New Jersey Group Sets Date to Push Judge's Removal

The "Remove Judge Paul Escandon Off the Bench" rally is set for 11am in Trenton, New Jersey, according to the New Jersey group's Facebook page....
Identifying themselves as "a group of mothers and supporters coming together to speak up and bring out into the open all the illegal, discriminatory rulings against women Judge Paul Escandon is trying to hide from the public."

Last year, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who is familiar with the allegations against Judge Escandon, was asked to seek a federal monitor over the troubled justice, but not much happened.  Then the story of New Jersey's judicial ethics oversight failings hit the New York papers when the New York Post published an article, by Gary Buiso on June 24, 2012, "NJ ex-wives say divorce judge favors rich hubbies."

It had been confirmed that various inquiries involving Escandon were underway by the New Jersey FBI, noted one former insider. "Unfortunately, federal prosecutors must take extraordinary steps- and that takes a long time, but while those investigations continue, you have litigants- families including young children- being destroyed," says the former state court employee. "We don't necessarily point to any specific judge, knowing that many acts of corruption involve lawyers and clerks, but you must ultimately go up the 'ethics ladder of oversight' - and accountability lands in the lap of supervisory judges, administrators, legal ethics entities and, in New Jersey, the Governor."

The New York Post article focused on Monmouth County Judge Paul X. Escandon, a former criminal defense attorney. "It's important to be fair," says the former insider, noting that family court cases are always "highly-emotionally charged." One judge had a wider perspective, saying, "Every decision I make leaves me with one enemy for life, and one temporary friend- until the next decision doesn't completely go his or her way."

But everyone agrees that somethings appears to be really, really wrong in Monmouth County, New Jersey. Supervisory judges are not taking charge and, according to current Monmouth County court employees, folks have been guiding FBI agents along the "follow-the-money" trails.

The New York Post article mentioned one case involving a known mobster, Nicholas Pisciotti, who admitted his involvement in a murder but who somehow then regained custodial standing from Judge Escandon. Investigators reviewing the true motivations behind Judge Escandon's rulings have recently uncovered the New York case of Joseph Carulso against the same Nicholas Pisciotti (NY County Supreme Court Case 06-112432) where Carulso was awarded $2 Million Dollars in damages from the physical beating he received from Pisciotti and his friends. That New York court judge noted the victim's "extensive and ongoing medical, neurological and psychological and rehabilitation treatment" - all from the beating by Pisciotti upon victim Carulso, a former New York Times employee.

But a New York criminal may be the perfect dad and custodial parent in New Jersey.  That story made into a New York Post article on February 17, 2013, "I didn't know I was married to a wise guy- and now he has my kids!"

Most believe that a proper inquiry into the Monmouth County court will, at a minimum, find improper decisions to favored insiders- including connected law firms- and without regard to the rule of law. And while they applaud Governor Christie's bold initiatives in New Jersey, they believe that even he (Gov. Christie) doesn't realize exactly how badly corrupt certain courts in the state have become. The former court employee is clear, "the public deserves a full, complete and open review of what appears to be widespread violations of federal laws in the Monmouth County court system- and Governor Christie should lead the way by publicly asking for the appointment of a federal monitor.