Try NOVA

I tried.

The Brush-Off

I have collected lots of letters like this one over the years that I've received in response to my requests for help for myself and my children. I can to some extent understand getting the brush-off from private individuals and smaller organizations, since it's clear we're up against very powerful people with unlimited legal and financial resources.

This letter, however, is from a national organization whose specificly stated purpose, as they freely admit here, is to help victims like my children and me. Although this letter is a bit more curt (and rude?) than most, I have received similar correspondence from numerous government agencies (both state and federal) that are also supposed to be helping victims of crime and/or domestic violence and abuse.

Now I'm learning from national victims' advocates that the problem of victims desperately turning to various agencies that are supposed to be helping them but instead give them the run-around or turn them away altogether is not only widespread but actually more common than not. Government agencies are in fact some of the worst offenders in this regard. (One of my own examples of a response from a government agency is posted below under "Response From DOJ".) Worse, I'm also learning that major corporations, private organizations, and individuals (including celebrities) are donating large amounts of money to these same agencies that are turning away desperate victims. I've been shocked to learn of countless victims wanting to leave critically dangerous situations being turned away from the very shelters that are supposed to protect them.

While it's an important and necessary resource in crisis situations, fleeing from an abuser these days often doesn't even result in significant relief for victims, given the prevalence of identify theft, stalking, harassment, computer hacking, illegal surveillance, cyberbullying and slander, private documents and information for sale openly, etc. Here in Central Texas, we victims also have to contend with the appalling corruption in law enforcement--see "Illegal Surveillance Summary", "What's The Buzz?", and "What's The Buzz Revisited" below for more information about this.

If you examine the comments my ex-husband has made all over this blog, you will quickly see that he is completely unafraid of being prosecuted or sued for any of his actions, slander/defamation, or abuse. I'm in contact with other ex-wives who are in similar situations and are also unable to get the help and support they desperately need from the same agencies that are accepting government funds and large private donations but continue to turn needy victims away. How many innocent lives have been wrecked or lost because victims couldn't get help from agencies that were supposed to protect them? (Do you even care?--when entire communities are actively involved together in stalking, harassment, slander, libel, and other criminal acts against innocent victims as is happening here, this question has to be asked.)

National victims' advocates are now using our case and others that are similar to try to educate donors about how to make better use of their money for assisting victims. Savvy, well-connected abusers who, in this age of easy information sharing and great wealth made from criminal enterprises (who therefore cross all socio-economic lines) are aware of the lack of help for victims, and they exploit this situation by deliberately and systematically overwhelming their victims. The violence and other abuse then escalate because abusers aren't facing any negative consequences of their actions. The experts say, and I concur, that there's already plenty of information and resources available for identifying abusive behaviors and convincing victims to leave. What's needed far more is individual, one-on-one advocacy for victims that will actively assist them in dealing with these overwhelming situations and enable them to obtain real, lasting relief from the abuse.

I'm requesting that those who do seriously care about helping victims prove it by going to http://apps.facebook.com/causes/petitions/201?m=a3ecbdfa and signing the online Domestic Violence (DV) Reform petition there. Doing this won't take more than just a few seconds, and you'll be taking part in a critical effort to effect much-needed change. Texans in particular should welcome the provisions in this petition for insisting on detailed public audits of government agencies that are turning victims away in order to find out what their funds are being used for and holding them accountable. You can also contact National White House Advisor on Violence Against Women (aka Domestic Violence Czar) Lynn Rosenthal at lrosenthal@ovp.eop.gov and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden through the contact form on his website and insist that they support one-on-one advocacy for victims.

Finally, I'm also asking you to carefully examine your own behaviours and those of your family members, close friends, and associates in an effort to make sure you're part of the solution to domestic abuse, violence, and crime and not part of the problem. To paraphrase Mother Theresa, before you go to India to work for good, try looking for opportunities within a 2-mile radius of your own front door. Let's all work together to make the U.S. in general and Texas in particular a leader in real advocacy, assistance, and support for innocent victims instead of the national embarrassment the entire DV program currently is.

The Tale of the Drs. Cone

Back in the 1990s when I was still married, one of my ex-husband's favorite stories to tell was that of his good buddy, Dr. Anson Cone, and his first wife, Dr. Florence Cone (who usually preferred to use her maiden name so she wouldn't have to be called "Flo Cone"). Anson, a radiologist, and Flo, a pathologist, were San Antonio physicians who were in the process of moving to the Texas Hill Country, and he was already working here. One Friday, Flo discovered a flat tire on her vehicle, and Anson changed it for her. The next morning, he came to work at the local hospital; the plan was that she would drive up from San Antonio later that morning and bring some of their things.

While Flo was driving on Interstate 10 between San Antonio and Boerne, the wheel suddenly came off her vehicle, causing it to roll over several times; her neck was broken and she apparently died instantly. My ex-husband said he was also working at the hospital that morning and that he was with Anson when the shocking news came in that Flo was dead. I remember attending Flo's funeral in San Antonio with my husband and also the burial service here--everyone was very sad except for Anson, who seemed remarkably upbeat for someone suddenly widowed.

A few months later, Anson suddenly remarried a local woman and my husband began talking obsessively about the fact that Anson was the beneficiary of two life insurance policies on Flo, one for 7 million dollars and the other for 7.5 million dollars. Of course the insurance company refused to pay, so a major court battle ensued. In the end, my husband said the court forced the insurance company to pay both of the policies in full, making Anson and his new wife very wealthy.

I was reminded of this story again recently while talking with a mutual friend. Anson and Flo had a daughter together, and my friend said the daughter had been accepted to medical school. I mentioned how proud Flo would have been about this and was told it was not yet certain that her daughter would actually be able to go to medical school--it seems Anson and his wife had flatly refused to help her out financially in any way. [My friend also said Anson might possibly be related to a couple named Wright who used to be listed as owning the gully just west of our property that is currently under heavy construction, although she wasn't positive about this.]

Victims of Kamau

Lately I've been hearing from other victims of Diop Kamau and his associates at the Police Complaint Center. These victims are located from one coast of the U.S. to the other!--and they all say they are very frightened of Kamau because of the threats, demands for more money, publishing of their private/personal information illegally on his website (including their SS#s), harassment, slander, and libel they experience when they confront him or file complaints against him.

Currently we're putting together a website where victims can go to register to receive updated information on where and how to file complaints and any legal or criminal action taken against him or just to correspond with each other over our experiences and compare notes at http://kamaudocs.blogspot.com. (I'm hearing stories from others that are remarkably similar to mine--it's been very interesting.) We know from the FL p.i. licensing bureau and the Better Business Bureau that there are LOTS of other victims out there, and we REALLY need to know who you are and what your experiences were so we can stop these people for good.

In the meantime, it is VERY important that you go to the iC3 (federal law enforcement) website and file a formal complaint against Kamau as soon as possible. This process is quick, easy, and private. After you complete the complaint process, you'll be given a code you can use to go back to your complaint anytime to edit it or add information. iC3 works with the FBI, and they can go after Kamau for federal wire fraud, but apparently they tend to give the most attention to cases with the greatest number of victims, so EVERY complaint is critically important.

Also, it is essential that you keep every piece of evidence or documentation that you have: emails, letters, receipts, mailing labels, etc. You should document any threats, harassment, etc. carefully in a diary or logbook, and you should be as accurate as possible about dates things happened, phone calls, what you were told versus what was actually done, etc. Finally, if you paid Kamau by check, it's very important that you try to obtain copies of these cancelled checks from your bank as soon as possible and that you make sure you get copies of the backs of the checks as well as the fronts. (These are needed to see who actually cashed your check, whether it was converted to a wire fund transfer as mine were, and whether there are stamps from additional banks and/or accounts on them.)

Some other places you can file complaints against Kamau and the PCC are the Washington, D.C. Attorney General's Office at http://occ.dc.gov/occ/site/default/asp, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)'s website, or www.fraud.org. If Kamau had you purchase any services from CryptoHeaven in Canada, you should be aware that they placed an additional charge on my credit card without my knowledge or consent and refused to refund it even after I filed complaints against them. If Kamau sold you anything from Pre-Paid Legal Services, you should go to http://citizensforjustice.org/Pre_Paid_legal/index/html for information concerning an ongoing federal fraud investigation of this company, and you should also be aware that Kamau was (is?) working as a salesman on commission for Pre-Paid Legal Services.

We can work together to do something about what was done to us, and we can help prevent the same thing from happening to innocent others!

Update: We have now located victims in CA (Fresno and LA), TX, NJ, FL, IA, GA, WA, and more. If you are a victim, PLEASE help us by leaving a comment at kamaudocs@gmail.com containing the state you were victimized in, the starting and ending dates of your interactions with Kamau and/or the PCC, and the dollar value of your losses--we desperately need this information for law enforcement investigations.