The most egregious example of American judicial impotency came several weeks ago when Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. declined to prosecute Harvey Weinstein, even though misdemeanor cases of non-consensual sexual touching are routinely prosecuted with far less evidence than having Weinstein admit to the crime.
Chain of Title author, David Dayen, who writes about foreclosure and financial fraud, said in The New Republic that America’s “broken justice system” contributed to the current sexual harassment crisis. “The burst of allegations since the Weinstein scandal broke……springs from frustrations with the justice system. The crowd isn’t good at enforcing the law because it’s not their job. But what are people supposed to do when they have no other choice?” What are homeowners with strong cases of servicer fraud supposed to do when the court refuses to acknowledge the compelling evidence that the foreclosure was wrong and the servicer fabricated standing in order to prevail?
Both sexual assault and banks fabricating documents to create a chain of title are legal matters, or at least according to the law. When a family loses a home to a bank who had no proof they owned the home (and resorted to forgery and fraud to create the appearance that they did), the homeowner has but one choice- to seek redress in the courts.
Its not a fair playing field from the beginning when a homeowner with limited finances must battle a servicer with unlimited financial resources, and who can extend the litigation process indefinitely until the homeowner no longer has the resources to fight. There is no way to put bank CEOs in the public stockades or challenge them to a duel, and the courts aren’t a fair alternative. Homeowners have but one viable alternative- to organize, speak out with a single message, and to put pressure on their elected leaders to do something to help, while rallying the media to report.
This is not only a story about a few bad men who manipulated the repeal of Glass-Steagal to guide their corporations to record profits, but a blight on the American judicial system that refuses to prosecute the wrongdoers, and continues to cater to the wealthy who now dictate law and control our courts.
Victims of sexual abuse are able to name their perpetrators who should feel shame, remorse and fear of prosecution. Homeowners are dealing with faceless banks, CEOs and judges who unite to protect each other’s interests. To date, journalism’s finest including Gretchen Morgenson of the New York Times, Art Levine of the Washington Post, and others who exposed the securitization and mortgage fraud from 2007 to 2010, were unable to tip the needle and eventually started writing about something else.
Shaming and calling out the guilty parties like Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and CitiMortgage was not effective for long, and unlike victims of sexual misconduct whose social media campaign circumvented the broken court system, by 2012 the general public was tired of the foreclosure crisis and ready to move forward. Thus permitting the banks to continue their fraudulent practices, and government representatives to look the other way.
Meanwhile, the banks were using the rules implemented to stop foreclosure fraud to commit more foreclosure fraud. Hamp modifications that were designed to assist homeowners were hijacked. Instead, the banks used trial modification plans to extract what little cash the homeowners had left (that could have been used to relocate for example), and denied the loan modifications for no legitimate reason.
Like sexual abuse violations, the larger and more shocking the allegations became, and the more people that were named, the less potent the accusations become- despite the findings. With every major bank in America implicated, the immensity of the crime, was unfathomable. Even the #MeToo social media campaign is losing steam as more and more men are named and the public becomes desensitized.
Despite nationwide outrage, the public is more vested in the innocence of the banks and the financial system, over the victimization of financially struggling homeowners, even when the bank is committing fraud in order to foreclose.
Although homeowners have failed to properly organize in order to be heard, despite the fact that the banks have convinced the general public that the housing crisis is behind them and their home values will continue to increase, the ugly festering truth remains and there is no way to cauterize the ongoing crime except to remove the rule of law, end due-process, and allow banks to victimize its customers with impunity.
99% of the homeowners we speak to at LendingLies have mortgage documents that are fabricated, forged by robosigners, are assigned late to non-funded trusts, paid off by insurance proceeds and/or derivatives, and are improperly assigned. That means that most people are losing their homes to phantom banks who are committing fraud in order to foreclose or collect.
Apparently banking ethics have no principles except to profit, and we are going to need to unite if we are going to stop rampant and systemic bank fraud. Because your state representatives won’t. The Federal Bureau of Investigation hasn’t. The state Attorney General already received their profit from the mortgage settlement. And lastly, the judges are more interested in their own judicial retirement funds and protecting the banks who now control them.
The elite now hold themselves above the rules and laws that are for the ‘little’ people. It must be said, that in foreclosure cases there is a lot of activity going on behind the scenes. What is required to make a judge ignore irrefutable evidence? What favors are doled out? Why are bank attorneys unafraid of submitting fraudulent documents in the court records that would ordinary result in the loss of their license? There is no justice system for most of America and we now know how the world works.
If you steal a candy bar and you are an average working American you will end up with a fine, a misdemeanor, and community service hours. If you steal a home and you have an advanced degree, you will receive a promotion and a bonus. Our district attorneys do not prosecute bank crimes against homeowners. Banks can engage in fraud, break into occupied homes, and fabricate securities. You can’t. Our law enforcement looks the other way when a homeowner brings a crime to their attention. Millions of homeowners have paid the price of this economic assault- and millions more will.
Accountability is dead. The courts are corrupt. So what can you do? What will you do?
#MineToo
#UnquenchableFaithforJustice
