For some time now, in the media, while meeting with clients, and in talking to friends and family, everyone has someone to point their finger at to blame for the so-called "mortgage crisis" that is effecting our economy so much these days. Whether it is the mortgage brokers, Realtors, appraisers, wall street, bankers, underwriters, the borrowers themselves, loan officers, and countless other affiliated positions. An argument can be made to some degree for each and every person and their position and their effect on the 'crisis'.
I am not so sure that I would call it a crisis, although many are giving it that title. So in keeping with that only, I will continue to call it a crisis. I tend to think it was a planned destruction as I heard one 'anti-government' article call it, as that seems most fitting for what is really happening. The powers to be that run this country had to see it coming, and did nothing to stop it or even minimize its' impending impacts. To my understanding and interpretation, crisis is more of an abrupt, and more unexpected situation than what really has occurred not only in this country, but worldwide.
What has really caught my attention though, happened in front of my eyes a week ago in my little home county, Charlotte County Florida. And to me, it is not only so rudimentary, but I think it is so blatantly intertwined with what is going on in this country, and what is so wrong here. I helped a man, for his privacy I will call him Mr Smith, get down to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office to retrieve some of his property that the Sheriff's Office has been holding for nearly a year now.
Now let me back track a little here, this man was pulled over more than a year ago on a traffic stop, and the reason for the stop, was the Deputy did not recognize his license plates. These plates were Indian Reservation license plates. If you do research, Indian Reservations that have their own plate and registrations (not all do I take it) then there is case law indicating that law enforcement MUST accept these plates and registration just like they accept out of state or even out of country (ie: Canadian, Mexican, etc.) license plates and registration. Yet the deputy arrested this man, and took his registration and license plates without Mr Smith's permission.
Mr Smith and the Deputy went to court, and the court decided there was no case here, and there was nothing to prosecute. Now here is where I think things start to get so out of hand, it is disgusting. Seems simple enough, go down the the Sheriff's Department and get your property back, correct? After all, our country is built on the Constitution, correct? And one of those most basic principals of this form of government, is the separation of power, correct? Remember that from elementary school? I do, and I am in my forties now! Apparently the Charlotte County Sheriff's Department, and Deputy Poole from that department are not aware of the separation of powers that the Constitution is based on, and that they are the Executive Branch of power, and that the other branch, the judicial branch, has determined there is NO CASE HERE.
The department is now in possession of stolen property from my understanding of what stolen property is based on Florida Statutes. It states to deprive someone of there possessions. Our court system ruled no case, Mr Smith asked for his property to be returned, and the department refuses? Why? Their stated reason, they still do not recognize the plates.
Much to my surprise and disappointment, I went with Mr Smith to go down to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office to retrieve his property. If I had heard this story from anyone, including Mr Smith himself, I would have felt that he exaggerated his story, and it could not have been this bad, but I actually witnessed the events on Monday September 21, 2009 at the Sheriff's Office. Deputy Poole came out into the lobby to speak to Mr Smith and asked what he wanted. Right from the very beginning, Deputy Poole was rude, and clearly attempting to provoke at least an argument, or potentially a physical confrontation. Yet, Mr Smith was respectful for all but the last two times that he was asking for his property to be returned, in which he raised his voice and got very close to Deputy Poole's face. However, Mr Smith did not become physical. Upon Deputy Poole asking for proof of ownership of the registration and title, to which Mr Smith had brought with him to show the Deputy, which was also grabbed from Mr Smith's hands. It was then, that I witnessed a criminal act of a deputy, in which Deputy Poole refused to return not only the original plates and paperwork, but the paperwork Mr Smith brought with him to prove it was his and the required documentation of the vehicle title and registration from the Indian Tribe proving his registration and title to the vehicle.
Deputy Poole needs to return to elementary school and learn the basics of our country and our Constitution. It is this kind of blatant ignorance of the constitution that I believe has also contributed to the downfall of much of our country, not just the so-called "mortgage crisis". We are supposed to have a government
. OF THE PEOPLE
. BY THE PEOPLE
. AND FOR THE PEOPLE
not a government that does not follow the simplist aspects of our founding government foundation, the Constitution!
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