When Jeff Murray faced off with Idaho Judge Diane “Mengele” Walker, she split up his family. In an order from November 7, 2017, she granted him sole custody of the two older children while granting his ex-wife sole custody of the two younger children.
Jeff didn’t see either of his two younger children until they were eighteen. One resumed a relationship with him immediately while the other relationship continues to be fractured.
This is the third story I’ve done on Judge “Mengele.” So far, I showed an anti-woman bias.
jeff told me this wasn’t the case; Jeff believes that she has a pro-abuser bias.
In Jeff’s case, his ex-wife, Janel, had two incidents. In one she attacked him during an argument. Jeff told me he had to push and prod the Ada County DA’s Office until she was charged.
The evidence included video of the assault, but she later pled guilty to disturbing the peace.
The second event, which occurred in early 2016, was when she allegedly dragged her son down the stairs by his hair.
This led to Jeff getting temporary sole custody, but a protective order was later issued on each other, even though he wasn’t even there when the event occurred.
In her judgment, Judge Mengele acknowledged the incidents but concluded, “There have NOT {EMPHASIS MINE} been two acts of domestic violence which is required to conclude that a party is a habitual offender.”
Had she concluded otherwise, Judge Mengele would have been forced to make a completely different decision.
I reached out to Derek Pica, Janel’s attorney, but he did not respond to an email for comment.
Judge Mengele’s behavior is even worse when you consider the context.
Jeff and Janel initially had a custody order signed in Hawaii on May 4, 2011.
Jeff was in the military at the time, he told me, and so Janel got physical custody.
Janel moved from the home she was granted in the divorce in Georgia in 2015 to Idaho.
Jeff followed her, and when she refused to follow the court order, he told me, he went to court in Ada County, Idaho.
“I just wanted someone to enforce the order,” he told me.
Initially, Jeff was assigned Judge Michael Reardon.
Judge Reardon, rather than enforcing the Hawaii order, issued a new order granting joint custody.
That order was signed on December 29, 2015.
Jeff went back to court after the incident in which Janel allegedly dragged her son down the stairs to modify custody.
Janel filed a counter to modify custody about a month later.
To modify custody, a party needs to show a change in circumstances. An incident of physical abuse, like dragging a child down the stairs, is one such incident.
Jeff hadn’t done anything in three months, since Judge Reardon’s order, to warrant a change in circumstances.
That didn’t bother Judge Mengele. She all but ignored the previous two orders and spent the next year and a half acting like two judges hadn’t already determined custody.
She appointed her favorite custody evaluator- called a parenting time evaluator in Idaho- Dr. Todd Bennett.
An evaluation wouldn’t have been appropriate for a modification, which only measures a change in circumstances.
Judge Mengele finds rules like this to be a nuisance.
Dr. Bennett was appointed to both Veronica Baiz’s case and Sabrian Gear, who were featured in the first article.
Jeff told me in the interview that Dr. Bennett showed bias, acting chummy with opposing counsel, but when he brought this up to Judge Mengele, she wasn’t bothered by the revelation.
Judge Mengele even claimed that Jeff was trying to keep the kids away from his ex-wife.
Judge Mengele made this conclusion even though Janel moved to Idaho, forcing Jeff to move to be with his kids. Furthermore, he filed for contempt because she was withholding the kids.
None of this was addressed in Judge Mengele’s order. In that order, she relied heavily on the hypothesis of Dr. Bennett.
In effect, Judge Mengele only gave Jeff custody of his two oldest children because she concluded that they were so screwed up they were beyond repair.
{Jeff and Janel have an older daughter who was over eighteen by this point}
Jeff told me that two of his sons have followed him into the military. His youngest turned eighteen in July, so Judge Mengele can no longer destroy his life.
Judge Mengele continues to destroy other lives. She’ll be on the ballot this November.
Postscript:
Check out the fundraiser to do more stories on Judge Diane “Mengele” Walker. Previous articles: article one and article two.
Michael Volpe Investigates Special Report: an Interview with Jeff Murray