Do e-mails written between a Taos attorney and an alleged victim in the State of New Mexico’s criminal case against a controversial church leader amount to “impermissible contact” with a State’s witness?
Definitely not, according to a motion filed on the attorney’s behalf today.
On November 3, Judge Gerald Baca ordered attorney Justin Lea to “show why he should not be held in contempt of court for impermissible contact with a State’s witness.” Judge Baca has ordered Lea to appear in court with an “explanation” on November 10.
Lea is represented by his boss, attorney Alan Maestas.
In his Motion to Dismiss Order to Show Cause v. Justin Lea and for Sanctions, Maestas lists 30 “Relevant Facts,” including an assertion seemingly suggesting that the motive behind the State’s recent effort to have Bent’s “seven ladies” appear at the District Attorney’s office was aimed at getting “members of Strong City committed to the State Hospital in Las Vegas (New Mexico).”
In defending his client, Maestas argues that Lea’s actions “were admirable and totally in keeping with the highest standards of his profession.”
In charging contempt, the State–according to Maestas–“sought to attack the most precious asset of an attorney without even a cursory investigation…”
Maestas’ motion also includes copies of the e-mails written between Lea and the alleged victim who is known as Healed.
Read the the new documents below:
- Motion to Dismiss Order to Show Cause v. Justin Lea and for Sanctions (filed November 6)
- “Exhibit A” (page 1), (page 2): e-mails written between attorney Justin Lea and girl known as “Healed”
According to the emails, Healed is not allowed access to the computer and phone contact is monitored or limited. Sounds like she is under house arrest by her parents. By today’s society standards this sounds like a 17-year-old girl is not being allowed any freedom of movement at all. How many boys and girls of this age have personal cell phones, computers and are allowed to come and go as they please? Most kids of this age have friends (with benefits) and she does not desire this. So why is she shut away from her friends?
From reading her letters, that are lucid and well thought out, from listening to the remarks that Mrs. Montoya has made about parental abuse and from what I have read from both sides, I would say that Healed is being abused by her parents and the system. Her parents should be required to take counseling and be called before CYFD for physical abuse. Why wasn’t that done? Seems one supposed violation is being trumped to the max and others are ignored.
Doesn’t a 17-year-old girl deserve to have a lawyer? What is the judge thinking to deny this basic right? Why is the DA denying her a legal voice? This is very lop-sided at best. The DA and judge are totally unfair and out of keeping with the fairness of a judicial system.
Johnny Miller commented on being on a jury where everything was being handled fairly but this sounds far from anything like he described.
Even if I were her parents and did not approve of contact between her and an older man, I would let her go. Don’t we read about this ALL the time in the news where REALLY old rich men marry much younger women for companionship? Sure some of the girls may do this to get money and the men are sickeningly older, but who is protesting those situations like this one is protested?
It sounds like the DA, the judge and everyone involved who is so dead set against this have a secret agenda behind the scenes. From what I have read no crime was committed. What is going on here folks? Is anybody that opposes the actions of the parties involved, sane enough to figure out that a LOT of basic human rights, and Constitutional guarantees are being violated?
Inkydou:
You’re choking on the letter of the law and missing its spirit …which is to protect Healed. If you’ve truly read the posts by Bent and others over the years, you see what a manipulative monster he is. Intelligent, mature adults have been sucked into his brain washing techniques often to their detriment. Do you honestly believe an adolescent girl who has been groomed by him sense childhood doesn’t need as much protection as the law can provide?
Sometimes, in the effort to do “the right thing”, people go about it in “the wrong way”. So far, that is what seems to be happening in this case, from all angles.
Can a district Attorney’s office be so inept as to fail to secure complete copies of the tons of personal and organizational related computer storage data and filing systems, including financial information, so as to be at least conversely aware of the whole picture surrounding the alleged crime that they prosecute? Do they not know that much of that data has been available to the public at one point or another, published by the alleged perpetrator, and has been archived? All they need do is make a call for such information in a public way, so that it might flood into their office. Why wouldn’t that tack be pursued in the effort to build a sound case?
Can an alleged perpetrator of a crime be so obviously mentally unstable that any prosecution of him not be shelved in favor of just getting him some seriously needed psychological help? Would that not serve to put a stop to any such further self-infatuated and potentially damaging behavior to himself and those in his association?
And, if such an alleged perpetrator, who, as the moral guide of a group of people in a religious community, had a vasectomy performed, would that not, in itself, be evidence that the man intended to have sexual contact with his followers? The timing of any such vasectomy would be important to any case that might be brought against him, if at any time, after grooming his followers, he actually did have sexual contact with them (including minors), and had personally trained the youngsters to be suggestible to sexual contact, and the adults in the organization had, indeed, supported the notion that such sexual contact should take place to satisfy their religious beliefs and/or spiritual illness that might require “healing”? Especially when the alleged perpetrator had taught them that they must have sex with him to be so “healed“?? Hello??
Can alleged victims of a “crime” be so naive as to think they are perfectly justified in defending a “perpetrator”? And if they believe they are so justified, and they are so naive, and cannot see at this point in their young lives how they may have been used for the gratification of a societal leader and his followers, why not allow the consequences of the behavior take its natural course? Would that not be the best teacher in this case, in the long run? (even as we might cringe at the thought) Once such “victims” are of the legal age of majority, they shall have every right to follow their peers in the LOR church, and bed whoever is in charge of the “religious experience” and “healing” to their heart’s desire, anyway. (And in such a scenario, will not the next male leader of such a societal construct also have had a vasectomy performed to prevent any unwanted pregnancies of those who are “healed”?)
And wouldn’t it be wiser, if one were to defend oneself, to use the hidden assets one has at ones disposal, to make some lucrative investments that would pay off well in ones favor? Wouldn’t those investments be secretive, and help to make certain elements avoid the real issues, and instead risk looking altogether incompetent in order to make good on securing such investments? And wouldn’t a “lame duck” publicly elected official that might be presiding over such proceedings find such arrangements as attractive, and want the case to tried before the end of ones term? And since ones larger assets might be secret, wouldn’t that make securing “pro bono” defense contracts possible, and help to solidify the poorly appearance one wants to project to the public? And wouldn’t this all justify the defendant’s well known and vehement claims that the State is corrupt to the bone? (oh, boy…)
And if any or all of the above questions are totally off-base, and/or reflect an entirely inaccurate picture, then why do they beg to be asked?
Seriously, and all inquiry aside, what this case simply boils down to is this: 1. Bent is bent. 2. The people of the LOR church should be ashamed of themselves. 3. The children are certainly the victims here, and no one else. 4. The State is shown to be incompetent in this case. 5. The defense council is being used. 6. Any public outrage is justified concerning all parties who are allowing themselves to be hoodwinked into thinking that this whole affair is anything less than shameful and is being made unecessarily into being a legal sham. 7.Everybody, get on with your lives and pray that you are cognizant enough of reality, morality, and justice, to see the truth of the matter here.
Some suggestions for all parties: Plaintiff: Get real. Get the facts. Prosecute the law. Defendant: Allow your counsel to do her job. Grow up, shut up, and behave yourself. Court: Focus. Everyone: which ever way you see this whole affair, endeavor to always do the right thing.
imho
inkydou, you are missing the point of this particular post. This attorney was contacted BY the defense attorney saying that a witness AGAINST her client was being harassed by the DA and in turn that attorney made contact with Healed.
Lawyers aren’t supposed to do that!
As a parent, it is within my rights to protect my child the best way I see fit and I would do the same as her parents are doing, maybe even more. Healed’s parents are not allowing her to call people on the phone or to freely use the internet (although she figured out a password) because she was contacting the very people who are involved in this particular case, which like it or not, she is one of the witnesses for. If she could be trusted to not contact them, I’m sure she would have much more freedom. But she has done all sorts of things to get messages to them including (according to the SC site) meeting their delivery person and giving them notes to take back to SC. She got the swat on the leg from her Mom because of that incident.
I’d like to say I’ve never swatted my own kids, but I can’t because I have. It wasn’t abuse it was a quick lashing out at them from frustration with their attitude. That is a human reaction and unless it is continual and the only way someone is disciplined I don’t think it constitutes abuse. And her letters are not lucid and well thought out, they sound very similar to other letters that followers of WB have written and contain things that a 17 year old shouldn’t be writing for the whole world to read.
“Even if I were her parents and did not approve of contact between her and an older man, I would let her go”. Do you have kids? Have you read anything about what has gone on for years at SC? This is not about a really rich old man marrying a really young girl for companionship, this is about a really old man who has abused this girl and many other people for years with mind games and fear.
Maybe she does need her own attorney or advocate as Betsy mentioned a few posts below this. But it’s not our decision, nor is it the defense attorney’s decision and it’s certainly not ethical for an attorney to contact a minor about this.
Whats going on here is parents trying to help their very immature child.
There is no secret agenda and theres been no violation of their human rights and Constitutional guarantees.
And YES it is a CRIME having an under aged child lay naked, skin to skin with you alone in your bed at night with no one else around.
It IS a CRIME to kiss a young girls bare breast and is a crime to kiss them sexually, putting his tongue in thier mouths as they’ve described when she was only 12 years old, kissing as husband and wife is what the girls described his type kissing.
This doesn’t sound like peck on the lips!
This IS a CRIME doing this to a minor.
The men who do such are called Pedophiles, Child molesters, rapist, abusers.
They go to prison for such crimes. They try to put these type abusers in therapy, but it rarely helps.
If you had a child, would you allow this happen to them? I’d hope not!
Do you agree with mr waybent, think what he’s done to these younger girls good behavior?
Would you do something like this?
Have you read what the girls wrote, pages and pages of describing their laying naked with him at nite on his bed, alone with him, skin to skin, chest to chest.
Have you read or watched their videos they had up, but are no longer posted.
I think if you have read their entire story, you’d realize mr waybent is about having sexual contact with under aged girls! and NOT about healing them!
He just got caught and now trying to make this into religous rights violation.
He’s lying to the world to save his butt! Plain and simple! He’s backpeddaling!
Is too bad all those blogs the girls wrote are no longer posted, but is too damaging to his case so they’ve been advised to remove them.
I’ve raised 4 very damaged children we adopted.
They came to us with much psychological damage and were very disfunctional.
WE as parents were responsible for their safety as they are considered children until age 18.
Healed has been very strong willed, disobediant child for many years. Her parents were not in agreement in allowing her to lay naked in bed with mr waybent!
Mr WayBent and Healed went against their wishes.
SHE thinks SHE knows what is best for herself, but clearly is not mature enough to figure out mr wayBent is sexually perverted and wanted her in his bed!
She’s just not mature enough and has been raised in total isolation to the point its made her even more vulnerable to being harmed.
She has threatened to kill herself numerous times, and is a victim of sexual abuse by another man there in SC that mr wayBent allowed to stay there despite his crimes. Was never reported.
“Healed” is a girl with deep emotional and psychological scars and needs guidence from those who love and are responsible for her growing up a “whole person”. So NO, she should NOT be allowed to be turned out on her own. She just isn’t mature enough!
The poor girls in serious need of psychological therapy now and will need this for many years, perhaps for the rest of her life.
I know this from our own experiences with our children as well as from my work as law enforcment.
ALL the women into prostitution, drug addictions, alcholics, livng out on the streets were ALL victims of being molested and abused.
Most of these women had parents who didn’t give a dmnd and let them to live their own lives.
“Healds” parents are wise enough to see mr WayBent has been self serving of his perverted sexual needs/wants.
Is the reason they no longer there and no longer agree with mr waybent.
I fear for this girls life if she continues her disobedience in wanting this old mans attention.
Her mother is only human! And when she came to end of her rope, totally frustrated, she lashed out and hit Healed twice with the wire end of the fly swatter.
Any parent knows this frustrations when you have a strong willed teen acting out.
I don’t blame the mom for hitting her in way she did, she just lost it just like most other parents have done since day one!
I do NOT consider this some terrible abuse! I consider this a mother who is too frustrated and lashed out in anger.
What would be horrible abuse, is if her parents just turned their backs and allowed this child to fend for herself. Instead they are doing their best for what they have at this time!
We can’t judge their actions unless we’ve been in same situation.
If you feel otherwise, then I question you’ve raised children, especially very damaged children!
You’ve never lost your temper or lashed out to anyone verbally or physically…NEVER???
If not, then you’re not part of the human race!
Or have lived a very isolated life.
But in no way am I agreeing that it is the right way to handle any child by hitting, swatting, spanking, beating AND yelling, talking down, belittling.
Sometimes verbal abuse is much worse than physical, so don’t think I’m for this type punishment…
but losing your temper happens!
Even God himself refused to raise teenagers!
Is reason He made Adam and Eve grown up!
How else do you handle such a strong willed child who is refusing to obey?
Let them go kill themselves? No!
She’s wanting to play with fire and gasoline, thinks she knows how to handle such.
But her mother loves and cares for her enough to not
just let go and let her self destruct.
My folks didn’t care for me half as much as Healds folks do. She is one lucky child!
I was turned out to fend for myself right after my 17 birthday.
Not because I wanted to go, is because I was no longer wanted or needed and they didn’t love or care about me. I wanted to stay in my own home, not leave. But I was forced out, told to leave.
They didnt care that an older man with evil intentions would do life lasting damage to me.
Healed has folks who love her and are willing to battle satan as they know this man is dangerous and leading the entire cult into destruction.
Have you read EVERYTHING mr WayBent is about?
Have you read the endless pages of what the minor children, girls 12/13 yrs old described what they did naked, skin to skin with mr WayBent, alone at night in his bed, His deep passionate kisses on their mouths and breast. This IS a CRIME against minor children here in the US.
If so, then I wonder why you seem to be defending him.
He’s not being charged with just touching them on their sternum as he’s claiming…he is lying when he says this is why he’s being charged. Its much more than touching. Read what the girls wrote about thier sexual encounter with mr WayBent on numerous occasions. Their begging consumations with him, as they felt was only way to have salvation. He’d been writing this for years, grooming them ahead of time.
Is what pedohpiles do, is called “Grooming”.
I’ve seen this done in gods name over and over again, pedophiles know chldren are in churches…this is where they go to find victims.
I have hours of taped confessions from some of them, they tell how they operated to gain trust and get victims to harm and molest.
I know this from my experiences as a deputy Sheriff and my own pesonal experiences as well as my childrens. Was done in gods holy name! Sickening!
So this case is NOT just simple sternum touches as mr WayBent wants you to beleive. He is a pathelogical liar.
Read about people with personality disorders and narsisstic people, you will see mr WayBent fits those personality profiles to a T!
He kissed the girls bare breast and they layed naked skin to skin with them on his bed, alone, at night with no one else around!
The girls described his kissing like married folks do, perhaps describing tongue in mouths and not a peck on the lips, what else would this mean?
Would you allow your little girl have this done to her?
AND if this isn’t about sex, then why didn’t mr WayBent lay naked skin to skin, kiss breast, mouths as married folks do with the men, boys who have same issues and hurts in need of healing?!
How about the fat, old, ugly and wrinkled up old bags there in SC…they’ve begged for consummation with mr WayBent, but he wouldn’t do it with them! NO!
Its only been the younger ones!
Don’t let mr WayBent lie to you too! Don’t beleive his lies about this case being about religeous rights because this is NOT!
Don’t let him fool you too! Because if he does, then puts you onto dangerous territory!
You will see, when this case is over, those who defended him will suffer greatly afterwards.
God cannot protect those who live on satans territory unless they confess their sins of doing such.
When satan is done with this man, he will destroy him in an horrible way. It always happens this way, time and again! History repeats itself.
Thats why God gives warning to those that harm children…that is better they have a mill stone tied around their necks then thrown into the sea.
Why did God say/warn this?
Because harming children is one of the worst sins possible. It destroys entire families…just what mr WayBent has done in destroying each and every marriage there on SC grounds so he could have sex with their wives! Sick, sick sick!
Down right evil!
Sorry my post was so long, but bare with me again.
Has anyone considered this….that mr WayBent actually has been having sexual intercourse with Healed many times and she is frantically trying to defend him because she doesn’t want anyone to know that she’s been having sex with him?
There was a case I was invovled with as a deputy, the victim was frantic in trying to protect this man who had molested another boy.
He was adamate that this man never touched anyone and he’d spent every waking hour with this man for years and had never touched him…therefore making this man a godly man he claimed to be, the other boy making the complaint was called a homosexual liar trying to come out of the closet.
But this boy “T” defended this man, was really strange how passionate he was in defending this “man”.
It took “T” over 15 years to finally admit that the man and “T” had been having sexual relationship since day one.
The reason “T” defended him like he did, was he feared he too would be labled a homosexual as well.
Perhaps Healed knows it was wrong in having sex with him, but she just couldn’t help herself, her hormones raging, got away with her.
She begged mr WayBent over and over, begging him to consummate with her, she even threatened to kill herself if he wouldn’t have consummation with her.
So with this in mind…could it be she’s desperate to keep this story quiet?!
How could mr WayBent contain himself having a naked horny girl begging him to go deeper inside her..I mean come on! Tell me he didn’t give it to her like she was begging for, but they’ve pinky promised to never tell!…is a GODLY SECRET! Must not tell else not go to heaven?! I mean where does this guy draw the line? Tell me he could be that strong willed to not give her what she begged for?!
Someone needs to give this dog a polygraph,
shocking device hooked up to his shrivled cajonies at any inkling of a lie!
Craig…excellent point RE: Vasectomy!
So much for his arguement “Perfect seed must be in them for them have salvation”…what he wrote years ago! Ha! what a joker!
With the HPPV viris so virulant…I’m wondering how much has been spread,,,even touching can spread it!
Is now #1 STD causing cancer within short period time. These girls are not recieving medical care this way are they?
Time will tell…when one of the girls comes up with cervical cancer!
What if Wayne’s defense attorney, Ms Montoya, was to contact Healed – a State’s witness against her client – directly, for the purpose of helping her to avoid testifying? Would that seem to be somewhat unethical? I think so. The law firm of Maestas has been involved in this case to the level that it would be reasonable to describe Alan Maestas as part of the defense team. The tone of these posted documents confirms that assertion. Therefore, their involvement with Healed would be just as unethical.
The question of an appointment of Guardian Ad Litem has already being considered and decided by the court. Healed’s current guardians, with the responsiblity for her care, are her parents. Mr Lea should have approached them with his offer of assistance for Healed. The fact that he did not only reinforces the appearance that his actions were underhanded and unethical.
For all of his self-righteous bluster, I think Mr Maestas has gone out on a limb here. I doubt, however, that the DA’s office is competent enough (or perhaps not staffed enough?) to call him on it.
“Sorry my post was so long, but bare with me again.”
CryTears
7 Nov 08 at 7:50 am
You mean -‘bear’ with me – of course. 😀
An attorney calling or emailing a witness who is a minor AT the behest of the defense attorney smells rotten. Especially like you said when that same law firm is already involved in the case on the defense side. Big conflict of interest.
I know her parents could approach an attorney on her behalf, what I’m not clear on is if an attorney can call the parents and offer their services. We call those people ambulance chasers around here. It might well be legal but it doesn’t seem right. In fact, there was an attorney appointed for Healed but for some reason it was decided she didn’t need one.
The Judge has called Mr. Lea to account for what he did and his attorney (Mr. Maestas) could write a 100 page response on why it was okay to do what he did but that doesn’t excuse unethical behavior and that’s the way it looks on the surface. As far as the DA getting involved I don’t know if it’s his job but there is a Disciplinary Board that handles complaints against attorneys. If someone files a complaint with them Mr. Maestas and his associate will be answering not just to the Judge but to their peers.
And the plot thickens…
I agree, contact with the minor/victim IS VERY underhanded.
She is a CHILD under the protection of her parents!
They should have gone to them first. HeLLLL-O!
The girls had enough adults betraying her!
Raycot…I wuz thinkin skin to skin whenz I rote bare wid me! LoL! WayBent behested my braynz and warshed me of all my innocent thoughts!
Looks to me that Wayne and his people–including his attorneys–were under court order to stay away from and not communicate with “Healed.” (See third paragraph of court order in previous post.) I’m thinking this is where Justin Lea tripped up. This court order would remain in effect even if “Healed” turns 18 or becomes an emancipated minor. It’s not unusual in cases involving alleged sexual contact that a judge would issue an order to keep the defendant and representatives away from the witness and representatives.
If Justin Lea and the Maestas law firm wanted to talk to “Healed,” they should have gone to the judge and asked for a hearing and modification of the court order. Judges tend to get really pissy when their orders are disobeyed. At the very minimum, Justin Lea is going to be in for a very severe tongue lashing from the bench.