Are you sick and tired of watching people who act on fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and/or defamation, getting arrested and ending up in jail? I know I am.
To simplify, hereinafter, “fake news” refers to “fake news, misinformation, disinformation, and/or defamation.”
Have you had enough of learning about children who were killed and police officers committing suicide?
Have you had enough of seeing scores of individuals, including judges, who have been defamed, trolled, harassed, and who needed to take security precautions because people believe fake news and act on it?
I know I’ve had enough.
If you are sick and tired of any of this then please join me as I show you How to Legal, so you can be a part of the solution to this fake news crisis before it becomes even more dangerous out there in the real world.
What’s How to Legal?
How to Legal is about using the good side of the Internet to combat the dark side. It’s about becoming informed, should you choose to become informed.
It’s about knowing where to look to verify facts, news, and information about the United States’ justice system and court cases that may affect you.
This way you won’t be deceived or led astray by fake news, bad actors, oath-breaking lawyers, judges, or by politicians who will say anything to feed their voter base even if they know it’s BS.
It’s happened on both sides of the political aisle.
I’m sick of it? Are you sick of it too?
It’s one of the reasons why I stopped covering U.S. politics. A person can only write essentially the same story over and over again and just change the names to see selective justice or no meaningful justice or accountability for so long.
Do YOU want to live your life freaked out and enraged over BS because of fake news?
Do you want to possibly be sued for defamation or end up in prison or dead because of fake news?
Pause.
I didn’t think so… Are you in?
I hope so because I’ll be pointing out some open source legal resources that I came across while I was learning How to Legal, as a pro se (self-represented) defamation, false light plaintiff.
These are legal resources that anyone, non-lawyers, can use to learn about the justice system and different cases in this hyper-politicized era.
If you know where to look it will help you distinguish fake news about the justice system and show you unethical, oath-breaker misconduct if that’s an issue during a court proceeding. Sounds good?
PEACEFUL SOLUTIONS FOR TODAY’S PROBLEMS
How to Legal demonstrates this by following court cases with judges who are faithfully and impartially discharging their duties under the Constitution and the laws of the United States.
Learning from the judges who follow their oaths will also help to identify the judges who don’t like what we saw among the oath-breaking judges in the recent Reuters and Wall Street Journal investigations.
See: Michael Berens, and John Shiffman, “Thousands of U.S. judges who broke laws or oaths remained on the bench“; see also, James V. Grimaldi, Coulter Jones and Joe Palazzolo, “131 Federal Judges Broke the Law by Hearing Cases Where They Had a Financial Interest,” Wall Street Journal, September 28, 2021.
So it’s a win, win for everyone who respects the rule of law, wants an ethical, honorable justice system, and cares about the truth and justice. Right?
Judicial Oaths
Okay, let’s take a look at some judicial oaths.
The oaths are good to know because they are like benchmarks between proper and improper judicial proceedings. Judges who adhere to their oaths conduct proper judicial proceedings and due justice can be served — whether you like or dislike the outcome of the case. It’s that simple.
There are oath-breakers and oath-followers in the legal profession
According to Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute —an excellent legal resource anyone can use, the following is the oath or affirmation that “each justice or judge of the United States shall take …before performing the duties of his[/her] office”:
28 U.S. Code § 453 – Oaths of justices and judges
“I, ___ ___, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as ___ under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God.”
Cornell Law School, Legal Information Institute
You can find the Constitutional oath below on the United States Supreme Court’s website accompanied by some history of the oaths.
5 U. S. C. § 3331 taken by all Federal employees, except the President.
“I, _________, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”
United States Supreme Court, Oaths of Office
How to Legal will also show you how easy it is to translate legalese. It’s easy because of the good side of the Internet.
You can use How to Legal as a go-to guide, and the open source legal tools (the good side of the Internet), to find out what is true or false about a case and the United States justice system.
For me, I want to do what I can to make the Internet a safer and more honest place for everyone.
I don’t want to see anyone else harmed by fake news and that includes you and your children.
See: QAnon’s Deadly Price: Church-loving surf instructor Matthew Taylor Coleman fell into online conspiracy theories, then allegedly admitted to killing his kids to save the world. How did no one see it coming? ” Kevin T. Dugan, Rolling Stone Magazine, October 9, 2021.
The only rule about How to Legal is to pace yourself.
Take lots of breaks.
There’s a reason why lawyers spend years in law school. You are not going to learn everything overnight and there’s always something else to learn.
But by starting to learn you will know where to go to verify facts and proper judicial procedures to prevent a repeat of the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capital.
Over 700 people in 48 States were arrested in part, because they believed and acted on fake news and defamation that was disseminated by lawyers, and officers of the court — lawyers who broke the Model Rules of Professional Conduct. People died. Lives have been ruined.
It’s a really good idea to read the Model Rules of Professional Conduct so you won’t be deceived by lawyers who break them.
Don't be deceived by fake news. If I can read the rules governing attorneys you can too.
I’m not a lawyer and I’ve read the Model Rules of Professional Conduct a bunch of times. You can read them too thanks to the good side of the Internet.
What’s an Officer of the Court?
According to Nolo, another excellent, credible legal resource anyone can use, officers of the court are all the people listed below:
Officer of the Court:
Any person who has an obligation to promote justice and uphold the law, including judges, clerks, court personnel, police officers, and attorneys (who must be truthful in court and obey court rules).
Nolo
That’s judges, clerks, court personnel, police officers and lawyers.
It should be a given that officers of the court tell the truth in court, but we know that is not true because of the thousands of reported cases of judicial misconduct.
Therefore, in an upcoming How to Legal, I’m going to show you where you can find the rules.
In addition, learning How to Legal will empower you. It will also give you confidence, respect, and an appreciation for the ethical, oath-follower judges. These judges faithfully apply the laws, and stand firm against corruption.
These are the judges who are preserving the integrity of the legal system and democracy. The same applies to all ethical officers of the court.
We here at How to Legal (it’s just me) respect, appreciate, and admire the oath-following judges. I don’t want to see ethical judges or anyone else harmed by fake news, defamation, deceptive trade practices—or hurt because of judicial misconduct.
So we How to Legal.
Given what is published in America does not stay in America, America’s legal system may affect you if you are not in America. This fake news crisis is not solely an American problem.
It’s affecting the world. That means everyone can benefit from How to Legal.
How to Legal Installments and Categories
In this era of tweets, postings, salacious headlines, and red meat soundbites, I will break down How to Legal into installments and categories at The Knowledge Vault (see further below) to make it easy to scroll down to whatever it is you’re looking for.
You can skip the rest, bookmark How to Legal, and you come back later.
This way you won’t feel overwhelmed, burn out, and give up.
Learn as you go. Learn as you need to know.
Take lots of breaks.
I’ll also be adding updates to keep How to Legal current.
Again, do you want to live a life freaked out over BS, be sued for defamation, or end up in jail or dead over fake news?
Pause.
Periodically, I’ll be inserting musical interludes to ensure that you take breaks. Learning How to Legal can be intense and draining. You have to be good to yourself, and your mental and physical health, especially in these changing times.
What’s better than taking a music break, stretching, dancing, and moving after sitting in front of your computer for a while?
So are you going to take back your power, think for yourself, invest in yourself, and be a part of a solution to the fake news crisis so we can focus on fixing real problems?
It’s up to you.
Please decide what you want to do and take this quick survey so I can better understand your goals. Thanks.
If you decide to come back next we’ll look at the real problems facing the justice system and peaceful solutions. This way you won’t be deceived by fake problems. Then we’ll move on to where you can find the justice system’s rules. Sounds good?
I hope to see you back here soon taking advantage of and benefiting from the good side of the Internet like I have.
For me, it’s time to take a break. My music pick is Men Without Hats, “It’s the Safety Dance.” What’s yours?
Men without Hats’ official website
Are you coming from YouTube, Linktree or from somewhere else?
SUBSCRIBE TO ACCESS HOW TO LEGAL’S KNOWLEGE VAULT. Peek inside and discover specifics of what you can learn—it’s free!
Legal Disclaimer
None of the information on this website is legal advice. While I have litigated as a pro se plaintiff when Reuters and Wall Street Journal’s reporting exposed judicial misconduct, I am not a lawyer. This information is for educational purposes. If you need legal advice, please consult with a licensed professional in your area.
If you appreciate my efforts trying to prevent more people from acting on fake news, harming others, and ending up in prison, please send donations here. Thanks!
ARE YOU STUCK IN A MEDIA ECHO-CHAMBER, or know someone who is, and needs help breaking free? Take The Break Free from Media Echo-Chambers 30-Day Challenge. There are problems on both sides of the political aisle and real problems that need to be fixed. Acting on fake news creates more problems that need to be fixed.
Wait!… If you are stressed out by fake news, real news, or for any reason, check out 16 Things that will help you de-stress. Here’s some merch too.
Lastly, if you see any typos or mistakes kindly send me an email so I can fix them. No text messages, please. Thanks.
Want to learn more about me? Click the link.
* Updated to include the important Wall Street Journal investigation exposing judicial misconduct at the Federal level, the latest horrific QAnon-related indictment, and the January 6, 2021 arrest numbers.
**Updated again to include the updated death and arrest numbers stemming from the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capital.