Attorney Fees for suing HPD/Ethics
Donation protected
Ladies and gentlemen, the time has come again to seek your help in defeating public officials tromping on our gun rights. Many of you rushed to help several months ago to help us take judges to the Supreme Court. The case is on the docket and we hope for success soon.
In early January of this year the Hattiesburg Police Department announced a public sale of weapons seized over a number of years. After receiving many complaints in my enhanced carry classes that Hattiesburg PD was seizing citizens’ guns over and over again without charges, I decided to get involved.
In mid-January I submitted a Public Records Request asking not for copies, but to go to the police department and personally inspect the records. I didn’t feel they would be forthcoming if I accepted only a document with limited information. I wanted to get to the bottom of who in particular was seizing weapons, why and what was happening with them.
The Hattiesburg Police Department claimed to not know what an Evidence Custody Document, Evidence Custody Log or Docket of Deadly Weapons Seized was. I don’t know if they were that ignorant or if they were playing a came. At any rate, I finally accepted a copy of the weapons they sold (as a starter) without conceding to my desire to personally inspect the records. After six e-mail follow-ups to them requesting to personally review the records, they never once responded to that.
In March of this year, I filed a complaint with the Mississippi Ethics Commission since they are tasked with handling complaints involving the Public Records Act. The only things that needed to be decided was this:
1. Did I file a written Public Request with HPD to personally view the records?
2. Were the records available and determi to be public?
3. Was I given access as requested to publically inspect the records?
The answer to the first two questions was “yes.” The answer to the last question was “no.” How it could take nine months to pass judgment on that and reach the wrong conclusion is beyond me.
So the Ethics Commission hired a Madison County Contract Attorney to be the “Hearing Officer.” It took her from early March until this week to reach a conclusion under Rule 5.6 of the Ethics Commission. The rule is very vague but appears to task the Hearing Officer with reviewing the material and making a recommendation to the Commission for a final decision. That didn’t happen.
Tom Hood (Ethics Commission Director/Attorney General Jim Hood’s brother) sent me a letter titled “Order of Dismissal” citing basically that I got what I asked for and the Hattiebsurg Police “acted in good faith.” I contacted him this morning and told him I had not been notified of a recommended finding or been given 5 days to ask for a hearing if I didn’t agree with th Hearing Officer’s Decision. He told me she went straight to the Commission with a recommendation and they concurred with her resulting in the Order of Dismissal.
She never even addressed whether or not I was given access to publically inspect the record as allowed by law
She never even addressed the issue that the document he gave me “as a starter” did not contain all the information I wanted to see.
She claimed he acted within the time line of the law which is totally not true.
This is just another instance of us private citizens being abused by public officials and we have no remedy other than taking them to court. One of these days, I hope I can convince a new Attorney General that it is his responsibility to go after public officials who violate our rights (of course the present AG’s brother is the party under discussion here). We should not have to pay our hard earned money to force a public official to comply with the law.
Those of you who know me know that I have butted heads with them more than 20 times regarding our gun rights. I have not and will not stop until I stop breathing for good. I get no pay from anyone for what I do. I am a retired, partially disabled 20 year military veteran who spends his own money most of the time blooding the noses of these corrupt politicians. I have been very successful in my endeavors.
When I have to go to court, I can’t pay it all myself. I have to seek financial assistance from you. Back in June when I established a Go Fund Me account, it was the first time I had done so. I had a goal of receiving $5,000 to pay an attorney to represent us against judges preventing us from going into courthouses while armed. My goal was to raise the money within 60 days. Due to the outstanding response by you, we met the goal in only 4 days and I had to shut down the account to prevent over funding the lawyer for his requested fee to represent us in the Supreme Court.
This case will go to the Forrest County Chancery Court. I have a Ridgeland Attorney who has been very involved in gun issues throughout the country. He is an enhanced carrier and is highly motivated. I spoke to him to day and he expects his cost will be $2,000 and we will have a filing fee plus a bond fee bringing the total up to $2,500.
I am pleading with you for your help so we can let these corrupt public officials know that we are not going to be abused. Just because they know we will have to file a suit will not deter us from doing so. We (or I) may not be able to do it as an individual but working together as a group, we can show them we won’t stand for the abuse. Over 800 guns were sold by the Hattiesburg Police Department and we couldn’t event track down the abuse because they wouldn’t give us access to the records, delaying the request until after the guns were sold.
My friends, this is wrong. I am not asking for much. Anything you can afford. We have a limited number of days to file so I am asking for your prompt assistance. Please give whatever you can and if you need to donate by other means, please contact me at and I will tell you how to pay by cash or check.
In early January of this year the Hattiesburg Police Department announced a public sale of weapons seized over a number of years. After receiving many complaints in my enhanced carry classes that Hattiesburg PD was seizing citizens’ guns over and over again without charges, I decided to get involved.
In mid-January I submitted a Public Records Request asking not for copies, but to go to the police department and personally inspect the records. I didn’t feel they would be forthcoming if I accepted only a document with limited information. I wanted to get to the bottom of who in particular was seizing weapons, why and what was happening with them.
The Hattiesburg Police Department claimed to not know what an Evidence Custody Document, Evidence Custody Log or Docket of Deadly Weapons Seized was. I don’t know if they were that ignorant or if they were playing a came. At any rate, I finally accepted a copy of the weapons they sold (as a starter) without conceding to my desire to personally inspect the records. After six e-mail follow-ups to them requesting to personally review the records, they never once responded to that.
In March of this year, I filed a complaint with the Mississippi Ethics Commission since they are tasked with handling complaints involving the Public Records Act. The only things that needed to be decided was this:
1. Did I file a written Public Request with HPD to personally view the records?
2. Were the records available and determi to be public?
3. Was I given access as requested to publically inspect the records?
The answer to the first two questions was “yes.” The answer to the last question was “no.” How it could take nine months to pass judgment on that and reach the wrong conclusion is beyond me.
So the Ethics Commission hired a Madison County Contract Attorney to be the “Hearing Officer.” It took her from early March until this week to reach a conclusion under Rule 5.6 of the Ethics Commission. The rule is very vague but appears to task the Hearing Officer with reviewing the material and making a recommendation to the Commission for a final decision. That didn’t happen.
Tom Hood (Ethics Commission Director/Attorney General Jim Hood’s brother) sent me a letter titled “Order of Dismissal” citing basically that I got what I asked for and the Hattiebsurg Police “acted in good faith.” I contacted him this morning and told him I had not been notified of a recommended finding or been given 5 days to ask for a hearing if I didn’t agree with th Hearing Officer’s Decision. He told me she went straight to the Commission with a recommendation and they concurred with her resulting in the Order of Dismissal.
She never even addressed whether or not I was given access to publically inspect the record as allowed by law
She never even addressed the issue that the document he gave me “as a starter” did not contain all the information I wanted to see.
She claimed he acted within the time line of the law which is totally not true.
This is just another instance of us private citizens being abused by public officials and we have no remedy other than taking them to court. One of these days, I hope I can convince a new Attorney General that it is his responsibility to go after public officials who violate our rights (of course the present AG’s brother is the party under discussion here). We should not have to pay our hard earned money to force a public official to comply with the law.
Those of you who know me know that I have butted heads with them more than 20 times regarding our gun rights. I have not and will not stop until I stop breathing for good. I get no pay from anyone for what I do. I am a retired, partially disabled 20 year military veteran who spends his own money most of the time blooding the noses of these corrupt politicians. I have been very successful in my endeavors.
When I have to go to court, I can’t pay it all myself. I have to seek financial assistance from you. Back in June when I established a Go Fund Me account, it was the first time I had done so. I had a goal of receiving $5,000 to pay an attorney to represent us against judges preventing us from going into courthouses while armed. My goal was to raise the money within 60 days. Due to the outstanding response by you, we met the goal in only 4 days and I had to shut down the account to prevent over funding the lawyer for his requested fee to represent us in the Supreme Court.
This case will go to the Forrest County Chancery Court. I have a Ridgeland Attorney who has been very involved in gun issues throughout the country. He is an enhanced carrier and is highly motivated. I spoke to him to day and he expects his cost will be $2,000 and we will have a filing fee plus a bond fee bringing the total up to $2,500.
I am pleading with you for your help so we can let these corrupt public officials know that we are not going to be abused. Just because they know we will have to file a suit will not deter us from doing so. We (or I) may not be able to do it as an individual but working together as a group, we can show them we won’t stand for the abuse. Over 800 guns were sold by the Hattiesburg Police Department and we couldn’t event track down the abuse because they wouldn’t give us access to the records, delaying the request until after the guns were sold.
My friends, this is wrong. I am not asking for much. Anything you can afford. We have a limited number of days to file so I am asking for your prompt assistance. Please give whatever you can and if you need to donate by other means, please contact me at and I will tell you how to pay by cash or check.
Organizer and beneficiary
Rick Ward
Organizer
Collins, MS
Stephen Stamboulieh
Beneficiary
