Calm down, Zamboni Boy. Re-read the post, work on your reading comprehension, and then think about who you're calling "pretty fucking dumb" because it seems to me it would be the idiot who argued in court that he agreed not to sue the church and then turned around and sued three years later. And I'm curious what makes you think you're so much smarter than the judges of the 2DCA?
I think the stupid moron (redundant) here is anyone who will listen to an anonymous poster rather than an actual lolyer. You know, like Tikk.
You can download public court records from Pacer.gov (which makes much more sense than obtaining questionable information from strangers on the internet). The Brennan case number is 8:09-cv-00264-SDM-EAJ. (U.S. District Court, Middle District).
So the point you're trying to make is ... what? That Tikk is a friend of Dandar's and therefore whatever he says is sooooo much more reliable than actual court transcripts? Seriously?
Allegation made in the Brennan complaint on February 13, 2009 and again in the amended complaint on November 11, 2010: "Thereafter, on or about February 16, 2007 ... one or more of the Defendants ... negligently, recklessly, wantonly or willfully, callously... placed, or provided access to, a loaded 357 Magnum pistol owned by THOMAS BRENNAN, on or next to the bed of Kyle Brennan in the bedroom only occupied by Kyle Brennan in the apartment of THOMAS BRENNAN." Transcript of Hearing on Motion for Summary Judgment (Document NO. 175) before Judge Merryday on October 13, 2010: MR. DANDAR: ...THE SON IS NOT FOUND IN THE SON'S BEDROOM. HE'S FOUND IN THE FATHER'S BEDROOM. THE COMPLAINT IS INCORRECT ON THAT, MY MISTAKE. THE COURT: THAT'S WHERE HE WENT TO GET THE GUN? MR. DANDAR: THE GUN WAS IN THE NIGHTSTAND IN THE FATHER'S BEDROOM, RIGHT.
Clearwater Police Report (Document NO. 118, Exhibit #2 filed 09/08/2010) - Responding officer Jonathan Yuen - 02/17/2007: "The entry wound appeared to be in Kyle's right temple and there was significant brain matter scattered on the ground and against some boxes near the east side of the bedroom." Deposition of Detective Stephen Bohling on July 10,2010 (Document NO. 119 filed 09/09/10): "You can see that it [the suicide] took place there. There is no way that somebody could have staged the blood spatter that I saw in those photos for it to have happened somewhere else and then for him to be brought there and left to be found. The blood evidence, the spatter evidence speaks for itself." Transcript of Hearing on Motion for Summary Judgment (Document NO. 175) before Judge Merryday on October 13, 2010: MR. DANDAR: WHY IS THERE NO BLOOD SPLATTER WHEN SOMEONE IS STANDING UP, LIKE KYLE BRENNAN, AND HE'S STANDING UP A FEW FEET FROM THE WALL AND THE BOOKSHELF. THERE IS NO BLOOD SPLATTER.
Here's the text of an October 3 2011 Order from Merryday complying with the 11th Circuit opinion and granting nunc pro tunc (now for then) Dandar's original motion to withdraw from the case. It's short and well worth reading. PDF here. ========== ESTATE OF KYLE THOMAS BRENNAN, Plaintiff, v. CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY FLAG SERVICE ORGANIZATION, INC., et al., Defendants. CASE NO.: 8:09-cv-264-T-23EAJ UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA TAMPA DIVISION ORDER On April 4, 2010, Kennan G. Dandar moved (Doc. 74) to withdraw as counsel for the plaintiff. An April 22, 2010, order (Doc. 77) denies the motion to withdraw. As a result of the denial, a Florida circuit court, which had ordered Dandar to withdraw from his representation in this case and had threatened severe and escalating sanctions if the withdrawal was not effected, announced the imposition of the threatened sanctions, including an incremental daily sanction of $1000 per day, which apparently persists. Although another full account of events is superfluous at this stage of this action, suffice to say that a series of motions and hearings resulted (1) in a federal injunction (Docs. 152 and 173) against the state’s enforcement of those sanctions, (2) an appeal of injunction, and (3) a September 21, 2011, (Doc. 220) mandate from the circuit court of appeals vacating the injunction. By force of the district court’s order denying Dandar’s withdrawal, which order was not vacated by the circuit court, Dandar at this moment continues in the district court as counsel for the plaintiff and continues to incur punitive sanctions imposed by the Florida circuit court. That Dandar’s compliance with the order of one court subjects him to sanction by the order of another court is an unconscionable, irrational, and unsustainable injustice that immediately threatens irreparable injury to Dandar and innocent third parties (including Dandar’s family and clients), who depend upon him for their well-being. Thus far the state courts – trial and appellate – decline to recede from this punitive enforcement of a contract construed by the Florida courts as a restriction on the practice of law, which restriction is both unlawful and unethical. Therefore, to avoid an unjust and unsettling eventuality detrimental to Dandar, innocent third parties, and the public’s perception of the judiciary, prevailing circumstances demand that the district court recede from the denial of Dandar’s motion to withdraw. ACCORDINGLY, the order denying Dandar’s motion to withdraw is VACATED, and Dandar’s motion to withdraw is GRANTED NUNC PRO TUNC to April 12, 2010, the day Dandar moved to withdraw. This retrospectively purges Dandar of the conduct that the state court has imputed to him and that the state court has found contemptuous and sanctionable but which conduct derives entirely from Dandar’s compliance with the order of this court, over which Dandar was and is powerless. Also, Dandar’s withdrawal leaves the plaintiff unrepresented. FURTHER, the administrator of the plaintiff estate is not a lawyer and, by force of 28 U.S.C. § 1654; the law of Virginia, see, e.g., Kone v. Wilson, 630 S.E.2d 744 (Va. 2006); and the law of Florida, see Rule 5.030(a), Florida Probate Rules, the lay administrator cannot represent the estate in the district court without counsel. See also Devine v. Indian River County Sch. Bd., 121 F.3d 576, 581 (11th Cir. 1997). In other words, Victoria L. Britton appears in the district court impermissibly pro se as the personal representative of an estate. If counsel for Britton fails to appear by October 17, 2011, this action will suffer dismissal. As the circuit court of appeals stated in the recent opinion, “[T]he district court erred when, despite Judge Beach’s orders of June 10, 2009, and April 12, 2010, it concluded that there was ‘no . . . legally cognizable barrier to Dandar’s continued representation.’” The district court must defer to the “legally cognizable barrier” identified by the circuit court of appeals. In sum and by virtue of the circuit court’s mandate, the federal judiciary acquires an active partnership in the state’s punitive enforcement of an unlawful and unethical restriction on the practice of law. Surprising, but true. ORDERED in Tampa, Florida, on October 3, 2011. ____________________ STEVEN D. MERRYDAY UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
So Dandar is done, and so is the case if Ms. Brennan doesnt have a new lawyer by the end of today? Man, that sucks.
Also from October 3, 2011 [PDF here]: ========= UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA TAMPA DIVISION ESTATE OF KYLE THOMAS BRENNAN, By and through its Administrator, Vitoria L. Britton, Plaintiff, v. CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY FLAG SERVICE ORGANIZATION, INC., DENISE MISCAVIGE GENTILE, GERALD GENTILE, and THOMAS BRENNAN Defendants. CASE NO.: 8:09-cv-264-T-23EAJ NOTICE OF APPEARANCE Please take notice that the undersigned hereby appears as attorney for Plaintiff, ESTATE OF KYLE THOMAS BRENNAN, in the above captioned claim, and requests that all future pleadings and correspondence be forwarded to him at his office. Respectfully submitted, /s/ Luke Lirot Luke Lirot, Esquire Florida Bar Number 714836 LUKE CHARLES LIROT, P.A. 2240 Belleair Road, Suite 190 Clearwater, Florida 33764 Telephone: (727) 536-2100 Facsimile: (727) 536-2110 Attorney for Defendant CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I HEREBY CERTIFY that on October 3, 2011, the foregoing was electronically filed with the Clerk of the Court via the CM/ECF system, which will send a notice of electronic filing to the following: FRED WALLACE POPE, JR., wallyp@jpfirm.com, attorney for Defendants. /s/ Luke Lirot Luke Lirot, Esquire Florida Bar Number 714836
Wow! What a strong statement. I am glad Ken Dandar has been retrospectively purged "of the conduct the state court imputed to him." I noticed in the pdf that Judge Merryday concluded this way: "In sum and by virtue of the circuit court’s mandate, the federal judiciary acquires an active partnership in the state’s punitive enforcement of an unlawful and unethical restriction on the practice of law. Surprising, but true." I didn't realize judges could be such lulzy trolls. I am assuming that someone has been found I am glad to replace Ken on Victoria's case I am glad the case will be moving forward with Luke Lirot and justice will be done in the appalling death of Kyle Brennan. Victoria's site honoring Kyle is here. It you haven't seen it here is Victoria's video tribute to Kyle - Memories of Kyle Brennan - THIS IS WHY:
Phew! I really didn't think Lirot would get involved. I mean I was thinking a while ago that, as the only other attorney in Florida with experience of the cult who is ever likely to do pro-bono contingency work and be able to straighten this mess, if he hasn't got involved by now then he aint never gonna do it. Glad he has, and glad that the cult won't be able to simply swallow a little bit of bad local press and carry on as normal. inb4 barrage of cult shenanigans and filings saying Lirot is not allowed on the case either.
Barratry. Someone ought to read the definition out loud at the start of proceedings, this way the judge doesn't get confused.
Fred Wallace Pope? same guy or not? Fred Pope SUNSHINE RUNDOWN Source 40 1983-07-01 Fred Pope NEW OT V AUDITED NOTS Source 139 2002-09-01
Question for tikk: After everything is handed over to Lirot, would Dandar still be allowed to work with Lirot in an advisory, sort of paralegal, capacity? Diffcult to answer with certainty I suppose, in view of the fact that the details of the prior settlement that got Dandar kicked off the case is sealed.
That's a good question but I'd rather not speculate about hypothetical liabilities where there's no basis to think it's occurring.
Shame about Dandar being booted off the case, but I'm happy Lirot picks up the gauntlet. I hope he manages to sue the cult into he ground!
hah! nice "In other words, Pope and his cohorts are attacking Michael Allen for the expression of free speech and the JQC action seemingly constitutes retaliation for Allen’s expression of First Amendment rights."
^North Country Gazette is not a reliable journalistic source like the name leads you to believe. It's a blog and June Maxam is a raving lunatic.
Fair enough. I was expecting that there'd at least be some liason initially so that a new attorney can pick up where the old one left off because, well, it just sounds like that's what would be common sense to a mere non-lawyer outsider. I was just wondering if there were any standard rules about that or whether they might be expecting Lirot to start completely from scratch.
Fred Wallace "Wally" Pope, Jr. is a very arrogant scientologist and incompetent attorney. He's a partner in the local Clearwater cult law firm Johnson, Pope, Bokor, Ruppel & Burns, LLP. Here's his fail face:
It's generally the case that the outgoing attorney provides the new attorney with all the relevant documents including notes. The idea is to make it as easy on clients as possible because no, you'd not want the new attorney to start from scratch. The outgoing attorney keeps a copy of everything relevant because there is always a possibility of a malpractice suit, ethics grievance, etc. and the attorney needs to be able to defend him/herself if that occurs. Here, a lot of the work has already been done, though I don't know whether all depositions have been conducted or if there's anything left to do before going to trial.
Best of luck to Victoria. Don't bet against a mom and justice. Speaking of which, paging anonmomanon2. IIRC, Luke was her attorney.
Marvelous news about Luke Lirot taking over for Ken Dandar. btw: Wally Pope signed my cease and desist letter.
