Originally Posted - January 6, 2007

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SANDUSKY, OHIO----Virtually a year to the day that Sandusky resident Bryan DuBois turned coat and flipped to the prosecution to join the state's bid to silence Elsebeth Baumgartner, his former business partner and judicial whistleblower, all charges against him were dismissed for failure of the Cuyahoga County prosecutor's office and prosecutor William Mason to prosecute.

The Cuyahoga Court docket indicates that the charges against Bryan DuBois were dismissed on Dec. 7 and filed on Dec. 12. "This cause is before the court on motion of county prosecutor William D. Mason, requesting an order dismissing this case for want of prosecution, the defendant having completed successfully the Cuyahoga County pre-trial diversion program".

Baumgartner was sentenced to eight years in prison in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court on Dec. 18. She received four years for alleged intimidation of retired visiting judge Richard Markus and four years for alleged intimidation of DuBois in one of the most convoluted cases ever undertaken in northern Ohio, snowballing from an appearance of Baumgartner at a Port Clinton city council meeting in 2001 when she made comments regarding Erie County prosecutor Kevin Baxter (left), a more than five year orchestrated attempt to silence Elsebeth Baumgartner (right) and attempt to cover up massive fraud and governmental corruption.

DuBois and his wife did not attend Baumgartner's Dec. 18 sentencing hearing, apparently because he couldn't face Baumgartner.

DuBois, a former U.S. Marine whose father is a former Sandusky probation officer, took a plea deal last spring on charges similar to Baumgartner's although some of his actions extended to more than mere email messages. In exchange for joining with the government against Baumgartner, he received one year of diversion, a program similar to probation, and his case file has been sealed from public view.

Baumgartner had chosen to plea no contest to charges against her, in part because she believed that she could not have received a fair trial before Judge Shirley Strickland Saffold who had refused to disqualify herself despite blatant demonstrated biases in the case. In addition, Cuyahoga County prosecutor Mason had reportedly served as her honorary campaign manager in her reelection campaign this past fall.

Moreover, Baumgartner believes that the constitutional issues involved in the charging of her will cause the case to ultimately be dismissed at a higher court.

Baumgartner's no contest plea was predicated that she would be released on a $50,000 appellate bond that would allow her to be free and assist in the preparation of her appeal.

However, two weeks before Baumgartner was to appear in court, she was blindsided by visiting judge David Faulkner deciding, after seven months, to find her guilty of contempt on charges lodged against her by Markus. Faulkner sentenced her to 120 days in jail which in effect makes the appellate bond in Cuyahoga County moot. Although the law provides for her to be released on bond on the misdemeanor contempt charges while that appeal is pending but thus far, the Sixth District Court has refused to rule on her application and she remains incarcerated in Ottawa County Jail.

The government and Cuyahoga County assistant prosecutor Daniel Kasaris, intent on keeping Baumgartner behind bars and away from the Internet, have further violated her First Amendment rights in attempting to restrict her acts of whistleblowing and expose of governmental wrongdoing. However, it appears that Saffold has imposed conditions on Baumgartner which she has no authority to dictate including that Baumgartner can't sue anyone in any court, including federal, without Saffold's permission. Saffold would have no jurisdiction in federal court. In fact, jurisdiction is a key issue in the entire Baumgartner case.

Kasaris and Saffold are also seeking to abridge Baumgartner's First Amendment rights to free speech and press, imposing a condition that she cannot say or have published any defamatory comments unless there is reason to believe them---in other words, a gag order. That vague and overbroad condition fails to define who determines if her speech is defamatory and what constitutes defamation but it clearly is an intimidation and threat to incarcerate her if she gives any interviews to the press or posts anything on the internet.

The records indicate that Bryan DuBois and his wife were star witnesses for the prosecution but federal court records indicate that not only did DuBois and his wife allegedly make false filings to the federal bankruptcy court in regard to their assets and income, but at least one creditor is charging that the DuBoises engaged in fraud, casting dispersions on their credibility as witnesses for the government against Baumgartner.

Even more importantly, if DuBois made false filings with the court, it would seem it should have violated his diversion agreement.

DuBois, 30, is the former business partner of Baumgartner in Arbor Group LLC which had published Erie Voices, a blog which focused on reporting alleged governmental abuse and wrongdoing in northern Ohio.

DuBois had been indicted with Baumgartner, 51, in mid-2005, charged with allegedly intimidating retired visiting judge Richard Markus, and possession of a criminal tool----a computer with which he allegedly sent Markus intimidating emails. He was also charged with extortion based on a note that he had allegedly passed to Charles Burns, superintendent with Benton-Caroll-Salem schools, during a civil trial in December 2004 at which Burns was a witness against Baumgartner in a civil suit brought by Kellen Smith, a former BCS school board member.

After DuBois and Baumgartner were charged by secret indictment prepared by Kasaris, an indictment which was later found to be defective and improper, efforts were made by Kasaris to effect a deal with DuBois to shut down Erie Voices in return for a reduction of felony charges to misdemeanors. Kasaris' boss, Mason, and other public officials had been the target of the blog's allegation.

Initially DuBois refused, making a very public renunciation of Kasaris' offer, writing that "When the media becomes too friendly with the government, bad things can happen". But ultimately, if not earlier, DuBois began working with the government in an effort to imprison whistleblower Baumgartner, a longtime critic of Ohio government who lost both her license to practice law and her pharmacist's license for speaking out.

Apparently DuBois lost interest in the First Amendment and exposing alleged corruption in northern Ohio.

At first, Kasaris stated the Erie Voices website was not a factor in the arrest of the pair. But he later said if DuBois stopped writing for the site and stopped associating with Baumgartner, he'd reduce the felony charges he brought against DuBois to a misdemeanor.

By early 2006, DuBois had agreed to testify against Baumgartner and he and his wife, Mandy had been the cause of a search warrant effected on Baumgartner's house, seizing her computers which contained her legal work product, records from Erie Voices and her files and evidence regarding governmental corruption. Ultimately the DuBoises claimed that Baumgartner had intimidated them by allegedly posting material on her own blog, causing her arrest.

Last fall, Baumgartner's husband issued a $15,000 check to DuBois for the purpose of engaging an attorney to protect the blog's First Amendment rights. But instead, DuBois used the money as part of a retainer to hire an attorney to represent himself in his criminal charges and then used that same attorney, Jay Milano, that the Baumgartner's had paid for to in effect work against the Baumgartners, a highly questionable and possibly unethical position for Milano as well as DuBois.

In order to obtain the other $10,000 needed for Milano's $25,000 retainer, DuBois allegedly used one of Arbor Group's corporate credit cards.

It appears that DuBois had no intention of paying back the Baumgartner's $15,000 or of paying his credit card debt as last June, he filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy to discharge all debts.

In essence, DuBois not only turned coat against Baumgartner after she had bankrolled him for more than a year but he used her own money and business against her to cause her conviction and incarceration.

A Chapter 7 filing allows the sale of personal or business assets to pay debts. In some cases, eligible debtors may receive discharges from their debts, except debts related to taxes, child support and alimony payments.

Last June 8, Bryan and Mandy DuBois filed a Chapter 7 petition in U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Not only did they forget to declare their ownership interest in Erie Voices and Arbor Group, the company which owns Erie Voices of which Baumgartner is general manager, but they forgot to list company assets such as computers and printers and the intellectual property, copyrighted work which had been published at Erie Voices.

The couple filed an amended petition in July, declaring their ownership interest in Erie Voices, but claimed it had no value.

More significantly, it appears that Bryan and Mandy DuBois, government witnesses and informants, failed to disclose income to the federal court in their sworn petition, neglecting to list Mandy DuBois' employment with Erie County and failing to advise the court of Mandy DuBois' association with Bright Spot Educational Services Inc., a tutoring service associated with the Sandusky School System.

Mandy DuBois neglected to disclose that she is vice president of Bright Spot which is receiving federal funds under Title I. DuBois' mother is reportedly employed as the secretary to the school superintendent which raises a rather significant questionable conflict of interest in the district's award of tutoring services to her daughter's company.

In reporting her income on petition for bankruptcy, Mandy DuBois listed only her employment as a home instruction tutor with the Sandusky City School District without mentioning her position with Bright Spot.

The North Country Gazette learned that effective May 22, just weeks before her sworn filing with the federal court, Mandy DuBois became employed as a sanitarian with the Erie County Health Department.

She failed to disclose that income to the federal court and it appears it may have been done intentionally.

Now Chase Bank is suing the DuBoises, alleging that the couple engaged in fraud in order to discharge a $9,158.50 balance due on their Visa Card issued through Chase Bank. Citing the filing made with the bankruptcy court, Chase says that at the time the DuBoises incurred the charges on their credit card, they represented that they had the ability to repay the loan but using the figures cited by the DuBoises in their attempt to discharge the monies due (including the false understated income figures) that they allegedly had no intent to repay the credit card balance and that they had made representations with the intention and purpose of deceiving Chase and were at the time planning to file bankruptcy. Chase is alleging that the DuBoises incurred the chargeds under false pretenses, false representation or actual fraud and for that reason, the indebtness to Chase is not dischargeable in a bankruptcy action.

Chase is seeking a judgment against the DuBoises in the amount of $9,158.50.

DuBois' court file is reportedly sealed which shuts off public review of the deal cut between DuBois and the government against Baumgartner. Initially, it had been stated that he would plead guilty to two felony charges and a misdemeanor and avoid jury trials in Ottawa and Cuyahoga Counties. While his sentence could have been three years in prison, the deal was that he was to have been placed on probation in a pre-trial diversion and avoid going to trial at all.

The public has a right to know of the interaction and deals between DuBois and Baumgartner, especially the apparent agreement to shut down Erie Voices.

It appears that the conditions imposed including filing complaints against Baumgartner and securing convictions against her in an effort to silence her and allegedly cover up governmental wrongdoing on which she had shone the light. In return, he had all the charges against him dropped and his file sealed.

After DuBois cut his deal with Kasaris, Baumgartner was indicted on 10 more charges based on complaints of DuBois and his wife. In a bizarre twist to the case, DuBois was represented by Jay Milano. In essence, Baumgartner and her husband paid for the attorney to assist DuBois in securing a deal for himself and turning against Baumgartner. According to reports, Milano was present in Cuyahoga County Court last month, ready----on the Baumgartner dime----to testify against Baumgartner.

According to Joseph Baumgartner, complainant Richard Markus prepared the conditions that were to be applied to his wife's bond, one of the conditions in essence being a gag order. Sentencing judge Shirley Strickland Safford of the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court told Baumgartner if she violated it, she'd "wipe that smile right off your face".

At a hearing last fall for DuBois, Kasaris reportedly made an offer that he would drop the charges against DuBois to a misdemeanor level if DuBois would agree to three things:

1) Stop writing on www.Erievoices.com, because it "has obviously been taken over by Elsebeth Baumgartner"';

2) Not associate with Elsebeth Baumgartner for the duration of his probation, which could be up to five years;

3) Make a statement regarding Elsebeth Baumgartner's influence in his writing of the email to Judge Markus on 11/29/2004.

DuBois refused at that time but it appears that on Dec. 12, 2005, just five days after he and Baumgartner were scheduled to go to trial on the charges in Cuyahoga County Court before Saffold, DuBois met with Kasaris and others from the prosecutor's office with complete immunity and discussed testifying against Baumgartner as has been evidenced in the transcript of that meeting between DuBois and Kasaris.

Baumgartner had been removed from the courtroom on Dec. 7, initially jailed for over a week before being sent for a psychiatric evaluation to determine if she was competent to stand trial. Her case was marked closed but upon her release in mid-January following a competency hearing, Saffold set the trial date for March 27. As in six previous evaluations, Baumgartner was found competent but suffering from a stress disorder related to legal abuse.

On Dec. 7, 2005, Baumgartner had sought a continuance, producing a doctor's statement which said she was too mentally distraught to proceed at that time. Saffold ordered Baumgartner admitted to the Northcoast Behavioral Healthcare System for evaluation without hearing and without Baumgartner having legal counsel. Baumgartner then opened her purse and swallowed an unknown quantity of prescription pills which were later determined to be medication for high blood pressure.

As of Dec. 7, 2005, Baumgartner and DuBois were still co-defendants as although a motion to sever the two cases had been made, it had not been granted, a situation which may have resulted in an entrapment situation regarding Baumgartner. A continuance of their trial was granted until March 27 but on March 23, Baumgartner was indicted on new charges based on the DuBois claim of intimidation by postings on Erie Voices. There was never any evidence adduced that the postings complained of had been originated by Baumgartner, A motion to sever DuBois as Baumgartner's co-defendant in the Markus complaint was renewed on March 7 thus until March 7, DuBois was not listed as a witness against Baumgartner in any proceeding thus she could not have knowingly or intentionally intimidated or retaliated against him for being a witness.

After her removal from the courtroom on Dec. 7, 2005, she was committed to the Northcoast Behavorial Center in Cleveland for psychiatric review until mid January, 2006, deemed competent and released on bail. During the time she was confined, defamatory, disparaging remarks had been posted against her and her family on Erie Voices which were allowed, and perhaps precipitated and deliberately perpetuated, by DuBois and his wife. The new charges then lodged against Baumgartner on complaint of the DuBoises were predicated on alleged postings by Baumgartner to the website in response to the earlier postings which attacked her.

Silencing Elsebeth Baumgartner. Silencing Elsebeth Baumgartner. That's what it's always been about. But so far, although Kasaris, Ottawa County prosecutor Mark Mulligan, Markus, Faulkner, Saffold and many others say that Baumgartner's allegations of governmental wrongdoing which included the Pay-To-Play scheme of convicted GOP fundraiser Tom Noe and allegations which go all the way to the Supreme Court Chambers of Thomas Moyer are false and malicious, there has been no independent investigation of those allegations or proof other than denials from individuals like Markus that her allegations are false. 1-06-07

© 2007 North Country Gazette