Dangerous to lie to the media

KOBI-TV News Anchor Craig Smullin was on top of the facts and he asked the right questions.

Decide for yourself if she told him the truth.

Click: Judge Greif on KOBI on Monday evening

KOBI's Craig Smullin:
      "Is it appropriate for you to be advising someone in a civil lawsuit, considering some of your work involves OnTrack, and you used to be on the board of a similar non-profit, the Family Nurturing Center?"

Judge Greif: 
     "I never advised the plaintiff about anything."

Another question:

KOBI's Craig Smullin: 
     "Did you strategize with her [plaintiff in that lawsuit] about how to release things to the media?"

Judge Greif: 
     "No! No, I never released anything to the media. We talked, we talked about it. We talked about things being released to the media. I never was involved in the case in any way."

Was she honest? Readers can decide for themselves. 

These texts are verbatim from material released at the conclusion of the lawsuit, typos and spelling as written.

Did Judge Greif advise or counsel or strategize with the plaintiff? She says no. Is that true?

Example 1.  
6-19-2017  Incoming to Judge Greif: "Can you let me know when the stipulated judgement is signed"

6-19-2017  Judge Greif: "Gerking signed it 6/17"

6-19-2017  incoming to Greif: "I need it to get tribune :)" --- "My attorney keeps assuring me he's got a plan I'm loosing my patients :("  ---  "He says by Wednesday but I'm going nuts."

6-19-2017  Judge Greif: "Just keep the pressure on."

6-19-2017 Incoming to Greif: "OK." --- "Is it normal to take this long."

6-19-17  Judge Greif: "With a big civil case that has lots of records and witnesses, I imagine it could take some time. Also, I think the efforts to settle it obviously drug it out. A lot of civil cases don't even get filed until right before the statute of imitations runs."



Example 2
8-07-2017  Incoming to Lisa Greif: "Kobi"

8-07-2017  Judge Greif: "Will check it out online. Up in Salem for conference." -- "Saw the story. That is some good shit. Who are the other plaintiffs besides you? The only thing I wish for is for a way to sue Crain! This is as bad as Rita!""

8-08-2017  Incoming to Greif: "Chad Cain, Debbie Neville, Cynthia Stevens, and Judy willing ham [sic] from moms I don't lke her but she has 25plus years of documentation"

8-8-2017   Judge Greif: "I would think she would have a lot of dirt!

8--8-2017  Incoming to Greif: "Yep and I have telephone message from Rita threatening and my sons life. This should be aired this week."

8-0-2017  Judge Greif: "I love it. She deserves to rot. I heard a rumor she might make a statement on Thursday? That should be amusing."

8-8-2017  Incoming to Greif: "I hear that Sara who makes comment about this being laughable works at the DA's office feels super inappropriate"

8-8-2017  Judge Greif: ""I will alert some of the DAs"  --"That won't last long."


 Example 3
10-16-2017  Incoming to Greif: "I fired Clayton today and retained Andy Lewinter :)

10-16-2017  Judge Greif: "Where does Andy practice? I don't know him. Clayton is an idiot. Is Tracey still on board?

10-16-2017  Incoming to Greif: "Eugene!! And yes Andy will keep her but only as assistant because he feels bad for her! Andy is going after Clayton's license for malpractice if he try's to go after me for contingency fee!!

10-17-2017 Judge Greif: "Sounds like a good plan."


Example 4
6-14-2017  Judge Greif: "Also, I just signed your stipulated dismissal getting you out of the Neims case, so you should officially out of that case tomorrow am!"

6-14-2017 Incoming to Greif: "From Tracey :)"

6-14-2017 Judge Greif: "Yes! We want to show they are full of shit! Rowna is trying to see what she can dig up too."   --- "Great news about the Neil's case! Fuckers!  --- "Sorry. I am in a mood!"


My own conclusion: Yes. She was involved advising and assisting in the case.

Did she participate in a strategy of release to the media of material critical of OnTrack to extract a pre-trial settlement? Judge Greif said no. Is that true?

Note. Judge Greif answered "No" to the question asked, but then went on to answer a slightly different question of whether she personally gave material to the media. The factual answer to that is unclear. What is obvious, though, was that she was an active participant in the strategy in play.

Example 1
6-14-2017:  Judge Greif: "My mole tells me the media would be willing to do a follow up story on OT's deferred maintenance to point out how long said maintenance was actually deferred. I only have documentation of the problems from about a year ago, although I did start hearing about the housing issues in 2014. If either of you have any documentation prior to June 2016, such a[s] photos or emails, let me know."

6-14-2017  Incoming to Greif: "I will check to see what I have."

6-14-2017  Judge Greif: "OK thanks." 

6-14-2017  Incoming to Greif: "Tracey Howell has a ton [of] my emails let me check with her k:)  -- Just FYI I'm filling Friday :)"

6-14-2007  Judge Greif: "Bout time!"


Example 2
8-17-2007--10:45:56 a.m. Incoming to Greif: "Did you send your stuff in for mole? I'm meeting with Rowna at 3 to build timeline for media with pictures."

8-17-2007--10:48:41 a.m. From Lisa Greif: "No I didn't get anything from anyone to send in.

8-17-2007--10:48:24 a.m. Response to Greif: "I will have plenty :)"

8-17-2007-- 10:48:57 Lisa Greif responds: "Good."


Example 3
2-27-2017  Incoming to Greif  "Mail Tribune:) someone should request the OHA report! Hope your having a great vacation"

2-27-2017  Judge Greif: "I heard shit was going down with licenses? And I love the article about the housing in GP"

2-27-2017  Incoming to Greif: "Indeed it's happening"

2-27-2017  Judge Greif: "And both the board president and Tonia are on vacation, so that leaves Rick in charge! Bahahahahahaha!!"

Continuing, four days later:

3-3-2017  Judge Greif: "Kerri and Susie kept me in the loop while I was gone in addition to the texts you sent. What a hot mess. Oh well. Brought on entirely by themselves. I am glad Katie will be starting at the FNC soon too."


My own conclusion: Yes. She was actively involved in the media strategy of the plaintiff.


I have written before that I am disappointed in Judge Greif. I had supported her election in the past and my family made a $500 contribution to her first campaign. I stood in ovation along with others at my Rotary Club when she spoke frankly to us about her experience with mental illness. I don't dislike Lisa Greif. I admired her courage.

I understand her wish to characterize her texts as being just the private venting among friends. The problem is that they go beyond revealing outlandish sentiments and a lack of judicial temperament, particularly as regards her colleague on the bench. (Wouldn't an employer who retained in place an employee discovered to have speculated in writing on killing and body slamming a colleague open themselves to serious liability?) 

The texts also reveal behavior that is counter to the ideal of an impartial court system. Judges have credibility and she references her "moles," friendly avenues to get favorable stories placed. Working secretly, she was a participant in the media strategy to extract a settlement. She wasn't "arms length." She helped a friend in a lawsuit involving her own court. 

She has a right to tell her story the way she wants, but she cannot make up her own version of the facts. I am not her accuser. The witness she cannot deny is her own words. 

She wasn't honest with Craig Smullin or the public.



Note:  It is dangerous to make trouble with a sitting judge, but I hope less dangerous for a private citizen like myself than for an attorney. I am married to an attorney. No one but me decides what goes into this blog, and most certainly not my wife. She doesn't even read it.