[mrg]

So all the initial bravado turns out to be egotistical chest thumping.

I went to the courthouse today to try again to find my "missing" case file, only to discover that a court order had now been filed saying that my quash service and vacate default judgement motion was denied, and told that the Municipal Record showing that the quash and vacate had been allowed by a named and listed judge who had allowed it, and that it was apparently a data entry error made by the clerk of the court.

Here is the salient part of the printout

(This is the Summary, I would have to scan in and send the actual MUNICIPAL RECORD that they gave me, but the layout and info is identical):


Case Information Summary for Case Number
XXXX-X1-123456


Filing Date: 11/4/2004 Case Type: CONTRACT
Division: Municipal Division District: First Municipal
Ad Damnum: $XXXX.XX Calendar:


[cut to the chase]:



Activity Date: 7/21/2005 Participant: LAST FIRST
NOTICE OF MOTION FILED


Attorney: PRO SE

Activity Date: 7/21/2005 Participant: LAST FIRST
MOTION FILED


Attorney: PRO SE

Activity Date: 7/21/2005 Participant: LAST FIRST
MOTION SPINDLED

Court Date: 8/8/2005
Court Time: 0200
Court Room: 1102

Attorney: PRO SE

Activity Date: 8/8/2005 Participant: LAST FIRST
QUASH WRIT - ALLOWED -


Judge: HXXX VXXX PXXXXX
Microfilm: MD000992470

Activity Date: 8/8/2005 Participant: LAST FIRST
VACATE ANY OR ALL DEFAULT ORDERS - ALLOWED -


Judge: HXXX VXXX PXXXX
Microfilm: MD000992470


So today I spoke with several supervisors, and then to the judge whose name was on the Municipal Record printout who told me that she had indeed obviously allowed the motions, and then spoke to her clerk who examined the Court Order signed illegibly by a judge who had conveniently omitted his Judge Number from the part of the order where he is supposed to enter it and, who then took me to the Judge in charge of supervising the judges on that floor, and who said everything I thought had been allowed had indeed been denied instead.

By that time the clerks had "corrected" the erroneous entry into the Record and this second Judge (in charge of supervising the others) pulled it up on his computer screen, looked at my hard copy, and the screen, and said that if he had a dollar for every time the clerks had made data entry errors, he would be a millionaire.

He also said that files get lost all the time, and if it did not turn up then the evidence that should have been placed in there and that I had specifically come looking for, was gone with the file, and I was out of luck.

At least I have the courage to pursue it all, and so far have gone at it with an attorney, and a judge in court, and have gone without appointment into the courtrooms of two other judges and asked for clarification of apparent discrepencies in the record, as well as spoken with the Head Flak Catcher for the Chief Judge.

Perhaps this in itself is a small success.

Sorry about the chest thumping.