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Source: Man Claims Responsibility for Slayings of Judge's Family
AP ^ | AP-ES-03-10-05 1330EST

Posted on 03/10/2005 10:59:25 AM PST by TheOtherOne

Source: Man Claims Responsibility for Slayings of Judge's Family

By Don Babwin Associated Press Writer
Published: Mar 10, 2005 CHICAGO (AP) - A man who shot himself to death during a traffic stop in Wisconsin claimed in a suicide note that he killed a federal judge's husband and mother, a source close to the investigation told The Associated Press Thursday.

Chicago Police Department spokesman David Bayless identified the man as Bart Ross.

WMAQ-TV in Chicago also reported Thursday that it had received a handwritten letter signed by Ross in which he describes breaking into the house of Judge Joan Humphrey Lefkow around 4:30 a.m. on Feb. 28 with the intent to kill her and anyone else.

Lefkow had ruled against Ross in a civil case involving a medical-malpractice lawsuit, a ruling that was upheld by a federal appeals court in January. Ross, 57, was also being evicted from his home and had a court date Thursday.

Lefkow found the bodies of her husband, attorney Michael Lefkow, 64, and her mother, Donna Humphrey, 89, on the basement floor of the Lefkow home the evening of Feb. 28.

Suspicion immediately turned to white supremacist Matthew Hale, who had been convicted of soliciting Lefkow's murder after she ruled against him in a trademark dispute. Investigators insisted, however, that Hale's followers and other hate groups were just one focus of the investigation.

In the letter to WMAQ, Ross said he waited all day in a utility room in the basement and shot the judge's husband after being discovered. Ross said he then shot Lefkow's mother after she heard the gunshot and called out to her son-in-law.

"After I shot husband and mother of Judge Lefkow, I had a lot of time to think about life and death. Killing is no fun, even though I knew I was already dead," the station quoted the letter as saying.

Ross said he stayed in the house until about 1:15 p.m. before deciding to leave, according to the letter.

The suicide note found in the van indicated that Lefkow had ruled against Ross in a civil case, costing him "his house, his job and family," the Chicago Tribune reported, citing unidentified sources. The note also included details in the slayings that were not released to the public, Tribune Deputy Managing Editor James Warren said in an interview on CNN.

Ross was stopped by police in West Allis, Wis., Wednesday evening because his van had a faulty tail light, police said. As officers approached the car, he killed himself with a gunshot to the head, police said.

Police in the Milwaukee suburb declined to characterize the evidence found in the van. But a source close to the investigation told the AP on condition of anonymity the van contained a suicide note that also listed other judges.

The Tribune also reported that about 300 .22-caliber shells were found in the van. Investigators found three casings of the same caliber in the Lefkow home.

Last September, Lefkow dismissed a civil rights lawsuit in which Ross claimed doctors at the University of Illinois-Chicago Hospital and its clinic had disfigured him, damaged his mouth and caused him to lose his teeth when they treated him for cancer from 1992 to 1995.

Among other claims, Ross alleged doctors committed a "terrorist act" against him by giving him radiation treatment without his consent. He represented himself in the lawsuit.

Defendants included the federal government, the State of Illinois, five doctors and four attorneys who had taken part in an earlier Ross lawsuit that was dismissed by another judge.

Ross was also about to face eviction from his home, according to Cook County Sheriff's spokesman Bill Cunningham. A lawsuit was filed in housing court Feb. 23 seeking to evict Ross, and sheriff's deputies tried three times in early March to serve Ross with court papers. The case was due in court Thursday.

Police have been unable to find any of the man's family. Chicago police Thursday cordoned off the street outside Ross' last-known address, a two-story home across from a high school on a tree-lined street on the city's North Side.

Jinky Jackson, 34, a neighbor, said Ross was wearing a neck brace as of a month ago. She said she would say hello to Ross when she saw him but he would not reply.

"He doesn't mingle with other neighbors," Jackson said. "He'd come home late and stay inside."

AP-ES-03-10-05 1330EST


TOPICS: Extended News; Front Page News
KEYWORDS: bartross; grassyknoll; judge; justice; lefkow; murder
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To: Trust but Verify

Okay, I can agree with that.


81 posted on 03/10/2005 12:28:03 PM PST by thoughtomator
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To: Admin Moderator

I searched. It didnt come up. The search is hit/miss these days, an FYI....


82 posted on 03/10/2005 2:04:53 PM PST by RedBloodedAmerican
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To: TheOtherOne

Once again, it was the press who decided who was guilty and who the police should pursue. Don't know about all of you, but I'm damn sick of the press determining outcomes in advance! I long for the days when they reported what had happened, not what will or should happen! As to this case, in particular, I think we should ask, where was the safety net for that man? Why was the judge's ruling so devastating for him? And why were there no "support institutions" there for him when they seem to be there for almost every malcontent on the planet!


83 posted on 03/10/2005 2:31:09 PM PST by Continental Soldier
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To: TheOtherOne
Lefkow had ruled against Ross in a civil case involving a medical-malpractice lawsuit, a ruling that was upheld by a federal appeals court in January. Ross, 57, was also being evicted from his home

Will the feds take back the isolation tactics against the white supremacist who got blamed for this murder?

84 posted on 03/10/2005 2:57:10 PM PST by george wythe
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To: george wythe
Will the feds take back the isolation tactics against the white supremacist who got blamed for this murder?

Why, since he did actually threaten the Judge?

85 posted on 03/10/2005 3:00:22 PM PST by TheOtherOne
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To: TheOtherOne
Why, since he did actually threaten the Judge?

As far as I know, he did not threaten the judge recently, when the feds decided to cut off contact between him and his parents.

Do you have a link to a source stating that he has recently threatened the judge?

86 posted on 03/10/2005 3:04:53 PM PST by george wythe
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To: george wythe

I didn't know one needed to refresh a threat against an official for it to still be valid. I was under the impression, one death threat was enough.


87 posted on 03/10/2005 3:12:00 PM PST by TheOtherOne
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To: TheOtherOne

Read my comments again. I can't help your reading comprehension.


88 posted on 03/10/2005 3:17:05 PM PST by george wythe
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To: george wythe
Read my comments again. I can't help your reading comprehension.

All I said was that he threatened her life. You have then tried to ask me to prove it was recently

That is your issue, not mine. Check your reading comp

89 posted on 03/10/2005 3:19:07 PM PST by TheOtherOne
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To: TheOtherOne
The recent isolation of Hale has nothing to do with his alleged threat to the judge a couple of years ago.

The recent isolation of Hale, where he was sent to a cell with nothing but a bed and a toilet, occurred after he told his parents over the phone that he did not order the murder of Judge Lefkow.

He's being cut off from his parents because his parents issued a public statement condemning Lefkow's murder in their son's name.

Apparently, Hale was right. He had nothing to do with Lefkow's murder, but he cannot talk to his parents at all, not over the phone, not in person. Furthermore, all his "amenities" were curtailed, such as books and a radio.

If you punish your with time out for 15 minutes, do you arbitrarily increase his punishment if his sister accuse him falsely of misbehaving while in time out?

90 posted on 03/10/2005 3:34:38 PM PST by george wythe
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To: TheOtherOne; Jim Noble; hocndoc; LadyDoc
When all this "white supremist" stuff was being floated around (you should have seen Fox Shysterette Greta last night...boy, was she having a good time) I thought..."How convenient. How sexy. How cute. The left's favorite boogie-man, the neo-Nazi. Shades of Bill Clinton!!" Of course, you couldn't say that...without being called a neo-Nazi yourself.

re: Defendants included the federal government, the State of Illinois, five doctors and four attorneys who had taken part in an earlier Ross lawsuit that was dismissed by another judge.

Four lawyers? Four lawyers... Pay attention. It may well be that there were some lawyers stoking this nut's fires... there are a lot of creepy-crawly lawyers out there, feeding the fever of some KOOK's resentment in order to cash it in, in court.

First Michael Schiavo. Now this Ross-Roth? guy. Look at what the med mal lawyers are doing...

91 posted on 03/10/2005 4:17:53 PM PST by Mamzelle
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To: Borges

LOL


92 posted on 03/10/2005 4:19:17 PM PST by Nov3 ("This is the best election night in history." --DNC chair Terry McAuliffe Nov. 2,2004 8p.m.)
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To: Borges
Those kooks don't reflect on White Christians in anyway.

I beg to differ. The mainstream press uses these morons to beat Christians over the head at every opportunity. This club has lost a lot of its effectiveness since September 11 but the playbook is still there for Ted and Peter and Tom (MSM). One nut made a threat and I end up watching 2 segments on how "religious" white supremacists are threatening judges, robbing banks etc. Both segments showed a church. (One on Fox).

The media and Dems plays this issue against Repubs. Think of the election ads from the past two elections and the lack of outrage by the MSM. They let it stand.

93 posted on 03/10/2005 4:32:25 PM PST by Nov3 ("This is the best election night in history." --DNC chair Terry McAuliffe Nov. 2,2004 8p.m.)
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To: thoughtomator

"The exclusive media focus on the white supremacist groups implied it strongly."

All of the media focused on the white power guy, and so did MOST people on that thread here on FR, don't forget that. I indicated that the media got it wrong, Lefkow ruled IN FAVOR of Matt Hale, and then was forced to rescind her ruling by an appellate court. Why can't the media just report the truth instead of misleading people? ALL the media, including Fox.
The case Lefkow resided over involved the name of Hale's silly little group. A leftist (even sillier than Hale's) organization adopted it 10 years after Hale had been using it, then decided to drag Hale into court. Hale had no motive for wanting The Judge dead or taking any kind of revenge on her family, period. That's simple logic.
He's not a dumb guy. He passed the bar exam and was denied the right to practice law because of his racist politics. An FBI agent provacateur infiltrated (called by the media "his security chief") his circle and said something like "lets exterminate the rat." Hale said do whatever you wish, but I work from within the law. Hardly a solicitation to murder someone. I don't know about you guys, but I have a problem when my government operates in this way because you, or I or anyone else who's politically incorrect could be their next target.


94 posted on 03/10/2005 4:34:01 PM PST by followerofchrist
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To: cripplecreek

"What bothers me most about this is the fact that this guy wasn't going to be caught if it weren't for his suicide. The police were busy looking for white supremacists and this guy could have walked."

The police, to my knowledge weren't focusing exclusively on Hale, to their credit. Because of the media, everyone was ready to believe white power groups are running around assassinating people. They would believe anything said about these people they are so impressionable and trusting of the media. The media owes Hale an apology, despite the fact he is a racist, and a cartoonish one at that.


95 posted on 03/10/2005 4:37:08 PM PST by followerofchrist
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To: Nov3
Actually this particular group is a Pagan Nazi group who thinks Christianity is a 'Jewish plot'. Whenever people try do make the association the response should always be...and what about genuine Christians?
96 posted on 03/10/2005 4:40:17 PM PST by Borges
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To: Borges

"Considering the circumstances in this particular case I think it was justified. The fact that someone like that was to be sentenced for soliciting this judge's murder and her address was all over those sites...this was just an extraordinary coincidence."

Remember, the hysterical, lying MEDIA told you these things. Hale didn't "solicit" her murder, an FBI agent suggested it and Hale said "do whatever you want, I stay within the law." There's a grey area there, enough for reasonable doubt in my mind. Especially given the fact that Lefkow NEVER RULED AGAINST HALE. That was repeated time and time again, but it was a LIE. She ruled in favor of him, and an appelate court forced her to reverse the decision. Hale, who passed the bar exam, is smart enough to know that Lefkow had no choice but to reverse. So why would he take revenge? How do we know the same FBI agent (called his "security cheif") who entrapped Hale didn't post the Lefkow's address? Probably not, but I wouldn't put it past the cointelpro people.


97 posted on 03/10/2005 4:44:49 PM PST by followerofchrist
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To: followerofchrist
First off, I heard on all news reports about this that she ruled in Hale's favor. But these Nazi types aren't too bright. Geraldo had one of them on and he was cheering the murders and anyone else 'who takes sides against the white man'. As for Hale being wrongly convicted or whether he was entrapped...that's a separate issue. The exchange you quoted was printed time and time again in reports about this. Actually I think Hale said something like "You can do what you want to do." When you're talking about killing someone that's right on the borderline.
98 posted on 03/10/2005 4:50:51 PM PST by Borges
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To: steve-b
***Well, duh. This scum ball Matthew Hale PUBLICLY THREATENED TO MURDER THE JUDGE --***
Well, duh. No he didn't, not ever.

In fact Hale never uttered, or actually said for his "head of security" (who happened to be an FBI mole) to harm the judge, let alone order her murder. It was he FEEB mole who brought up the subject in the first place and asked if he should kill the judge and Hale allegedly said, "do what you want" (words to that effect).

Also, the way that Hale was convicted for "ordering" the hit, was that the prosecutor convinced the jury that Hale was "talking in code" when speaking to the FEEB mole. And under other circumstances, people would be screaming 'government entrapment'.

So sorry, Hale never "publicly threatened to murder the judge".

99 posted on 03/10/2005 5:15:45 PM PST by Condor51 (May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't. - Gen G Patton)
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To: Borges
Whenever people try do make the association the response should always be...and what about genuine Christians?

You can say that to yourself as you watch the TV. You won't see it on TV

100 posted on 03/10/2005 6:58:58 PM PST by Nov3 ("This is the best election night in history." --DNC chair Terry McAuliffe Nov. 2,2004 8p.m.)
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