From the Metro Desk of the Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog.Com and Cleveland Urban News.Com (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com [4])
Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas Judge John O'Donnell has replaced county foreclosure Chief Magistrate Stephen Bucha on cases involving the no longer existing Chase Mortgage Company with subordinate magistrate Tom Vozar following the initiation of a mortgage fraud investigation two weeks ago by county prosecutor Bill Mason, though O'Donnell has not recused himself from the cases since he supervises Bucha and allegedly directed him on the alleged illegal activity.
Magistrates are manually assigned to foreclosure cases by the 34 judges of the general division of the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, which is led by Chief Judge Nancy Fuerst, but are under the supervision of the judges, who are ultimately responsible for the case outcomes and the actions of the magistrates, whether legal or illegal.
At issue is the attempt by attorneys for Chase Mortgage Company, which merged and became Chase Home Finance in 2005, foreclosing on homes of Black people when foreclosure rules adopted by the Federal District Court of the Northern District of Ohio in 2007 require that all foreclosure complaints initiated before 2005 by Chase Mortgage Company must be dismissed and refiled by Chase Home Finance, the company that bought Chase Mortgage Company. And upon refiling the mortgage company cannot ask for legal fees. This holds true for any other foreclosures where during the litigation the mortgage company changes hands.
In one case a home that the Cuyahoga County Recorder's offices appraised for some $120 thousand just last year is up for sale for some $36 thousand per Reid, and with the sanctioning of Bucha, O'Donnell and county mortgage fraud investigator Tim Lea, who is accused of backing off of mortgage fraud investigations for corrupt Whites involved with the activity and urging Black homeowners to settle to their detriment rather than fight, a conflict of interest, some say.
Whether Reid, O'Donnell and Bucha are receiving kickbacks for doing in the Black community and others with their foreclosure schemes is not known, though those buying the illegally reduced foreclosures include Cleveland City Council members.
To perpetuate the alleged fraud lawyers for Chase Mortgage Company, namely Bricker and Eckler and Lerner, Sampson and Rothfuss, are falsifying notices of foreclosure sale to Bucha, O'Donnell and Reid and leaving off the name of Chase Mortgage Company because they know it no longer exist, and this is after the mortgage company lawyers file a second suit before Cuyahoga Judge Carolyn Friedland with Chase Home Finance as the plaintiff.
And though Chase Mortgage Company does not exist anymore Reid is still scheduling foreclosure sales to hurt Black homeowners, saying they must contact O'Donnell to stop it. And he is doing so even without the interior inspections required by state law, and after his chief deputy leaves telephone messages to the homeowners saying that the Mason's office said an interior appraisal is required by state law prior to any foreclosure sale.
O'Donnell staff attorney Alexa Beeler referred questions to the foreclosure department.
Mason's office did not respond to a request for comment on the mortgage fraud investigation.
Bricker and Eckler was hired by county officials to investigate potential malfeasance of county employees, a questionable gesture since its attorneys are simultaneously participating in potential mortgage fraud against Black homeowners without county officials saying a single word.
Fitzgerald did not return phone calls seeking comment.
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Posted By Journalist Kathy Wray Coleman to
Links:
[1] http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YK1_rrTdSEg/TayPJwg4u-I/AAAAAAAABZ8/i09pQ7cJclY/s1600/ODonnellJP.png
[2] http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XJIZMI4SgMY/TayO4SNsq8I/AAAAAAAABZ0/GZA95X1kg10/s1600/sheriff%2Bbob%2Bredi.jpg
[3] http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fj5o4PULGls/TayOnZFwREI/AAAAAAAABZs/C9oiusR34Bc/s1600/photo_mason_01.jpg
[4] http://www.kathywraycolemanonlinnewsblog.com/
[5] http://www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com/2011/04/magistrate-bucha-removed-from.html