Thursday, April 14, 2011

Utah, Corruption Elevated

Federal Judge Dee Benson is threatening to have Federal Marshals sent to arrest Utah State Judge Denise Lindburg.

It seems Judge Benson, a former partner in the law firm of Show Christiansen and Martineau, which currently represents the FLDS doesn't feel he should recuse himself from the case. He actually thinks he can be their champion and no one will even notice. Funny that.


Appellate Case: 11-4066 Document: 01018622162 Date Filed: 04/14/2011 Page: 1

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT

THE FUNDAMENTALIST CHURCH
OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY
SAINTS, an Association of Individuals

Plaintiff - Appellant,

v.

BRUCE R. WISAN, Special Fiduciary of
the United Effort Plan Trust; MARK
SHURTLEFF, Attorney General for the
State of Utah; TERRY GODDARD,
Attorney General for the State of Arizona;
and DENISE POSSE LINDBERG, Judge
of the Third Judicial District Court of Salt
Lake County, State of Utah

Defendants - Appellees.

No. 11-4066

NOTICE OF INFORMATION RELEVANT TO
EMERGENCY
MOTION TO STAY AND
REQUEST FOR IMMEDIATE DECISION

Defendant Judge Denise Posse Lindberg, by and through counsel Brent M.

Johnson of the Utah State Administrative Office of the Courts, submits the following

notice in support of the Emergency Motion to Stay filed on April 13, 2011.

This notice is to advise the Court that the federal district court this morning

Appellate Case: 11-4066 Document: 01018622162 Date Filed: 04/14/2011 Page: 2

informed counsel that an Order to Show Cause has been scheduled for tomorrow, April

15, 2011, against Judge Lindberg concerning her Order dated April 11, 2011.

Judge Lindberg’s order was included as an attachment to her motion before this Court to stay the federal court’s preliminary injunction order. Judge Lindberg is leaving for Arizona this afternoon to attend a memorial service for her recently deceased uncle, scheduled for tomorrow, and counsel is in St. George, Utah, several hours from Salt Lake City. When the undersigned informed Judge Dee Benson of this information, he suggested that it may be necessary to have the federal marshals bring Judge Lindberg before his court this afternoon to answer as to her order. This has created a crisis necessitating an immediate decision from this Court.

Judge Lindberg will do as directed by this Court. Judge Lindberg’s concern

remains that if her fiduciary is required to cede control of the property before Judge Benson’s order can be reviewed, Trust assets will be irretrievably lost. Moreover, because there are competing claimants to the authority to act on behalf of the Corporation of the President of the FLDS Church (the entity to whom Judge Benson’s order directs Trust assets be turned over), it is not clear to whom the fiduciary should turn over Trust assets, if that should be this Court’s direction. As a result, Judge Lindberg renews her urgent request that this Court issue an immediate stay of the federal district court’s order pending review of the various appeals that have been filed. Should the 10th Circuit deny the motion for stay, Judge Lindberg will follow any directive the 10 th Circuit may issue. In that event, Judge Lindberg requests specific direction from this Court regarding how

Appellate Case: 11-4066 Document: 01018622162 Date Filed: 04/14/2011 Page: 3

Trust assets should be preserved in the interim.

Only through this Court’s immediate action can this extremely difficult and pressing situation between the courts of two sovereigns be de-escalated, and time given for appropriate review of the issues on appeal.

Dated this 14 th day of April, 2011.

s/ Brent M. Johnson

BRENT M. JOHNSON

Attorney for Judge Denise Posse Lindberg

Appellate Case: 11-4066 Document: 01018622162 Date Filed: 04/14/2011 Page: 4

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

This is to certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing document was filed

electronically with the Court via the CM/ECF system on this 14th day of April, 2011 to:

Roger H. Hoole
Gregory N. Hoole
Hoole & King, L.C.
4276 South Highland Drive
Salt Lake City, Utah 84124

Joni J. Jones
David N. Wolf
Assistant Utah Attorney General
160 East 300 South, 6 th Floor
P.O. Box 140856
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-0856

Mark Philip Bookholder
Arizona Attorney General’s Office
1275 West Washington
Phoenix, Arizona 85007-2997

Jeffrey L. Shields
Zachary T. Shields
Michael D. Stanger
Callister Nebeker * McCullough
10 East South Temple
Gateway Tower East, Suite 900
Salt Lake City, Utah 84113

Andrew V. Collins
Mitchell & Barlow
6465 South 3000 E, Suite 203
Cottonwood Heights, UT 84121

Kenneth A. Okazaki
Stephen Clark
Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough
170 South Main Street, Suite 1500
Salt Lake City, Utah 84101

Randy S. Hunter
Assistant Utah Attorney General
160 East 300 South, 5 th Floor
P.O. Box 140857
Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-0875

James C. Bradshaw
Brown, Bradshaw & M offat, L.L.P.
10 West Broadway, Suite 210
Salt Lake City, Utah 84101

Frederick Mark Gedicks
Richard A. Van Wagoner
Rodney R. Parker
Snow, Christensen & Martineau
10 Exchange Place, 11 th Floor
P.O. Box 45000
Salt Lake City, Utah 84145-5000

Michael H. Hinson
Office of the Attorney General
Liability Management Section
177 North Church Ave. Suite 1105
Tucson, Arizona 85701

Appellate Case: 11-4066 Document: 01018622162 Date Filed: 04/14/2011 Page: 5

Ryan M . Harris
Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough
170 South Main Street, Suite 1500
Salt Lake City, UT 84101-1644

/s/Jeni Wood
Jeni Wood
Legal Secretary to Brent M. Johnson