Moore sued this blog for defamation in the Blogosphere Trial Of The Century. More on THAT under Clark's "cases on appeal."
Jerry Moore's status as a defendant in the Melony Michaels lawsuit has been complicated, click here for previous coverage, but after being "dismissed without prejudice" for a while, Jerry is back to being a defendant.
Jill Clark was fighting for Jerry viciously, which she equates with "zealously."
With Clark gone, who is going to care about Jerry in the same way? And how much money will that lawyer want, up front, to care that much about Jerry? And where will Jerry get that kind of money? Clearly, this development bodes ill for Jerry Moore. This blogger strongly suspects Jill had a soft and easy legal fees arrangement with Moore that won't be replicated elsewhere.
* Morris Klock, Christine Klock versus City of Minneapolis. Clark represents slumlord Morris Klock and Klock's wife, click here for Morris Klock at his most cuckoo. This case was subject to a scheduling order dated May 14 of this year. A jury trial is scheduled for March 18 of 2013. Klock is a slumlord and, as I previously mentioned, is therefore likely to be in a better position to find another attorney. The trial is also relatively far off.
CLARK'S FEDERAL CASES, AS FOLLOWS
Clark was representing members of the Yzaguirre family in a series of suits arising out of circumstances involving the criminal cases listed above, and other circumstances Clark tried to weave into a dark web of conspiracy by officialdom. The lawsuit by Nicole Yzaguirre is known to be settled. The lawsuit by Eric Yzaguirre might be settled, I'd bet that it is. But a lawsuit filed by Munster Family Matriarch Terry Yzaguirre of the Mpls Mirror, and her son Jerome Yzaguirre, might still be alive in federal court. This blog has dubbed it the "Free My Beater" lawsuit.
If this messy, bizarre lawsuit has not been dismissed or settled, then I find it hard to believe another attorney would touch it for anything less than 5 figures, up front. Both moving forward with the lawsuit OR getting it dismissed (without paying the other side's legal fees) will be messy and difficult without a skillful attorney, even one as cracked as Clark.
IF (and I emphasize IF) this lawsuit has not been dismissed or settled, then Terry and Jerome are both bobbing in the waves, mother and son, looking for a piece of flotsam to keep themselves from going beneath the legal waters. And who do they have to blame for this awful circumstance? Jill Clark. There was an implied promise Jill Clark would be around to help with this crazy lawsuit barring an act of God. But will Clark be there for the Yzaguirres? Doubtful.
Terry Yzaguirre is just barely bright enough and sane enough to sue Clark for malpractice, if Clark has malpractice insurance and is WORTH suing. While I'm sure Clark's pretend world of far out legal possibility is fun to inhabit for a while, most objective attorneys would purse their lips, shake their heads, and then say, "I don't know how to tell you this, so I'll just say it. This lawsuit is a MESS. No competent lawyer would have filed it in the first place."
The question is would Terry pursue something like that? If she smelled money? Keep in mind nobody has been messed over like the Yzaguirres when it comes to Clark taking "Disability Inactive Status." Two of Clark's kids are staring down PRISON TIME. This blogger waits and watches with intense interest to see further developments.
* Unknown federal cases. Clark moves easily between state and federal court, but this blogger is able to obtain the state court info easily, not so much the federal info. But if somebody told me Clark had 4 to 6 active federal cases in addition to any Yzaguirre case, it would not surprise me.
The ship bell rang. It rang 29 times. For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
CLARK'S OFFICE EMPLOYEES, AS FOLLOWS
* Clark has a paralegal named Peggy Katch. Peggy has a "Linked In" professional profile where she lists herself as a Legal Assistant at Jill Clark, LLC. At least once, with Clark indisposed by whatever, um, PROBLEMS she was having, (tippy tippy motion toward the lips) Peggy Klatch wrote a letter to the State Appeals Court and asked for an extension in a case.
(It was actually MY case, versus Jerry Moore. Click here for mention of Klatch's attempt to write a letter which a non-attorney isn't supposed to be writing)
If anybody has desperately tried to keep the S.S. Jill Clark afloat, it's Peggy Katch. And where does Peggy have to go? She lists previous employment as "Owner, Glass Slipper Enterprises" and "Owner, Northwest Taxi and Limo Service." However, both those jobs list end dates in 2010.
She was Chairman of the Board of the Minnesota Livery Operators' Professional Association. Doesn't sound that lucrative. In any case, it ended in 2009. All indications I see is that Jill Clark being indisposed (order me another round of "indisposed," bartender!) will come down hard on Peggy Klatch.
* Unknown if there were other employees. At one time, Thomas Wayne Evanstad, the convicted "chat line rapist," was working for Clark. I have access to what I might call a "rumor" that Evanstand no longer works for Clark, but I can't confirm it. There has been no courtroom "Evanstad spotting" that I'm aware of since the "True JACC" trial.
By the way, it's always been the position of this blog that if Thomas Wayne Evanstad wants to write out his side of the story regarding his conviction, this blog will happily publish it.
This is true of most things. If some sex offender, some slumlord, some thug, some mortgage fraudster, WHOEVER, WHOEVER THINKS JOHNNY CRITICIZED YOU UNFAIRLY, feel free to write out your side of things IN DETAIL, include a suitable stock photo I can use, if you like, make sure I can confirm it's REALLY YOU sending the info, and I'll be happy to publish your side of things. Really.
In any case, I believe Evanstad no longer works for Clark, but I can't confirm it.
CASES ON APPEAL IN STATE COURT, AS FOLLOWS
It is possible to access online information about appeals at the State Court of Appeals and State Supreme Court level by name of attorney. There are considerable flaws in that online info, most of which involve the fact only certain documents are accessible, not all of them, though the TITLE of all documents filed can be seen. (This is how I know about Clark's "Disability Inactive Status" in the first place, without knowing more details)
It can be hard to know when a case is definitely concluded and when further appeal is planned. With those caveats, and doing about the best I can with these limitations, these are the clients and cases at appellate level which appear to have been left "bobbing in the waves" by the sinking of the S.S. Jill Clark.
* The fifteen clients in the "True JACC" appeal. This was the case regarding which group of people was the "legitimate" governing board of the Jordan Area Community Council. This blog has characterized the two groups as "Old Majority" versus "New Majority." Clark represents the "Old Majority" which was democratically ousted from power.
Admittedly, these "Old Majority" clients have lost overwhelmingly, repeatedly and are on the hook for more than $40,000 in lawyer fees, unless the Appeals Court reverses the lower court, not viewed as likely. With or without Clark, victory for this group was seen as a far-fetched pipe dream.
All the same, everybody involved in that case expected Clark to burn up a little more time by filing a pointless request to be heard in front of the Minnesota State Supreme Court. The ruling in the case is expected on Monday, as revealed exclusively here on Johnny Northside Dot Com. Of the 15 clients, one of them--Benjamin E. Myers--is an attorney, and presumably able to fend for himself. The other 14, one of which is Jerry Moore, are screwed. But they were ALREADY screwed, so it's really just a matter of whether they FEEL screwed in light of this development.
This is true for SO MANY of Clark's clients. It's not like they were going to win anyway, but what happens when their delusions are shattered en masse?
* In re Dan Faith Aschemann. This is the "strange religious cult" case this blog reported on back in April, click here. It appears appeals were being attempted, based on the fact a transcript was requested as recently as June 8, though the last thing happening at the Appeals Court level was a denial for a write of mandamus on January 13.
Was Dan getting anywhere with his case? Hardly. Was he trying? Yes, indeed. Does the loss of Jill Clark hurt him? Well, only if his case being potentially sunk due to the loss of Clark "hurts" him. Dan would be better off pulling his addled head out of his misguided ass. However, Aschemann has a law degree, though he's attempted the bar and repeatedly failed. Arguably, he's no better or worse off for the loss of Clark, who passed her bar decades ago but at some point in the last several years...(whispering) LOST HER MIND. (Spinny motion, by the head)
* Vanessa Yoland Rew, and o/b/o T. C. B. and D. S. B., petitioner, Respondent, vs. James Allen Bergstrom, Appellant. Clark represented Bergstrom in this disturbing case. The list of amici filing briefs or planning to file briefs on behalf of Vanessa Yoland Rew is impressive: Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women, Inc., Battered Women's Legal Advocacy Project, and Battered Women's Justice Project. The Attorney General filed something, as well as the Family Law Section of the Minnesota State Bar.
The case merits more blog writings at a later date. For now, suffice to say this case was very much in motion and the whole world was lining up against Bergstrom, who desperately needs a skilled attorney for no other reason than to give a good account of himself and avoid total legal humiliation. The last thing filed was a notice of attorney scheduling conflicts on June 5. Oral arguments haven't even happened, yet. Bergstrom's loss of Jill Clark is devastating for Bergstrom, even if it's only the difference between losing with a shred of dignity versus a public ass kicking.
* Jerry Moore v. John Hoff, a/k/a Johnny Northside. This case has already been argued before the Minnesota State Court of Appeals and a verdict is being awaited. If this blog loses, I will appeal, and Jerry won't have Jill for an attorney. If I win, I just win, and I'm not going to say more about THAT, I'll say more if and when it happens.
If the baby is split down the middle, and a new trial is needed, Moore won't have Jill and it will be a one-sided ass-kicking, since I don't expect Moore will have other counsel. Not even Ben Myers, who has more lucrative things to do and doesn't seem to want any part of North Minneapolis revitalization controversies.
No matter how you slice it, the loss of Jill hits Moore hard. And let's not forget he's one of the 15 JACC plaintiffs. And he's a defendant in the Melony Michaels civil suit. In all these things, Jill is his attorney. Though the Yzaguirre family, collectively, has been let down worse by Jill Clark (especially considering two pending criminal cases!) arguably Moore has been hurt worse than anybody, since this ONE INDIVIDUAL has THREE CASES where Clark was representing him.
* James Andrew Woodward. This guy also has a current criminal case, listed above. His case in the court of appeals has not yet been heard in oral argument, though briefs have been filed by both sides and attorney schedules are being worked out. Clark has really left Woodward in bobbing in the waves, not just once, but twice.
* Robert Allen Stone v. Martha Patricia Saenz. This seems to be some kind of messy custody case and Clark is the lawyer on the appeal, but I'm not certain she was involved at the lower court level. More confusingly, I can't find this case at the lower court level, though I do find a case called In Re: The Matter Of John James Libert and Martha Patricia Saenz and County of Scott, Intervenor. However the case started, whatever it's about, this case is ripe and moving forward.
There was a judicial "panel assignment update" as recently as June 20. Without an attorney, even one as nutty as Clark, Saenz is severely disadvantaged. This shouldn't come as a surprise, however. There is mention in a document of Clark needing more time due to the need to complete an "emergency filing."
In fact, documents about Clark's cases at the appellate court level are filled with requests for extensions, excuses, notifications about medical leave, requests from the court to include the (damn) filing fee if you want the (damn) thing filed. If Clark needs documentation that she's continually screwing up and should be on "disability inactive status," the record is full of it. If Clark needs documentation that she didn't willingly, knowingly fib to judges and falsely trash talk a judge, well, that's going to be harder to find.
GRAND TOTAL, CASUALTIES AND SURVIVORS OF THE SINKING OF THE S.S. JILL CLARK
Presumed to be casualties of the sinking, as follows:
Nicole "Miss Nicky" Yzaguirre, (1) Eric Yzaguirre, (2) Jerome Yzaguirre, (3) and Terry Yzaguirre. (4)
Daniel Drljic. (5) James Andre Woodward. (6) Arlynn C. Parker (7) and Troy Parker. (8) Michelle Gathje (9) Peter "Spanky Pete" Rickmyer (10) Patricia M. Gearin (11) Wipers Recylcing LLC (12) Jerry Moore (13)
Technically, J.L. Moore Consulting could be listed and counted, but this entity barely exists except as a name dreamed up by Jerry to give himself perceived status while pulling off his slippery little deals. I won't inflate the body count. The truth is bad enough.
Peggy Katch (14)
The fifteen clients in the "True JACC" appeal, minus Jerry Moore, who has already been counted, and Benjamin Myers, who is an attorney and will presumably survive. Therefore the number is 13, added to the tally of 14, for a total of (27).
Dan Faith Aschemann (28) James Allen Bergstrom (29)
The ship bell rang. It rang 29 times. For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Martha Patricia Saenz. (30)
The sinking of the S.S. Jill Clark tops the casualty list of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Ben Myers, Morris Klock and his wife, and Jill M. Waite are presumed to survive the law career shipwreck which is Jill Eleanor Clark.
This is only the KNOWN casualty list. Again, there may be clients in federal court with active cases, and probably are.
Official Credit For The Sinking Of The S.S. Jill Clark
The Honorable S.S. Zimmerman, The Honorable S.S. Wieland, The Honorable S.S. Wexler and The Honorable S.S. Van de North shall each be credited with one fourth of a ship.
It is suspected this is not the end of the S.S. Clark. Obviously her captain, who is dingy, is floating in a rubber boat, which is also dinghy, and plotting further manipulation, mayhem, and career reincarnation. While moving to seize advantage from this situation, it is suggested nobody should let down their guard and anybody in the process of making complaints against Clark should NOT LET UP.
What This Development Means For "Urban Utopia"
With Jill "Counsel For Crazytown" Clark out of the picture, not filing or fighting wacked out lawsuits on behalf of slumlords, sex offenders, Jerry Moore, Jordan neighborhood "bad actors," and assorted lowlife criminal scum, a new era of "urban utopia" in North Minneapolis is possible. Our neighborhood politics can become undistorted. Our speech on the internet, including my own, can become fearless of frivolous Clarkian litigation. And so many of the bad actors with their bad lawsuits may simply GO AWAY.
We may even begin to seize the offensive by, for example, filing a lawsuit to force the Department of Corrections to de-concentrate sex offenders in the 55411 zip code. Legal fees against Spanky Pete and the JACC "old majority" can become property liens. And maybe Jerry Moore will have to finally face the music in the civil suit for 1564 Hillside Ave. N.
God bless these judges, every one. What a glorious day this is, a day that will be written in the future history books of Nomi, the day the S.S. Jill Clark sank to the bottom of the sea.
Here is a song by singer Klaus Nomi, Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead.
Enjoy.
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