...and JUSTICE FOR ALL

AVELINA.NET

…AND JUSTICE FOR ALL

I am a Naturalized American Citizen and I studied the United States Constitution and Government quite extensively to obtain my citizenship. From the materials that I studied and the beliefs that I hold to be true from those studies, "equal justice under the law" is singularly the most precious guaranteed right that we, as Americans, have entrusted to our Judicial System. Justice is the impartial quality of being right and fair, derived from the truth and sound reasoning. However, as I have discovered, the American Judicial System tragically lacks justices. It appears as though our politically correct society has prematurely euthanaised justice, making it another American myth along with equality and freedom.

Apparently, victims have very few or no rights at all in the American judicial process. The lack of victim’s rights in violent crime is well documented throughout the United States, daily. But, what happens when you are falsely accused of a crime? You become the accused and are considered innocent until proven guilty in a Court of Law, right? Wrong! As I have experienced, this is the point at which you become the victim: a victim of revenge; a victim of a permissive society where “who fires the first shot” is more important than the truth; and, a victim who now has to prove their innocence rather than the court having to prove their guilt. These victims remain at a disadvantage throughout judicial proceedings because they are at the mercy of the court, as well as, at the mercy of their accuser.

As I mentioned, I am a Naturalized American Citizen being from the Philippines originally. I currently reside in my husband’s hometown, Staunton, Virginia. The Filipino community here in Staunton is very small and the majority are inter-racially married, as am I. One would believe that in small communities of people from the same country everyone would get along, being supportive of each other and making things work out for the best of all concerned. The reality of the situation is that jealously and greed usually preclude such bondings and, more often than not, breeds hostility. In every community there are those who get along and there are also those who need to be in control. Both types of people are readily accepted within the community, however, one must become cautious when jealous and greedy people attempt to be in control. These are the people who manipulate situations to benefit their personal agenda.

Once in control these vindictive people, like a predator, relax and blend in with the pack. They remain at peace until challenged by an outsider, or until a lone member of the pack refuses to be further intimidated by the predator’s tactics. Such resistance threatens the security of the predator’s claimed territory and a conflict to reestablish the status quo erupts. The life of the challenger tragically ends should the predator savagely rip the heart from its victim. But, should the challenger successfully withstand the attack and spare the predator, the unyielding predator returns to the pack and lives to revenge the loss. With superiority being lost, maturity and common sense are replaced by hatred and revenge. Most people lick their wounds and go on with their lives. However, these self centered people whose lives are dominated by jealously and greed lose all sense of reality and, like the predator, lay in wait to attack again.

Such is the case with my accuser, Ailen Candelaria Carton Clemmer, whom I had known for about six years. Once I realized the type of person that Ailen actually was, I made it well known within the Filipino community that I wanted nothing else to do with her. I did my best to stay clear of her, but there were occasions that we saw each other in the stores. Each time we met, Ailen's behavior became more aggressive and hostile towards me. She always degraded me in public and around other Filipinos, she developed a bullish attitude towards me, and, most recently, she harassed my teenaged son at his place of employment. Let me explain.

I became familiar with Ailen through a co-worker of my husband’s at the local cable company. She was hosting a get-to-gather and my husband and I were invited because she, also, is from the Philippines. Thinking that this would be a good opportunity to meet some people from my country, my husband and I attended the gathering. We met the host and her sister-in-law, also from the Philippines, and their families. From the very beginning I felt uneasy about Ailen and now I am truly sorry that I met her.

When Ailen met me at the door she informed me that Nida, another Filipina, whom I had not yet met, would not be attending because she was baby setting. Then, she had the audacity to say to me in our native tongue, “Don’t you know that tita Nida’s husband is black?” Thinking to my self, so is my son, I began to wonder what type of person would make a comment like this to a stranger as they are entered her house for the first time? Is this person prejudice or a bigot? I have since come to believe that both are true.

As time passed a friendship never developed, even though I did try to get along things would keep happening forcing us further apart. When Ailen was studying to become an American Citizen, I let her borrow the book that I had studied to get my citizenship. Explaining that the book had great sentimental value to me, I let her borrow the book under the condition that it would be returned to me immediately after she was finished with it and in the same condition as it was when I let her borrow it. She readily agreed, took the book, studied it, and eventually became a Naturalized American Citizen.

We attended several get-to-gathers over the next couple of years, at her house and at the sister-in-law’s house, for birthdays, baby showers and christenings. As she tried to out do her sister-in-law, I quickly realized just how jealous she really was. As a result, they were always fighting amongst themselves. Additionally, Ailen’s husband worked for his brother managing a CD and Tape Store. I believe that this only added to their misery because the business was failing and the tensions between the two sister-in-laws seemed to grow. Ailen would call me complaining about her sister-in-law, then her sister-in-law would call telling me about Ailen. My advice to each of them was always the same, “Marriage has brought you together as family, do your best to get along.”

The first time I actually suspected that Ailen was up to something came one night while shopping at Kroger’s. As my family and I came around one of the isles we happened to see Ailen shopping. At first, she acted dumbfounded and confused, then, she quickly became very friendly towards my husband and son, greeting them with an air of innocence and asking how each of them was doing. Suddenly, as if possessed, she turned towards me with one of those angry “if looks could kill” faces and, without saying a word to me, went on with her shopping. At first I thought that it was a mood swing because she was pregnant, but I later heard that she was angry with me because I had not attended the baby shower given for her second child that she was bearing at that time. I had called and explained that I would not be able to attend because we had unexpected visitors from out of town, nevertheless, she held this against me.

One day while I was visiting Nida, whom by the way has turned out to be a really good person, Ailen stopped by to drop her kids off because Nida was watching them for her. A considerable amount of time had passed since she had become naturalized, and this being the first time I had seen her since, I asked Ailen for my book back. She told me that she had the book and would return it. When I told her that her sister-in-law had informed me that she had given the book to a friend, the look upon her face assured me that I had caught her in a lie. Later that same day, she called Nida and I heard Nida say, “Talk to Lynn, here’s Lynn,” and Nida handed me the phone. We had a very short conversation that ended with Ailen slamming down the phone. I looked at Nida with disbelief and neither one of us could figure out why she had done this. Nida later told me that she had asked Ailen why she had so much hostility towards me. Her reply to Nida was because I had ignored a friend of hers in the store one day. Imagine this type of reasoning coming from a responsible adult charged with teaching her children right from wrong. Can a person who will not accept the consequences of her own actions accomplish this tasking? I don’t think so. Anyway, I believe you can begin to see the type of person I am talking about. I did receive my wrinkled and scribbled up book back about a week later. It came through the mail, stuffed into an envelope. After that we had no further contact until she harassed my son at McDonald’s.

My son was working at McDonald’s on a Sunday in May 1996. After church, Ailen, her mother-in-law and her children went to McDonald's to eat. She had gotten into my son’s serving line and when she got to the counter she ordered Chicken McNuggets. My son asked her, “What size?” (Because McNuggets comes in 6, 9 and 20 pieces.) According to my son, she started raising her voice and rudely saying, “Why, do you have a problem with that? You are a crazy bitch just like your mother.” Realizing what she was up to, instead of confronting her and loosing his job, my son went to the phone and called me at home.

As a mother, I felt that she had gone too far and that I must put a end to her antics. I had my husband take me to McDonald’s. I approached her saying, “Look, if you have a problem with me that’s fine, but you had better leave my family out of it.” At this point she jumped up and began telling me how stupid and ignorant I was. She told me that what happens at McDonald’s was none of my business because, “The customer is always right.” Yea, right, being a customer gives you the right to harass the employees and putting their families down in public! Having put up with enough of her arrogance, I grabbed her shoulder and said, “Let’s go outside and settle this right now.” But, she wouldn’t go. Instead, she insisted on staying inside the restaurant, running her loud mouth, and making a spectacle of herself. In the mean time, the manager had called the police. The police arrived, separated us and told us to go home. Although nothing more than angry words were exchanged that day, I felt that she had gotten my message and would leave me and my family alone. Wrong!!!

One night in July 1996, my husband and I were shopping at the local WalMart. It wasn’t until we were in the check out line that I even noticed she was in the store that night. She must have been getting of work because she was standing in the express line still wearing the WalMart bakery uniform. At the time it seemed peculiar because my husband and I had a grocery cart full of things and she had only one or two items, yet it took her as long to check out as it did us. It appeared as though she was just making small talk with the cashier and waiting for us. As soon as we started to leave the counter with our cart, she started for the door.

Ailen was about three steps a head of us and, just as soon as we went through the door and exited the building, she turned to me and said, “You are an idiot.” Looking at my husband I asked, “Did you hear what she said?” He acknowledged by shaking his head so I asked her, “What did you say?” Again, she turned towards me and said, “You’re an idiot.” Not understanding why she was making these comments I began walking beside her, down the side walk in front of the store and into the parking lot close to where her car was parked. During this stroll I asked her, “What have I done to you to make you humiliate me like this in public?” One does have the right to know what they have done to upset someone so much? Apparently not! Her answer was, “I’m going to sue you.” Thinking that she is not making any sense, I asked her again, “What have I done to make you treat me like this?” Again she replied, “If you touch me, I’m going to sue you.” I told her, “Look, first of all you have two small children and a family. You need to focus on these things that are important and stop treating people like you treat me. Secondly, you must have money to pay your lawyer.”

Looking at me as if I was crazy she said, “Don’t you know I have money, my husband works at Western State?” (Western State is a local mental hospital.) I replied, “Really, then he must be a lunatic just like you.” I continued, “Your problem is that you are a liar, two faced, back stabbing and manipulative. You think the world rotates around you and that you can treat people like dirt.” This comment must have struck a nerve, because she kicked me in my leg. She kicked me knowing that I frequently suffered from arthritis in my legs and that I had undergone microscopic surgery on my knee to repair torn cartilage. I did not retaliate, I simply asked her again to tell me what I had done to make her treat me like this. Her response was to kick me a second time, harder and closer to my knee. As I saw her start to raise her leg for the third time, I thought to myself, "ENOUGH." I swung, hitting the side of her head thinking this to be self-defense. We scuffled a little bit more. It was no big incident, she had scratched my face causing it bleed, but that was about all. Other than my face bleeding, I think the only thing that was hurt that night was her pride. Anyway, convinced that this was just another of her attempts to humiliate me, I never gave the matter another thought and returned home and went to bed. Although, I do remember thinking that it was a little over kill on the theatrics when she stuck her head out of the car window and yelled that she was going to call the cops on me. For what, I thought, defending my self?

The very next day, a City Sheriff came to my house and served me with No Trespassing Papers on her behalf. I never call her nor do I go to her house anymore, so these papers really meant nothing to me, although, I did think that she should be the one getting these papers. After thinking about what had happened the night before, I concluded that her behavior, especially for an employee, had been wrong. I went to WalMart to file a complaint against her.

At WalMart I was given a LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT, CUSTOMER SERVICE form and told that I could take the form home to complete it. I was given the option to either mail the form myself, or return it to WalMart and they would mail it to the President of WalMart. I mailed the form and waited for weeks, but no one from WalMart contacted me nor replied to my complaint.

Also, on the date that I was served the No Trespassing Papers, my husband called the Clerk of the Court to find out what recourse we may have against my accuser. The Clerk of the Court referred him to the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office. When he called the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, a woman answered the phone. She advised him that we could also get No Trespassing Papers against my accuser, but this would be a mute circumstance because the papers worked both ways. She also told him that, in her opinion, both ladies should grow up and act like adults. She said the courts were just to busy to be bothered with matters such as this and that this type of behavior would not be tolerated.

Eight days after I went to WalMart to file a complaint on her, I was served an Arrest Warrant for ASSAULT AND BATTERY and directed to appear in court.

When I went to see a lawyer, he informed me that there was little I could do and that the best we could hope for was that the Judge would take the matter under advisement. Wait, I haven’t even been to court yet, how can I be considered guilty at this point? The lawyer explained to me that Virginia is not a State, it’s a Commonwealth, and as such, British Law governs it. He explained that British law is a Gentleman’s law and not necessarily the laws one would expect. He went on to explain that there was a “Bully Law” meaning that if an incident happened and you do not walk from it, you are considered guilty under this law. He also explained that when my accuser had called me an idiot she had broken no law and that the court would view this matter as freedom of speech.

Granted, I did not walk away from the incident, but I did not pursue the situation with the intent of getting into a fight. I was only trying to get this person to tell me what I had done to cause her to treat me like she was doing and why she insisted on humiliating me in public. Do I not also have that same freedom of speech? As children, we are taught that fighting is wrong and that the best way to settle a situation is to talk it out. However, instead of talking with me, she attacked me. Not only did she attack me that night, she filed a false Report causing me to be charged with ASSAULT AND BATTERY. I am certain that freedom of speech does not give her the right to file a false Report. Nevertheless, I informed my lawyer that I wanted to fight this case in court because of these reasons. If I am guilty of not walking away, fine, find me guilty of that, but do not find me guilty of ASSAULT AND BATTERY based on lies. I could not let her get away with starting the fight, filing a false Report, and taking me to court. He agreed to represent me and I thought that I would, at least, have a chance in court.

About three days before my court date, the manager of the WalMart where Ailen is employed, or rather, an associate as the people at WalMart like to refer to their employees, did call my house. My husband answered the phone and explained to the manager that he had been present the night of the incident, that he had assisted me in putting my complaint together, and that he would be glad to talk with him. The manager assured my husband that he had not been aware of the incident until he received a copy of my complaint in his e-mail that day. He asked my husband why we had not brought the matter to his attention. My husband explained that we had come to the store to file a complaint and that we were given this form to complete instead. Apologizing for the misunderstanding, the manager asked my husband to tell him exactly what had happened. Explaining that the incident had happened as we had described it in the complaint, my husband read the complaint to the manager. My husband also informed him there was a court case pending because their employee had filed ASSAULT AND BATTERY charges against me. He assured my husband that he would look into the matter let us know what actions were taken. That was in September of 1996 and we are still waiting to hear from him.

I feel certain that for various reasons a condition of employment with WalMart is that their associates are subject to lie detector testing. Even though these tests may not admissible as evidence in a court of law, the test would have proven that their associate was lying. Perhaps, once the truth was learned, WalMart would want to reconsider her employment. Not only did she insult and instigate an incident with a “valued” customer, her actions that night has caused WalMart to lose this family’s business. We have not shopped at a WalMart since this incident. Kroger, K-Mart, J.C. Penny, Food Lion and Sears have become the beneficiaries of WalMart’s inability or unwillingness to handle this situation. We may pay a little bit more for our merchandise or travel a little further to get it, but I am treated with respect. There is no way I will reward WalMart for condoning the type of behavior we experienced that night from their employee.

My court date finally arrived and I sat in an American courtroom as a defendant for the first time in my life. I was confident that justice was about to be served. I was sure that finally on this day I would be free from the clutches of scorn, ridicule and public degradation. Suddenly, my case was being called out to come before the judge. I stood and approached the judge thinking, here we go…

We were arranged by the Bailiff in front of the judge. My accuser and her attorney stood to the judge’s right. My husband, my attorney and I were placed on the judge’s left. Court was called to order, I entered a plea of Not Guilty, and raising our right hands we each solemnly swore to tell the truth, so help our God. The Bailiff then asked each of us to state our names and addresses. My accuser went first stating her name as Ailen Clemmer and gave her address. I gave my name as Avelina Roach and gave my address. My husband then gave his name as Elroy Roach and gave his address. The judge then told her attorney to proceed. Looking around the courtroom, I remembered something I had studied for my citizenship, “you have the right to a trial by a jury of your peers.” There was no jury in the courtroom, there was no witness stand, there was only the Judge, the Bailiff, two attorneys, the accuser, and my husband and myself. I remember thinking, “this doesn’t feel right.”

It was at this point that I realized her attorney was the Commonwealth’s Attorney, the same office that we had contacted to discuss recourse and were told to “grow up.” He asked Ailen if she would describe for the court what had happened. Flustered, she began to give her story. (I wish that I could give a more precise account of what happened here, but when I contacted the court for a transcript of the case I was informed that the court was not a court of record and, therefore, no transcript of the case is available.) Her testimony was just as if she were reading it from the arrest warrant.

She told the court that I had approached her in the parking lot that night, which is a bare faced lie. Surely, if someone tells you that they were approached in a parking lot, it does establish a form of aggression. The facts remain that we exited the store at the same time, that she insulted me, and that we walked together on the sidewalk in front of the building and into the parking lot while having a conversation. THAT IS NOT APPROACHING IN THE PARKING LOT.

She continued that I was very angry, and that I had started hitting her (another lie). Of course I was angry. I was tired of the way that she had been treating me. I was not aggressive. She kicked me twice in my leg before I retaliated in self-defense.

She said that I had told her that I was not through with her yet and that I had scratched her face (I did not scratch her), that I had pulled her earring out of her ear (I don’t think she was even wearing earrings that night), and that I had slammed the car door on her. She then pulled an earring from her pocket and laid it down saying, “see, here is my earring.” She stated that I had mentioned her children and that she was afraid. She said that I told her that she was stupid and then she told the court that she had four years of college. Evidently she was trying to explain that she could not have four years of college and be stupid. (Four years of college in the Philippines is about the equivalent to a high school education in the United States. If United States High Schools can graduate so many illiterate people, just imagine how many pass through developing countries’ schools.)

Her attorney asked her when she had became aware of the fact that I was present that night at WalMart. She stated that she had seen my reflection in the glass doors as she was going out of the store. She denied having made any comments to me (big lie) and insisted that I was the one who had started the incident by approaching her in the parking lot (wrong again). She said that my husband was there, but that he had gone towards our car and was not close enough to hear or see what had happened.

Then, it was my turn. I told the court the story just as I stated it earlier in this article, because it is the truth. I explained to the judge that all I wanted do was to find out what I had done to deserve such treatment and she attacked me. My husband gave testimony to support my story. He was there and heard her call me an idiot and he had witnessed the scuffle that followed.

Then, my lawyer asked Ailen if she was trying to tell my story for herself. She did not understand what he was saying, so he had to explain the question to her. She denied it and insisted that I was the one who started the incident. The Judge asked how long this had been going on between us. My husband told him about three years. She denied that stating it had only been about four months, but she must have been referring to the incident at McDonald’s. The Judge said that he had heard enough.

After a moment of silence, the Judge turned to me and said that he had sufficient evidence to convict. However, he stated that he would take the matter under advisement, meaning if nothing else happened between us within the next year, the charges would be dismissed. He also explained, that if we came back in his court that he would have to activate the verdict and put me in jail and fine me. Then, the Judge turned to Ailen and pointing his finger at her he told her to “shut up.” He said, “I know that may sound harsh, but that’s just the way it is. You have to learn to keep your mouth shut.” He also ordered that we could not have anything to do with one another. He said that meant no phone calls, no visits, and if we saw each other in the streets we both had to turn and walk the other way. Court was adjourned.

My attorney, my husband and I went into the hall way outside the courtroom to talk. I was having a hard time believing what had just happened. Less than 20 minutes of the court’s time had just decided the most crucial allegation of my life. I asked my attorney what recourse I had at this point and he answered, “none.” He explained that if I tried to bring any charges against her now, it would be viewed by the court as vengeance.

I really cannot believe that these things have happened. I go shopping and a person calls me an idiot--I ask her why and she attacks me--She files a false sworn statement to have an arrest warrant issued--She commits perjury in a Court of Law—and I am considered to be guilty. Vengeance, not after what I have been through, I want justice.

I cannot understand how this case even got to court. Was it solely because she filed the Report? Is there not a requirement for physical evidence or a witness to support the charges? Without evidence or a witness, is there not suppose to be an investigation? What has happened to due process? Are these not the legal proceedings established to protect one’s rights and liberties? Where was the jury of my peers? I feel as though my rights have been violated.

What about perjury? Is it not a felony in the United States to perjure one’s self while under oath? One would believe that it is a responsibility of the court to intervene when conflicting accounts of an incident are given, reminding the participants that they are under oath, explaining the consequences of perjury, and advising the participants that they are to be truthful. Yet, nothing was done and court continued as though perjury is acceptable way of presenting one’s story in cases such as this one. Does the permissive attitude not undermine the integrity of the judicial process?

I had a witness, she did not. The Magistrate that issued the warrant or Ailen’s husband could have been called to testify to the extent that she had been battered; yet they were not. There were no witnesses called to support her story.

I am sure there was no medical evaluation, because it would have been introduced as evidence in the case. Other than our conflicting testimony agreeing that an incident had taken place, there was no evidence introduced into this case, yet the Judge stated that there was sufficient evidence to convict. I ask, what evidence?

All these questions puzzle me, but the question that puzzles me most of all is, “What did I do to this woman to make her treat me like she dose?” This is the same question I have been asking from the beginning and, even through the court case until now; I have never received the answer.

If this is all the respect that a new citizen has for the laws and the judicial system of her new country, then God Help America, because she has just made a mockery out of these institutions. Now that she knows that she can also manipulate the court and get away with it, God help all of the people that she comes in contact with. Like the predator, this type of person has no conscience nor do they know how to stop. Believe me, she will do this again. As in the past, she continues to betray those around her, manipulating situations to benefit her vindictive personality. It is time for everyone to understand the type of person she really is. She did it to me and she can just as easily do it to someone else. If someone is not totally committed to putting up with her childish and immature actions, stay away or become her next victim, both financially and emotionally.

More than a year has passed since my court date and the charges have been dismissed. I am preparing this article to achieve some form of closure to this horrendous ordeal, although total closure will not come until she confesses that she instigated incident and that she lied in court. However, until then, I feel that it is my duty to advise others to be cautious around this woman. She has taken my good name and tarnished it through her vicious lying. I now have a Police Record, even though the charges have been dismissed.

If anything positive has come out of this incident, then it would have to be that I still have my dignity. I can hold my head high and look anyone in the eye knowing that I told the truth. Both my attorney and another attorney that advised me on this matter that because the Judge took the matter under advisement it was actually a victory for me. Both attorneys stated that the Judge must have had a problem believing her story, or he would have found me guilty and handed down a sentence then and there. Even this serves as no consolation when you know that you are right, the other person is wrong, but the court still doubts and convicts you.

The best advice that I can give to anyone who may have similar situations in their lives is, reevaluate. If an arrogant, aggressive, two-faced liar is manipulating you, get away from that person completely. If that person persists and continues to annoy or insult you, take the first step and have No Trespassing Papers or a Restraining Order served on that person. If that person does anything where other people are present, get a witness immediately. Do not count on your spouse to be a witness, because apparently the courts do not recognize your spouse as a reliable witness in your defense. Simply ask the people at the scene of the incident did anyone see or hear what happened? If so, get their names and an address, phone number or some way that they can be contacted. And, most importantly, do not get into a physical confrontation with this type of person under any circumstances. Chances are that this person is looking for something for nothing. This is the type of person who will take you to court and sue you for everything that you have.

In concluding, I am still searching for a way that she can be held accountable for what she has done. Is there anyone who can give me some sound advice on how I can accomplish this?