From the November 2003 Idaho Observer:

Idaho District Federal Court: The process abuses continue

By Don Harkins

The top frontpage headline, Vol. 1, No. 1, The Idaho Observer, January, 1997 was “US Bank Boise dominates Capitol.” The story details how Idaho State Bank, which became WestOne Bank, which is now US Bank, “bought” then Federal Bankruptcy Judge Edward Lodge in 1986. Judge Lodge was allowed by creditor Idaho State Bank to rule on his mother and father-in-law's bankruptcy -- and allowed over $1 million in undisclosed assets to be transferred to his wife Patti Lodge (who is now an Idaho State Senator.)

Shortly after the criminal bankruptcy proceeding, Lodge became a full federal district judge. He became the judicating arm of the state's banksters by ruling, in at least 19 cases as of 1996, in favor of US bank when it manufactured default situations that caused business owners to lose the collateral they put up for business loans (in some cases, the collateral was everything they had).

Repeated attempts to initiate a real investigation into these extremely well-documented cases of theft through abuse of process have failed.

The courageously outspoken and in some circles revered hard-line conservative former U.S. Rep. Helen Chenoweth (R-ID) was well-informed about the activities of Judge Lodge. She was given the most intimate details of how some of her constituents were unjustly being destroyed by Judge Lodge's activities on the bench. She did nothing to stop the judge. At that time, his wife Patty was head of Idaho Women Republicans and would have made Chenoweth's life very difficult had she chosen to take a stand with the people of Idaho against her husband.

All of the U.S. attorneys since 1986 have been copied with sufficient evidence and documentation to warrant an investigation of Judge Lodge's activities. Not one has intervened on behalf of the families whose properties and other assets totalling tens of millions of dollars have been stolen through the court of Judge Lodge.

The Ninth Circuit did, however, acknowledge the Judge Lodge/US Bank connection. On June 28, 1995, a three-judge panel unanimously forbade Judge Lodge from presiding over any cases that involve what was then WestOne Bank. The decision, which detailed the judge's abuse of authority in the bank cases, is “unpublished” and Judge Lodge has since ruled on cases involving what is now US Bank -- in apparent defiance of the Ninth Circuit order.

It can be safely stated that every elected official and every government agency at the state and federal levels with the authority to bring the Judge Lodge cabal before the bar of justice has been contacted and provided with evidence that a child could determine as sufficient to call for an investigation. Not one of them has been principled enough to do anything but ignore the issue.

Emboldened by their unchecked authority to destroy peoples' lives and steal their property, the Judge Lodge cabal continues to expand and abuse its authority in an increasing array of ways to the present day.

One has little choice but to conclude that such activities are silently sanctioned at the highest levels of government. The evidence against these people is never questioned, and never results in them being called into a criminal court where they must face their accusers and explain for the record why they have committed such atrocities.

Historically, officers of government have enjoyed ever-increasing freedom to abuse the citizenry because its representatives betray the good of society to benefit themselves through corrupt alliances with the ruthless and discompassionate.