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ROBERT JAMES PIERCE, U.S. Marine On a recent road trip to New Orleans, on the return trip to New Jersey, John
"Jack" Cunningham and his wife, Joan took
a detour into Georgia to visit the grave of Jack's Marine buddy who was killed in Vietnam
War. As Jack paid his respects to his Vietnam
War buddy, Joan cleaned 47 years of mold that had covered the honorable veteran's
headstone. Above is the 'before and after' pictures of Joan's care.
Please reach out and do the same to forgotten veterans' graves. They deserve
to be remembered...
click here to download file for Movie Script "SO ALONE"
On this past 4th
of July, Proud Vietnam Veteran John "Jack" Cunningham Asked YOU To SHARE, And Join His over 33,000 Supporters
and over 28,000 petition signers
SUPREME COURT ETHICS ATTORNEY CHARGED WITH
LEGAL MALPRACTICE Determined
Vietnam veteran Jack Cunningham was forced to represent himself as a PRO SE plaintiff in Superior Court against a corrupt,
defendant state Supreme Court ethics attorney Robert Correale in a Legal Malpractice case. The disabled vet asked for ‘Reasonable
Court Accommodations’ for his PTSD. New
Jersey Superior Court Honorable Judge Ronald Graves determined that the Vietnam veteran's evidence and charges warranted
the Superior Court Law Division for damages. However, the judge's audio court transcript went mysteriously missing, before
the important key document could be typed as evidence. The law division charges against state Supreme Court ethics attorney
Robert Correale was then thrown out of Superior Court for lack of merit. For 16 years, the state still refuses to investigate the decorated, combat vet's charges
of a cover-up. Jack Cunningham has over 32,000 overall supporters and over 27,000 petition signers, but the State of New Jersey
still refuses to even acknowledge the vet's correspondence. But Jack will NEVER give up seeking Justice.
Now,
after reviewing the tons of evidence, a member of Congress wants the Federal Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate the
case.
| John
"Jack" Cunningham and his wife Joan |
  Disabled Marine Vietnam Veteran John "Jack" Cunningham Accuses The New
Jersey Supreme Court, And It's Office of Attorney Ethics of Fraud. And one way or another,
he will be charging them in federal court for Fraud. Please learn the details below. The
below letters have been sent to numerous levels of the federal government as well as each
of the seven (7) New Jersey Supreme Court Justices: Chief Justice Stuart Rabner,
Justice Anne M. Patterson, Justice Jaynee La Vecchia, Justice Barry T. Albin, Justice Walter
F. Timpone, Justice Lee A. Solomon, Justice Faustino J. Fernandez-Vina. CURRENT STATUS: Over the last three months, I've sent the two
below letters to about 80 members of Congress, both in
the House and Senate. I concentrated on those members in the Committees of Veterans
Affairs and Judiciary. Yesterday, I received correspondence
from my local Congressman Josh Gottheimer. After reading through my letters and
internet evidence, Congressman Gottheimer wanted to write the Federal Department
of Justice (DOJ) and have them look into my case. A copy of the congressman's
letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) is above. Dear Honorable
Congressman Gottheimer, Please bare with me. I’m a PTSD disabled combat veteran from
the Vietnam War. I’m not looking for any pity and any notoriety.
And I already receive VA health care and benefits.
I’m just looking for Federal Justice that is legally-guaranteed to every American citizen under the U.S. Constitution.
Nothing more and nothing less...
For
the last 16 years, I have been looking for state justice, but I finally realize that for
various and clear reasons, I’m NOT going to get it in New Jersey.
(As you read, you will find out why no attorney in New Jersey would
have a career if they openly supported me on this.) I have been under the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) care
for a number of years. I am looking to bring federal justice to the State of New
Jersey Supreme Court's Office of Attorney Ethics, and those Supreme Court justices, who have illegally protected those
involved in this federal, state criminal cover-up and fraud.
(PTSD disabled PRO SE veteran plaintiffs deserve ‘reasonable court accommodations’ not denial
of their constitutional civil rights.) My attached letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions only explains
a small part of this redress to Congress and the federal government. I have hundreds
of webpages on the internet that detail facts and hold actual , clear evidence. (I also have numerous
boxes of hard-copy evidence at various sites among family and friends‘ households.) Why on
the internet… Over the years, I have used the kind and supportive opinions
of tens-of-thousands of internet patriots from across the nation to keep me going on this. The fact that the Federal Veterans Affairs Department
(VA) has assigned me a rating of 100% permanent and total evaluation effective March 13, 2000 can only
explain part of how they accomplished their fraud. My charges go much farther
beyond harassment and discrimination of a disability. Answers are needed on…
How easily this was criminally accomplished by the State of New Jersey at the time, and how
easily they criminally covered up this for all these years. Also, how so many government officials had to get involved
in the overall cover-up. You will read in my attached letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions,
why I have the ability to reach hundreds of thousands of patriots across America on computers.
My issue with New Jersey corruption is well-known on Facebook, Causes.com, City-Data forums, Delphi forums
and other internet social platforms. You could say I use my computer as a weapon of choice-communications,
just like I used my M-16 rifle, M-60 machine gun and M-79 grenade launcher as weapons,
serving in my Vietnamese peasant-farming village under the Marine Corps’ Combined
Action Program (CAP). (I used all three weapons in
the same firefight.) Please help
me get some federal justice on this. Not every PTSD disabled veteran has 22 years of working experience
with computers and yet, they deserve to be heard too. Sincerely yours, John “Jack” Cunningham
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U.S. Department
of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001 Subject: New Jersey Supreme
Court Office of Attorney Ethics misuse of power to protect one of their own Robert Correale With doing this, they openly denied
a PTSD Disabled Veteran his Due Process and even allowed him to be openly mocked for his disability
in New Jersey Supreme Court Sworn Certifications that were filled
with perjury. Dear Honorable Attorney
General Jeff Sessions: My reasons
for writing to you and the Federal Department of Justice (DOJ) are twofold One,
to protect current and future, disabled PTSD veterans’
civil rights as plaintiffs in state courts and from discrimination
of any kind. Secondly, my hope is for the Federal Department of Justice (DOJ) to file criminal
charges against all involved in this government fraud and New Jersey
State Cover-up. My charges center around New Jersey Supreme Court Office
of Attorney Ethics, NJ Superior Court and government officials
attempts to deceive, using acts of fraud and manipulation of
my Due Process as a plaintiff against a corrupt (former) NJ Supreme Court Official Robert Correale and his Law Firm,
Maynard and Truland. Robert Correale was a general-practice attorney for the Maynard
& Truland Law Firm of Morristown, New Jersey. While practicing
law at Maynard & Truland, Robert Correale was also serving as an assistant district attorney
in a number of different New Jersey towns and counties. According
to the attached Maynard & Truland webpage dedicated
to him, besides wearing all of these impressive and influential hats, he was listed
as the local Vice-Chairman of the New Jersey Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics
District X committee. This position allowed him almost god-like influence around
the state as well as his fellow attorneys of Maynard & Truland.
Attorneys and even judges' careers could end from
his, and his committee's judgments and decisions. Correale understood the influence he had around
New Jersey, and his law firms' partners Joe Truland and James Maynard
were ready to use it to their advantage, and for one of their own client's
disadvantage. Robert Correale and his fellow
Maynard & Truland lawyers were able to use his considerable powers
to block Superior Court Legal Malpractice charges and official NJ Supreme Court Attorney Ethics
charges against them, but this was minor compared to the New
Jersey's Supreme Court, which openly allowed this unethical behavior and even openly
protected them in the process. In the past 16
years, ‘Reasonable Court Accommodations’ from the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) could have helped me; instead, I was even mocked for my PTSD in sworn New
Jersey Supreme Court Certifications. I am considered by the federal Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
to be 100% "Permanent and Totally" disabled
with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), due to my combat service during the Vietnam war.
Please do not make light of this letter and my charges because of my PTSD
disability which has already caused me considerable
difficulties in both my personal and public life. PTSD is a nervous disorder, but
it does not make you lose your intelligence.
After
16 years of battling the State of New Jersey for my Due Rights as a plaintiff, I have a tremendous
number of facts and evidence which will back up the
charges I'm laying out in this letter, attachments, and internet links.
Before going out on disability for PTSD, I was a very successful
project manager in data processing with a staff of 17 computer programmers, analysts,
and project leaders at Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield in Manhattan. Documentation
and major analysis were keys even back then. I know I can file a federal civil suit, but like in the past in
NJ State courts, I would be forced to handle the federal case as PRO SE,
because no New Jersey lawyer wants to go up against New Jersey's Supreme
Court Office of Attorney Ethics. Win or lose, it could be a career-ending event
for an ordinary attorney. Besides after 16 years, based
on how these state officials used their state positions to illegally protect themselves
and stifle Justice, federal criminal charges should be brought up. I want to make
sure this never happens to another PTSD veteran now or in the
future. It’s taken a major toll on my health and mental-well-being
according to my VA medical records. The
VA, Congress and the American taxpayers pay billions of dollars a year to care and
treat disabled vets suffering from PTSD. I appreciate
all of the care and treatment that I have received over the years. It has saved my
life but I'm upset and disgusted by the unnecessary
harassment and discrimination that exacerbates veterans' PTSD disabilities. Americans
constantly hear about the discrimination and harassment cases of sex, race, and the
physically disabled, but we never discus the discrimination
and harassment cases of the PTSD disabled which can be just as harmful. Besides a Superior Court transcript
disappearing into thin air, perjury was permitted in Supreme Court Attorney Certifications and the evidence goes
on. I'm
begging you. Yes, I'm actually begging you to please review everything that I'm
stating in this letter. I admit I've dedicated a
great deal of time and effort with bringing these corrupt government officials to justice.
This should never happen to another PTSD vet, disabled individual, or average citizen in
the United States of America. Thank God for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the great
staff that have helped me during this time, and now I'm asking for my
Due Process from you that the State of New Jersey has denied me for over a decade. Sincerely and Truthfully,
John "Jack" Cunningham Very
Proud Vietnam Veteran Sussex, New Jersey |
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Robert Correale Carried Almost 'god-like'
Influence Around The State Courts Of New Jersey
Government
Fraud, Federal RICO (I.e. racketeering crimes) are involved
in this below case due to the fact that a number of New Jersey state lawyers, officials
and even politicians have acted together to obstruct
justice and deny PTSD Veteran John "Jack" Cunningham his constitutional rights. Robert Correale was a general-practice attorney for the
Maynard & Truland Law Firm of Morristown, New Jersey. While practicing
law at Maynard & Truland, Correale was also serving as an assistant
district attorney in a number of different New Jersey towns and counties. According to the Maynard
& Truland webpage dedicated to him, besides wearing
all of these impressive and influential hats, he is listed as the
local Vice-Chairman of the New Jersey Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics District
X committee. This position allowed him almost god-like influence around
the state as well as his fellow attorneys of Maynard & Truland. Attorneys and even
judges' careers could end from his, and his committee's
judgments and decisions. Correale understood the influence
he had around New Jersey, and his law firms' partners Joe Truland and James Maynard were ready to use
it to their advantage, and for one of their own client's
disadvantage. Correale
and his fellow Maynard & Truland lawyers were able to use his considerable
powers to block Superior Court Legal Malpractice charges and
official NJ Supreme Court Attorney Ethics charges against them, but this was minor
compared to the New Jersey's Supreme Court which allowed this unethical behavior and even
protected them in the process. However,
the thorn in their side was never going to disappear. They picked the wrong client to
abuse Correale's influence on. At first, they thought
the client was an easy target, because he was a Vietnam veteran with PTSD. They never
would have believed that after tag-teaming the PTSD
veteran with law firm lawyers, and throwing every possible legal obstacle at him, the former
Marine would be bringing them to federal court 17 years later along with the whole
New Jersey Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics for
fraudulently and malfeasancely protecting them from justice. Thankfully, there is no Statute of limitations
in federal court when it comes to state government fraud.
And based on all the clear evidence that Jack Cunningham has on the New Jersey Supreme Court
Office of Attorney Ethics and New Jersey governors' office, they have been committing
fraud, malfeasance, obstruction of Justice, denial of
a citizen's due rights based on deception as well as harassment of a PTSD veteran's
disability and disability discrimination. Some of
Jack Cunningham's clear evidence of New Jersey courts and NJ government fraud: Correale and his law firm Maynard & Truland took Jack
Cunningham to Superior Court for an open bill but Jack counter sued
against Correale and his law firm for Legal Malpractice. Correale represented
his law firm. Jack was forced to handle his case as PRO SE (on his own), because no New Jersey
lawyer wanted to go up against Correale, because of
his obvious influence as the Vice-Chairman of New Jersey Supreme Court Office
of Attorney Ethics District X committee. Win or lose, it could be a career-ending
event for an ordinary attorney. Because Jack was both representing
himself and effectively disabled with PTSD due to trauma in Vietnam, he asked the court
for "Reasonable Court Acommodations for his disability".
After reviewing Jack's detailed evidence, Honorable Superior Court Judge
Ronald Graves threw out Robert Correale's open bill charges and, against Correale's
obections, Judge Graves added that Jack's charges of
Legal Malpractice and his evidence warranted the law division for damages. However, strangely
enough, two months later when Jack tried to get a copy of
Judge Ronald Graves court transcript where the judge said Cunningham's Legal Malpractice charges
were valid, that portion of the transcript audio was missing. Jack's
Law Division Superior Court civil case was then thrown
out for lack of merit. Neither could he use Judge Graves court transcript in formal attorney
ethics violation charges. This helped pave the way for Correale and
Maynard & Truland to perjure themselves in sworn NJ Supreme Court certifications. In these same sworn, Supreme Court Attorney Ethics Certifications, Robert Correale
disgracefully and openly mocked Jack Cunningham's PTSD disability without question. When Jack Cunningham
first started bringing formal Attorney Ethics Violation
charges against Robert Correale and his law firm, the New Jersey Supreme Court Office of
Attorney Ethics refused to answer the PTSD veteran's letters.
Jack sent out another round of letters to them, this time Cc:ing the NJ
governor, the NJ Attorney General and key officers of the state legislature. Finally,
the Supreme Court Office answered them and assigned
the investigation of Correale and Maynard & Truland to the same committee that Robert
Correale was listed to be the Vice-Chairman of District X. In words anyone could understand,
the complaint about Correale and his firm was to be
investigated by Correale which is a clear violation of attorney ethics as it pertains to
conflict of interest. This assignment was done by the
second highest official in this important NJ Supreme Court office but it all just led to
another round of battles for Jack Cunningham to get them to recognize their major Conflict
of Interest. The battles continued until Correale and
his fellow Maynard and Truland lawyers were all cleared of all charges but not before perjuring
themselves in Supreme Court Certifications. Jack Cunningham's
current goal is to get federal criminal charges brought against everyone involved in the
New Jersey State Government cover-up. HOW
IT ALL STARTED: The Cover-up is worse than the crime
After
nearly 25 years of marriage and five children, Vietnam
veteran John "Jack" Cunningham was served with divorce papers.
The veteran, considered 100% permanently disabled by federal Veterans Affairs (VA) due to PTSD,
was worried that his disability would be used against him
in custody rights for his two minor children, which was a common practice for various reasons
in divorce cases against PTSD vets. The Marine hired
the law firm Maynard & Truland. At the first two meetings Jack drove
home in a near-panic-like fear of losing his children's custody due to his disability. However,
law firm partner attorney Joe Truland and the firm's
divorce attorney Edward Buschico repeatedly highlighted that they were professionals and
would do their jobs. During the next few weeks,
the client called a number of times to both the law firm's partner Joe Truland and divorce attorney
for an update on the firm's response to the court and his wife and
her attorney. Although he was promised by the office
manager that he would get returned calls from the attorneys, he never did. Twenty-two
days later, the PTSD veteran was notified by Superior Court -
Family Division that he was now in Divorce-Default for his lack of response to the initial divorce papers.
Based on now being in divorce-default for his lack of response
to family court, the family court judge could make her ruling
for loss of all custody rights. Jack's PTSD worsened dramatically as his
greatest fear of losing his two children could now be made by a simple decision
of the judge. The
veteran's weekly PTSD therapy sessions (well-documented) with a Veterans Affairs (VA)
doctor were filled with talk of his fear of the loss
of his children and triggering intense memories from the war, living 24/7 in an isolated
peasant-farming village defending against Viet Cong terrorist fighters.
Meanwhile, Jack made repeated attempts to get the firm's partner
Joe Truland and divorce attorney Edward Buschio on the phone, but he still didn't receive
the promised returned calls. Between the lack of communication
from the law firm that he hired and getting notices about the default from
the court, he thought the worst and it was triggering his most painful memories. Out of desperation and total frustration, Jack wrote a
heated letter to Joe Truland and Edward Buschio in the hope that they
would start acting professional and communicate with him, the family
court and his wife's attorney. Even after writing the letter, he still did not get any return communications
from his own law firm. However, He continued to receive
notifications that he was still in divorce default for lack of his
activity to the court and his wife's attorney. More phone calls to
the law firm were never returned. Jack continued to attend his VA therapy
sessions where the impact of the divorce and his frustrations
with his law firm was well-documented in his official Veterans Affairs medical
progress records. It was even recorded that he should have
his medicine adjusted so that he could cope better and that he might have to
be VA hospitalized for the exacerbation of his PTSD. Sixty-nine
days into the contract Jack Cunningham signed with the law firm, he
finally received a very brief letter from a Maynard and Truland attorney
Robert Correale; a name he did not recognize. Robert Correale's letter briefly
stated that he was starting on the work on his divorce removal; was an Invoice listing that
the client was being charged for this divorce-removal
at an extra $25 inflated hourly rate. He was being charged for their
gross neglience at an inflated rate by a law firm attorney that he knew nothing about.
What happened to the law firm's partner and their divorce attorney
Edward Buschio? With
no answers to his prior questions and a growing number of new questions to
ask, the client wrote another letter to Joe Truland and addressed
it to Robert Correale a lawyer Jack had not known before. Once again, there
wasn't a response to this letter or his continued phone calls. Whoever Robert Correale was,
he was apparently just as bad in communicating back
as the previous divorce attorney Ed Buschio was. Even worse, Jack received another
notification from family court stating that he was still in default
because there hadn't been a response from him. Jack
felt like he was losing his mind out of frustration,
but he also felt strongly that he had to fight back against this gang of incompetent lawyers.
There was custody of his two young children was at stake. Jack wrote
a third letter to the Maynard & Truland lawyers. Again, when he received no
response for his third letter, he wrote to the local New Jersey Supreme Court
Office of Attorney Ethics District X committee and attached
supporting evidence. In his letter he highlighted the divorce-default Maynard & Truland,
LLC. placed him in and the extra stress they were causing him. When Jack received
yet another notification from Family Court that he was still
in divorce default and there was to be a final court hearing on it, he wrote to the Family
Court judge explaining his facts and presenting his
evidence. A
few days before the final divorce default court hearing, the local District X committee
of New Jersey' Supreme Court Office of Attorney
Ethics wrote back and said that they could not help him; however, they simply recommended
that Jack obtain another law firm without any other
suggestions. It would be Two years later when Jack learned that Robert Correale was the Vice-Chairman
of this same NJ Supreme Court Attorney Ethics District X committee. Again,
this District X recommendation to get a new lawyer was
just days before the final default hearing that Maynard & Truland, LLC. caused. Living
off only his monthly disability payments from the federal
government, there was no additional money to retain another lawyer even if it was a good idea and
changing law firms just days before the default hearing was insane even to this
"crackpot" veteran. He knew that he had to
attend the hearing himself, plead for some type of reasonable court accommodations for
his PTSD disability, and expose the lack of professionalism of
the firm he had hired. The
day of the default hearing, with no responses back from his letter to the
Family Court judge or any communications from Maynard & Truland's
attorneys, Jack went to Superior Court to represent
himself and hoped for some type of understanding or mercy. After notifying the court that he was
there for the default hearing, he sat in the second row of the small 2 row courtroom
and waited for his turn to be heard. In the back of his mind, he was
hoping that the law firm divorce attorney Edward Buschio would attend,
but he wasn't counting on it. The divorce attorney
fell off the face of the earth as far as he knew. He had neither seen nor heard from Buschio since the day
he signed signed the contract and paid the retainer. That same
day, Buschio nastily stated that he know how to do his job. Extremely anxious,
Jack didn't have the slightest idea what to expect during
the default hearing, but at least he had made it there. When the court case
was announced, Jack was about to move up to the defendant chair when
a lawyer introduced himself to the court as Maynard & Truland attorney Robert Correale
and he was representing John Cunningham in the Case
management appearance. Jack was completely dumbfounded, who was attorney
Robert Correale and what happened to the divorce default? What happened to the divorce attorney Edward
Buschio and why were the attorneys switched, and when?
He had received no written or verbal communications from the firm that his representation
was officially switched and wondered if the law firm
was allowed to switch attorneys like that without notifying him or asking for permission.
At
the end of the case management hearing, Jack tried to
get some answers from Correale, but was brushed off by him claiming
that he had no time to talk. (Two years later, Jack would receive some misleading, vague and
even perjurious statements from Robert Correale about many of his
questions when Correale was forced to swear in New Jersey Supreme Court Certifications.
It was also in Robert Correale's Certification
that Jack would learn how Correale described this day's first meeting
between the two of them. Jack was even mocked for his PTSD in Correale's New Jersey Supreme Court
Certification.) Although Jack never received any sort of response from
the Family Court judge about the letter that he sent the week
before, he was sure it had some impact in releasing him from the divorce-default
that the lack of action from his own law firm put him in. He was actually feeling somewhat optimistic
for the first time since hiring Maynard & Truland
to represent him. However, Jack would soon learn just how corrupt the
firm and Robert Correale was. There were a number of future situations, but this was
really highlighted during the most important, final
court arbitration. Flamingly-narcissistic Robert Correale
came to court totally unprepared. For over two hours in a small court house
room, he sat silent next to Jack as Jack spoke to his ex-wife and her attorney.
The misrepresentation given by Robert Correale
was so poor that Jack's own ex-wife later wrote to the courts
stating about Correale's woeful, unprofessional
behavior saying that Jack was, for all intents and
purposes,
representing himself. In the end for that day, Correale charged Jack hundred's
of dollars for his own representation at Correale $25 inflated rate per hour over
the contract. 
DISABLED VIETNAM VETERAN
IS TRYING TO DRAIN THE SWAMP IN HIS HOME STATE After reading the below story, please join the growing-daily list
of over 30,000 of John "Jack" Cunningham's supporters. Below the story are the details to join.
A Proud Veteran's Struggle For Respect, Honor And Justice
For All Vietnam Veterans And All PTSD VeteransJohn "Jack" Cunningham always wanted to volunteer in the Marines
and volunteer he did; one month after he graduated from famous, New York City's Power Memorial Academy.
He grew up watching patriotic films on television about the heroism of America's overall
military in World War II and Korea; his older brothers served
in the military: one in the US Army, the other in the Navy. A brother-in-law, who Jack
was close to, served in the Marines during the Korean War in the 1st Marine Division at the
Chosin Reservoir - "The Frozen Chosin". Eventually, Jack's dream of serving in the Marines came true
and he went to boot camp at Parris Island (famous for its depiction in Kubrick's
take on Vietnam Full Metal Jacket). After his training, at the age of nineteen
Jack was sent to California where he received orders from the
Combined Action Program (CAP): he was to go to special training school in Da Nang. Jack
had watched war movies when he was younger but this
wasn't a movie on tv; this was Vietnam. A life long of never-to-forget memories jammed
into one short year. But he wanted to serve for America like so many brave and honorable Americans before
him. Like all Marines, he was extremely proud of his Marine uniform picture that
he earned while in Parris Island Marine Boot Camp. 
| | Please Press The Picture For A Bigger Copy |
Although at 18 years old, the
skinny New York City boy thought, he knew so much. His high school, Power Memorial
had boys from around the city and from around the world. He was about to learn so
much more. Jack knew the battle was going to be intense, with
many hardships and violence, but he didn't know it was going to be as intense, rewardless, and
somewhat disgraceful when he came home. For this
was a different, and especially unique time for America's fighting men and women.
The parades of honor and respect were no more. This type of negative attitude toward our
military would last for many decades... And Jack, like so many other Vietnam Era vets, were about to fully learn
it the hard way. They were about to fight this war alone.
The small CAP units served round the clock in Vietnamese villages where they defended
the villagers from various
levels of terrorist attacks. The young American Marines used their weapons of war, but they also used friendship
and kindness just as much and at times, even more. The warriors treated
the people using basic average human instinct and character. They were nicknamed
"the Peace Corps volunteers with rifles." The goal of these American Marines
were to teach the peasants a better way to fish and farm, not hand them fish and rice. This truth
was the complete opposite image of our military, what the American news media was highlighting
every night. But the truth about the Marine Corps'
Combined Action Program was far more ominous: many times, CAPs were killed almost
as soon as they were replaced. The tiny units consisted of only a handful
of Marines and a U.S. Navy Corpsman per village and attacks
were often. The
U.S. Navy Corpsman were special and unique. They were there for
caring for the Marines, but also the daily, long
line of Vietnamese villagers needing regular health care.
The Marines, including Jack, helped with bandaids and giving
babies soapy baths. Any complex health condition,
the villager would be sent to a Marine base by helicopter
or Jeep. Regardless of the health condition, payment was always just a smile. For the young, Americans supplying the health care,
it was like a new TV episode of Mash
everyday. No Vietnamese peasant was ever turned away without
health care. Many friendships on both sides were created. United States Navy
Corpsmen became popular village celebrities. Jack heard
years after the war that one Navy CAP Corpsman, Doc O'Brien even personally paid for his village's
school to be built. At first
the CAPs consisted of Marines who volunteered for
the units, but as more and more horrifying stories of violence, brutal
conflict, and high casualties began to spread, Marines had to be assigned.
For some CAP Teams, they were known as Suicide Squads. The only thing for
most CAP units, they did not even have a squad of Marines living in their village. Only
on paper, the teams were a little more than a fortified squad.
Jack was assigned to the Duc Duc resettlement village
where conflict almost immediately greeted him. There
were many times where death was certain- times that many of us who have never been
in the heat of battle could never
understand. There is no question of Jack's and the other CAPs bravery.
Like in all wars, for most Americans in Vietnam bravery was routine. Unfortunately,
stories of Cap units stretched far too
thin beating the odds and saving the lives of villagers are hardly told. Far more people
know of the tragedies like the
massacre of My Lai village where it was the atrocities of Americans rather than the many
stories of those like Jack's. The American News Media and Hollywood became
extremely rich from pushing fake news stories and lies. Most American people would believe what ever the news
media and Hollywood would put out. Why would they lie... Viet
Cong terrorists loved using the tools of violent death on innocent village people.
To the communists everything was terrorism. The more vicious, random and heartless
the attacks were on innocent people, the more control they had over the families of the village.
But small American Marine CAP Teams stood in their way.
The Duc Duc Resettlement (Refugee) Village that Jack's CAP
2-9-2 unit defended had a population
in the thousands while, with the exception of a handful of villagers who fought alongside
the Americans, there were just on
average of eight marines and as few as four at any given
time. Four teenage Americans in a Vietnamese peasant-farming village of thousands.
There were no 'safe-places' for these American college-age kids. But the Marines
were not looking for any safe places. They were there to help and protect innocent people like American service
men and women did throughout our country's history. The
confusion of which villagers were sympathetic to the US forces and which were
sympathetic to the Communists created a situation rife with paranoia.
There were constant rumors of
communists infiltrating the village. Communications between the CAPs and the
villagers was often mangled by language barriers.
Enemy propaganda circulated constantly exploiting the CAPs obvious vulnerabilities, especially
the size of the units. Threats of the units to be wiped out were almost daily.
Intelligent reports of hundreds of communists coming to attack the Marines and village
kept everyone on extreme edge. Regardless of the bigger odds facing them, the village-Americans
were their to protect the innocent people. Semper Fi - Always Faithful was in
their blood.
Jack was wounded three different
times in and around his village of Duc Duc. He
received one Purple Heart, because the other two wounds were minor.
During one of his units daily
patrol's, he stepped on a large booby trap that never exploded. During one intense
combat action outside the
village, Jack's buddy George Dros of Burlington Flats, NY credited Jack with
saving his life and that of two other Marines,
when Jack intentionally made himself a target for Viet
Cong terrorists in order to save his three buddies. During the combat, Jack switched
weapons between his M-79 grenade launcher to his buddy's M-60 machine gun and another buddy's M-16 rifle.
He did this in the hope of giving the terrorists the impression that he was the better target. It worked.
The terrorists concentrated all their fire on Jack and his buddies were able to be saved. His brothers made it.
That is all that Jack cared about. Many times,
Jack's worst moments weren't during heat of battle
but the rare times of calm when he could actually process what
was going on: the fear of attacks at any moment and the paranoia that the enemy
might be hiding amongst the same people he
was trying to protect. Beyond that was the bigger picture:
he didn't know who he was fighting or why he was fighting.
Back home, his generation and the others were divided between those who
had their doubts but didn't voice disrespect and those who protested violently.
In May 1970, the shooting deaths
of four anti-war protesting students at Kent State made this same mental conflict
even worse as the line between
countrymen and enemies blurred even further. This extreme stress and pressure at
such a vulnerable time left a permanent impression
on Jack. The fact that the local communists had a bounty
on each of the Americans heads added to it. The uncertainty
of enemy attacks, the frustration with
the treatment of his own countrymen, and- most importantly- the confusion over what the
ultimate goal was
with the war created the perfect storm in his head. Added to this, Jack's unit was
shocked to find a Viet Cong tunnel that contained,
$5,000 in American green currency, $3,000 in military
currency, and- most painful of all- boxes of clothing
donated by students from the Berkley University
in California. Students the same age as Jack were protesting and supporting
the very enemy killing off Marines and Vietnamese peasants left
and right. As small a gesture as the clothing was, it was
the worst stab in the back Jack could have ever
gotten from his peers back home in America. He felt
that his buddies and him were being betrayed by those who should have been supporting
them. Jack felt very a lone. He wondered
how World War II veterans felt,
when they were battling in their war. On July 17, 1970, Jack
was part of a five Marine patrol
outside his village that got pinned down and surrounded for hours. Another
CAP Team from another village had to come
to their rescue. However, it too got pinned down. Marine helicopter
gunships and two Navy F-4 fighter jets came
and bailed out both CAP Teams.
In August 1970, an event would occur that the 'Survivors
Guilt' would never leave him the same again. After switching patrols one morning with another Marine, Robert J. Pierce (picture below) a surprise attack would result in his replacement Robert J. Pierce losing his legs then dying from the blood loss. Before
dying, Robert was calling out to his mother and his brother Marines. With his tour of duty almost over, Robert was scheduled
to leave Vietnam in a week. The tragic death would be one that stood
out amongst the many other bloody incidents during Jack's
time in Vietnam. In his mind, he was at fault rather
than the enemy. If he hadn't switched patrols, his
buddy Robert Pierce would be alive. Jack would remain haunted
by the death long after he was safe from the daily horrors of the war. Around the time of the
death, Jack would receive news
and clippings that the Vietnam War veteran memorial in his hometown of Rosedale,
Queens had been vandalized twice by protesters. The anti-military
protesters attacked by night like communist, Viet
Cong terrorists the names of the town's eight Vietnam War dead with
tar and black paint. Like all of the other anti-military-anti-veteran attacks that
Jack was hearing about, while serving in his village, the attack on his hometown's veteran memorial he took personal.
He attended the dedication of this same memorial himself on Memorial Day 1968 less than two years before serving. Back
in 2002, Jack built a simple website to the Rosedale Vietnam Veteran Memorial showing the news paper pictures of the anti-veteran attack. Already bitter, this information served to only rub more salt in Jack's wounds.
Many of today's patriots
would almost feel the pain, he was under. WHY... Jack felt extremely
alone. But he knew he still had to do his job. Robert J. Pierce Conditions worsened when word began to
spread that the CAPs were going to pull
out of the area. The villagers felt betrayed and their
relations with the Marines cooled considerably. Night watches
consisted of constant wakefulness leaving Jack
and his Marine buddies perpetually exhausted. Any wrong move meant death; any wrong action
meant further ostracizing
from the villagers. His very sanity became a delicate tightrope as the extreme
conditions weighed down everyone around
him. Finally, President Nixon announced the withdrawals of the troops freeing
Jack from his torment. He left in February 1971 but
leaving the battlegrounds would be bittersweet. A few
months later in March and April, successive Viet Cong
attacks destroyed to complete ashes the Duc Duc resettlement village killing
hundreds of the same villagers Jack
had previously been tasked to protect. The massacre of Duc Duc left him with another lasting impression. He had many Vietnamese friends in the village. And some good Marines
died over the years to protect it. He wanted people to know the real truth. Years after the war Jack would build a number of websites and webpages dedicated to the village and the Marines who died. Although the physical wounds that he received protecting the village were minor, he left a major part of himself
in Duc Duc.
Jack returned to the United States with the memories
of the war, and stupid questions of how many babies he was forced to
kill and did he ever have to burn his
village down, but as time went on, they seemed to fade away. There were some events
in the future that would create even
more emotional turmoil: the fall of Saigon in 1975 would be especially
painful as he recounts how he felt when he learned the
news: "A lot of sadness and a lot of anger, even
rage. I felt everything was a pure waste." To put
the 1975 fall of Vietnam into perspective, just thirty years before America was
celebrating the triumphant
victory of the Allied forces against the Axis. Now, nearly forty years after the fall,
many veterans of the Iraq
War know a similar bitterness when the country they fought to liberate fell
into the hands of ISIS. Life began to slowly go back to normal.
Jack settled on Long Island and eventually in northwestern
New Jersey, started a family, and began a career
programming, analyzing and later managing computer systems at Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield in Manhattan. His
experience with the military proved to be useful
for him as he became increasingly more successful. By the 1980s,
life was good for Jack. He was thought highly of by
his supervisors, senior management, his peers and was responsible
for up to 17 employees. Although he had more employees on his computer staff than in his CAP Team, Jack begun
to think of his team of computer programmers and analysts
as his own CAP Team. His Subscriber
Data Processing Team were now his buddies. And he protected them just like he did his CAP buddies.
His co-workers were like his brothers and sisters. He was now a project manager
and making a great salary. To many in the large company of over 10,000 employees, he was Mr. Cunningham. To Jack,
he was still just Jack. The job was somewhat stressful but he handled
it well before things began
to change unexpectedly in 1985. Stress from the job were starting to trigger some intense memories of the
village. 'Survivors Guilt' was drawing it's ugly head. In 1980, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
was added to the DSM-III by the American
Psychiatric Association. PTSD has since become closely associated with veterans from
Vietnam and for good reason: 31% are
believed to suffer from it. While the severity of the condition
can vary from patient to patient, it can be debilitating for
those who have it worst. PTSD can manifest
itself in minor ways for years as anxiety or intrusive flashbacks with very little
effect on a patient's day to day
life. Sometimes, years can pass before it causes serious issues as was the case
with Jack, who began to experience
serious problems around 1985 but managed to keep working for sometime while
his condition slowly deteriorated. At the time, like many other Vietnam vets, Jack kept his thoughts,
memories and feelings to himself. Socially, he started to isolate, but he still was able to work at a high level.
Since he was having memories of the war almost everyday, Jack started writing down his
experiences from serving in the Combined Action Program (CAP). In a short period
of time, he ended up writing 8 short stories of his village life. He was writing about war, but more importantly, he
felt he was writing about family, his brothers. Breaking
through the stigma of PTSD was extremely hard. Besides, no one really wanted to talk to Vietnam vets
about the war. And Vietnam vets did not want to talk to people who could not understand
or relate. Thanks to Hollywood, certain news-hound-celebrities, the news
media and even some politicians, the image of PTSD Vietnam vets scared many in the general
public. The caricature of Vietnam veterans as lunatic baby-killers and village-burners was still
fresh in many Americans' minds. Jack's feelings of battling alone became
stronger. To fight the negative feelings and images, Jack started letting family
and friends at work read his short stories. To his utter amazement people liked
them and found them extremely interesting. Many people asked to read all 8 stories. Based on the feedback
from readers, he started to think that maybe he could help change the negative image of
Vietnam vets. Jack wanted to fight back. He didn't think that he was a
hero, but he strongly felt that he served with heroes. There were over two million real heroes that served
in Vietnam. Besides, having people read the experiences and stories was much easier
than talking about them. With
the grace of God and prayer, Jack finally reached out to the Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA). Using federal Veterans Administration's
(VA) medications and therapy to cope, Jack carried on with life as usual, but
with each year his memories weighed him down further. Finally,
in 1989, he was no longer able to work. It is common
with many who suffer from PTSD- like sufferers from
severe forms of anxiety or depression- to become chronically unemployed
due to the difficulties their condition imposes on them.
In this day and age, there is far more leeway for someone with
a mental illness to get
help and recognition. In 1989, however, many people's knowledge of PTSD came from
movies like First Blood where the main character
John Rambo suffers from a psychotic break due to his experiences in Vietnam.
PTSD veterans had been stereotyped
as crazy and able to snap at any time. This belief caused
many of sufferers to remain in the shadows because of the fear of
being ostracized for their shortcomings. Far to
often, brave and honorable veterans with PTSD were judged for the false
and weak images of the stigma
of PTSD. Many professional people say that tens-of-thousands took their own lives, because of it. Twice
Jack would be hospitalized at VA facilities in 1986 and 1987 for PTSD;
both times, he was sent gifts and support by his employees and friends.
He seemed to have good support but in 1989, the
memories of friends' deaths during the war created intense survivor's
guilt. This, along with life's
stresses, created the perfect storm. Oftentimes, those with PTSD will
not experience worrisome symptoms until they've gone through an
extended illness like pneumonia or influenza; others
won't have symptoms until they enter a period of
extreme stress like having issues at work or with family.
With Jack, his own thoughts became his worst
enemy. As the good memories started flooding back into Jack's head, the bad memories came
just as fast. He had no switch or filters to regulate his thoughts. He could
no longer function. Jack would continue in this
way until 1996 around the time of the birth of his fifth
child. During this time, he wrote four movie scripts to keep busy. His first one was about his experiences in Duc Duc,
about the loss of his friend and his own survivors guilt dealing with it. His second script was about a Vietnam
vet dealing with PTSD during the 1st Gulf War. His third and fourth scripts were total fiction about young teenagers
and ghosts who come to their rescue. He did the last two to get away from war, but writing them did not help any. He had to be again hospitalized in a VA hospital for nearly
four months because of PTSD which obviously caused
problems in his personal life. The loss of two older
sisters each to cancer within two years did not help. As his mental state tore him
apart, his domestic life caused him further pain. In 1999, Jack's
wife filed for divorce. The divorce suit would be only the beginning
of Jack Cunningham's struggle for justice as lawsuit
after lawsuit exposed the corruption of the New Jersey
justice system. Since the 9-11 terrorist attacks, most of America's hearts
and minds were open to the sacrifices and truths of America's Vietnam Veterans. Jack's writing
goal of trying to improve the image of Vietnam vets was no longer necessary. The truth was coming
out on its own. But Jack still wanted to follow through. He loved writing,
especially young fiction dealing with ghosts and totems. Stories of hope, family, communities, inspiration, history
and inner strength. His third script was called "Carrie's Treasure." It was about the inner strength
of a young tomboy, Carrie, who wanted her divorced parents back together. When everything looked impossible, she got
two ghost-brothers to promise to help her. The twist was that the two brothers were civil war veterans who served
on opposite sides; One brother for the north, the other for the south. Jack's last script he called "The
Spirit Lives On." Now, as the plaintiff, the Marine vet was facing a new battle with
the New Jersey courts as the defendant. A battle even more intense than he ever fought in. In
the end, Jack would want federal criminal corruption and fraud charges brought against
a number of high level New Jersey Supreme Court lawyers for protecting one of their own.
To handle his divorce suit, Jack
hired a locally well-known, law firm out of Morristown, New Jersey, Maynard & Truland,
LLC. When he hired Maynard & Trumand he did not know they were so well-known,
powerful and state-wide influential (for themselves). Like most fathers, he informed
the law firm partner Joe Truland and his divorce attorney that his greatest concern was to get fair custody rights
for his two minor children. He also informed them in detail that he was PTSD-disabled
from heavy combat in the Vietnam War. He told the law firm's lawyers about his
disability because it was a major part of his life and hoped that they would give him a
little more courtesy (Jack would be totally wrong about getting extra courtesy, even though they
were his own law firm). He also told them about his PTSD because he did not want it to be used against him in custody
rights, which was common practice in veterans with PTSD divorce proceedings. He signed their contact, paid them an agreed upon retainer check
that the law firm cashed within three days. He expected a routine handling of his case,
but things only fell apart from there. It was as if his lawyer and law firm did not care he had PTSD. Sometimes,
it felt like that they were even trying to take advantage of his own disability.
Eventually, the law firm even mocked his disability in sworn attorney ethics certifications to the New Jersey Supreme Court.
But it all just made him angry and motivated that much more. From the first days, because of no of
action from the law
firm, court-required deadlines were missed and Jack's needs
were ignored. Jack's lawyer was not
even returning his phone calls. For whatever reason, the firm was grossly inadequate in their handling of the
divorce suit even allowing for
it to enter into default; a fact they neglected to tell Jack until it was too late.
On the way out the door to visit his older
sister in a NYC hospital, who was getting a
major operation for lung cancer, the third to have cancer, he was notified by mail from family court that
he was now in divorce
default for no activity on the case. The misrepresentation given by the firm was
so poor that Jack's
own ex-wife wrote to the courts complaining about their woeful behavior saying that
Jack was, for all intents and purposes, representing himself.
All
that the firm managed to do was overcharge him
an extra $25.00 an hour over the contracted rate that
they had agreed on. What made it ever more disgracefully,
interesting was that right in the Maynard
& Truland law firm's own printed Invoice was that they were billing Jack for their own Divorce
Default removal. The Maynard & Truland law
firm was completely acting without attorney ethics. To Jack, he felt that they were
acting above the law. He could not understand why they were doing this. Again,
he even thought that they might be taking advantage of his PTSD disability. He could not understand it. This
was his own law firm that he already had paid. His stress was building. It
had nothing to do with the divorce. It all had to do with his own law firm's
unprofessionalism. But he wanted to fight back. PTSD vets were not there
to be taken advantage of. Just like he fought to save the innocent people of the Duc Duc Refugee Village,
Jack felt he was battling to save future PTSD vets and even average New Jersey citizens from discrimination
and fraud. No one should be above our laws. Jack was rightfully
angry over how he had been treated and took his case to the
New Jersey Supreme Court local, State Attorney Ethics Committee. This
would lead to even further
problems for Jack since a lawyer of Maynard & Trudell actually served on
the Ethics board: Robert Correale. Robert Correale's law firm's
website listed Correale as not only being on the same committee,
but listed Correale
as their Vice-Chairman. This Robert
Correale was the same lawyer who was supposed to serve on Jack's
behalf in court but never once spoke and was obviously
unprepared. Cunningham soon faced an enemy
far more stealthy and far more cruel than that of the Viet Cong decades
before. He was now going to take on the cold,
faceless courts of New Jersey and, later, the Federal justice system. In total, Jack was in
'Divorce Default' for almost 4 months, because of lack of any activity from his law firm. It was up to the judge,
but he could lose all custody rights to his children, because of this default. To say that he was worried would
be an understatement. He was terrified about losing his children. That is why he hired the law firm in the first
place. He reached out to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) repeatedly for advice but they could not give
him legal advice. His doctor documented it all very well in medical records and recommended hospitalization. In
spite of how he was feeling, he knew that he could not go into a VA hospital. His children's custody was even more
at stake. He had to battle his own law firm. The VA doctor increased his medicine.
The first response Jack received
from the State Ethics Committee was one that simply
stated he should get a different attorney. Get a different attorney while in a divorce
default that his first attorney got him into. This, of course, was far from satisfactory:
what about the horrible representation
Jack received by the law firm and, by extension, Robert Correale? A document, sent by Correale
to the same Ethics committee
that he was on the board of, defended his law firm. The ethics violations
that Jack alleged were to be investigated
by- of all people- Robert Correale and the other lawyers on the committee, who Correale supervised!
In any other setting, this would be considered an extreme
violation of the legal system, a major Conflict
of Interest in the very least. However, it was permitted. A series of questionable events
would occur which illustrates the grave injustices that
Jack has faced for over 17 years. Correale would use his influence on the
Ethics committee to remove
himself and his law firm, Maynard & Truland from blame
and, later, court recordings related to a future
law suit (mentioned below)
"disappeared" before they could be officially transcribed. Finally,
if that weren't enough, Correale mocked Jack's
struggle with PTSD and brought a lawsuit claiming
that he owed his law firm an additional $2,000. Superior
Court Judge Ronald Graves handling Maynard & Truland's open bill law suit threw their
suit out but not before adding
that Jack gathered enough evidence to warrant his own lawsuit
for Legal Malpractice against Robert Correale and his law firm Maynard Truland. Jack felt it was like a dream.
He was going to get justice against this gang of corrupt lawyers. And he did it; at least his evidence did. He
felt, "Not bad for a PTSD vet." A few months later,
Superior Court Ronald Graves remarks could not be recovered for the court transcript, when
Jack was preparing for his legal malpractice suit. The part of the court audio where Judge Graves said that Jack's
evidence warranted the law division for damages went missing. Supreme Court Attorney Robert Correale and his law
firm Maynard & Truland had friends in high places. How all
of this occurred seems like a wild
conspiracy that could only be pure fiction but it's all true and it plagued
Jack daily. His PTSD was going through the roof and Jack's VA doctors wanted to hospitalize
him for the exacerbation. Already reeling from a divorce and his ongoing struggles
with PTSD,
he had to deal with the bureaucratic nightmare of the New
Jersey legal system. He had to continue fighting. Besides, who would ever believe this was happening to him.
He was a PTSD vet. He was all alone in this fight
just like so many times thirty years
before in his CAP unit in Vietnam. Soon, though, Jack wouldn't
be alone. Many are familiar with the Marine Corps
motto: "Semper Fi"
which stands for "Semper Fidelis"
which is Latin for "Always Faithful". Indeed, the Marines were always faithful
to Jack as a number of the Marines he served with in
the past- and a number of other vets who learned of
his struggle- reassured him that he was NOT alone in his fight. Jack led a letter writing campaign that went all the way up to
then-governor James Mcgreevey, who sent a return letter. Jack's letter stated that if the
Office of Attorney Ethics had Robert Correale own State Attorney
Ethics board investigate Jack's case it would be a major Conflict
of Interest and ethics violation. After months of writing and Ccing everyone in the
New Jersey State Government, Jack finally received a letter from New Jersey's Supreme
Court Director of Attorney Ethics that they realize there is a Conflict of Interest, if
Robert Correale own attorney ethics committee investigated him and his Maynard & Truland law firm.
This was a small victory for Jack but he went on. The investigation was moved to another nearby
ethics committee and a few of the involved lawyers were told to write up sworn certifications
of what was their version of Jack Cunningham's charges against them. One of the
law firm's partners, Joe Truland was strangely excused from writing up his own sworn
certification. In about two weeks, the Maynard and Truland sworn certifications
were released to the NJ Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics, along with copies to Jack.
These Certifications were filled with perjuries, vague, misleading and contradicting
statements. Robert Correale had the most detailed certification, which was filled
with the most perjury, vague and misleading statements. Being a NJ Supreme Court Attorney Ethics
committee member himself, he was probably used as the biggest liar for a reason.
In two areas of his sworn certification, Correale even openly mocked Jack's PTSD.
Nothing was questioned. Strangely, the certifications were accepted
by the committee supervisors without question with no supporting documentation and evidence as well.
What made it even more stranger was the fact that Jack himself supplied detailed
evidence and documents: the law firm's own contract, invoices, court filed letters, court filed documents, and even official-federal Veterans Affairs Medical Records that highlighted the impact the corruption
and fraud was having on Jack's PTSD. All the committee supervisors had to do
was review Jack's evidence and compare it to the certifications. The committee
sat on their decision for months. In a bizarre twist, Robert Correale and his law firm were cleared of any wrongdoing
despite obvious perjury in their certifications. The fact of Superior Judge Ronald
Graves' transcript went missing was never addressed by the Office of Attorney Ethics. Also, all the evidence that
Jack sent the office was never mentioned.
Jack's
letter writing campaign did not die
down. He would write and send key pieces of evidence to New Jersey Governors Richard Codey, Jon Corzine,
and the current Governor
Chris Christie, but he never received a return letter from any of their offices. Like all politicians,
before news cameras, each of these New Jersey governors praised veterans and highlighted
the importance of giving veterans their rights, respect and benefits that they earned. But they could not even return
a letter to Jack addressing New Jersey's denial of his due process.
Jack's life has not been all bad, though. He remarried and has been with his
wife Joan for fourteen years.
He and his ex-wife Alice- who herself recognized the overwhelming odds Jack is up against-
remain on friendly
terms. Their children, now adults are all successful. As strange as it may sound to many, Jack and Joan have
even been on a number of family vacations with his adult kids, their children and with
his ex-wife. He also stayed close with his ex-wife's family. He will always be called Uncle Jack. They
all even spend holidays together throughout the year. Over the years, people have
often teased him that he has two wives. He just feels that he has an extended-inner family. He still goes to regular
VA therapy sessions for PTSD and now resides in Sussex, New Jersey.
Jack is something of a
local and internet celebrity, because of all of his successful veteran advocacy causes.
He uses his data processing skills. He still keeps mostly isolated though. Four causes he is especially proud
of: Helping to save the USS ARIZONA Marine Remembrance Memorial at Pearl Harbor.
(See Below) Writing a poem and getting it produced addressed to all Vietnam veterans from America. To this day, some Vietnam veterans have asked to be buried with a copy of it. The third and fourth causes are
helping to push every year for a Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day on March 29 and getting a song 'Welcome Home' by Eric Horner and Lee Greenwood (God Bless The USA - Proud To Be An American fame) written and produced about Vietnam vets.
Everything Jack does is nonprofit. Sometimes his causes actually cost him money. But he says that he does
them, because he gets more out of it than money can bring.
His family only grew both in
strength and in numbers during Jack's legal battles: he
has five children and three step-children along with nine grandchildren.
He continues his therapy for PTSD and
has managed to keep ahead of his mental struggles. In February of this year, Jack finally
received even more support for
his efforts when a veterans foundation agreed to connect him to a team
of pro bono lawyers for his future federal
court case. But for reasons beyond Jack's control, the pro bono lawyers were unable to supply Jack with
their support. He's still again forced to represent himself to bring justice to New Jersey Supreme Court Office
of Attorney Ethics. But Jack has a history of fighting alone, or with a few tough supporters. He is just
as determined. He strongly believes that this type of fraud and corruption coming from this extremely important state
agency can be triggered against any and all average New Jersey citizens, or any citizen across our nation, who do not have
connections to power and corrupt influence. Jack does not consider himself a PTSD veteran who is looking for pity.
He does consider himself just an average, American Patriot fighting against injustice in government. The proud, Marine Vietnam veteran knows
the federal civil court battle will be even more intense than he ever fought. It's him as PRO SE and his strong evidence
up against the name and reputation of the New Jersey Supreme Court. In the end, Jack
would want federal criminal corruption and fraud charges against a number of
high level New Jersey Supreme Court lawyers for protecting
one of their own. He would also like federal charges brought against the tag-team of Maynard & Truland lawyers
who started it all. There is no argument about
Jack's heroic military service. His actions were above and beyond the line of duty
and he should be
recognized for it rather than discredited as a crazy, weak, unbelievable old man. The VA's motto comes from
the words of Abraham Lincoln:
"To care for him who shall have borne the battle" and these
words should influence all of our attitudes to the soldiers
who have returned home with even greater
personal struggles in their future. Should our government- who swore to take on the
responsibility of caring for every
last soldier living or dead- be allowed to throw Jack to the curb? His story
is just one of many other struggles
that veterans have been forced to face , and it's a grave injustice that we
can allow this to happen in this great country. So ask
yourself this Veteran's Day, this Memorial Day,
or any other day: Should outrages like these be covered up and forgotten, or should
they be used to open our country's eyes so our country's
finest can be helped in the future?
A Constitutional Attorney's Comments: John "Jack" Cunningham's case
against the State of New Jersey is interesting.
Statute of limitations issue
is bogus… fraud has no limitation
in federal court, and Statute of limitations runs from the time the
fraud is found… It is an
act to deceive, an act of
fraud, an act to manipulate due process, - sanctions should
be implemented – One of many cases
spell this out… Referring both to the objective and
subjective elements, we have held that qualified
immunity would be defeated if an official "knew
or reasonably should have known that
the action he took within
his sphere of official responsibility would violate the
constitutional rights of the [plaintiff], or if he took
the action with the malicious intention to cause
a deprivation of constitutional
rights or other injury." Harlow et al v. Fitzgerald,
457 U.S. 800; 102 S. Ct. 2727; 73 L. Ed. 2d 396; (1982).
(Emphasis added) File a civil suit in the
United States District Court for the District
of New Jersey (federal court) - file
this Civil Complaint under U.S.C. 28
§1331, federal question, civil actions arising under
the Constitution, under U.S.C. 42 §1983, a civil action for deprivation
of rights, and U.S.C. 42 §1985 a
civil action for Conspiracy to interfere with civil rights against all
Defendant’s you can list
(growing list below)… you can do it pro se and file an application
to proceed indigent… all documents are on the District of
New Jersey (federal court)’s
web site… State
courts have concurring jurisdiction over this type
of civil suit, it can
be filed in state
court BUT Federal Courts are more easygoing with
Pro Se writings, minor errors in format and rules etc…
And if a state attorney represented anyone, the challenge here
would be if he was authorized to do so…
i.e. an application filed for their service, defendant
within the scope of employment…
etc… if not.. it was fraud… Check
out the principles of the Noerr-Pennington
Doctrine… first Amendment Rights… you may have further
elements to build your case… Void Judgments, move to vacate previous judgments
for harmful errors, constitutional violations, fraud…
etc… all forms and docs you need are on the court web sites.
................................................................... USS ARIZONA Marine Remembrance
Memorial at Pearl Harbor Band of Marine Brothers,
One of our own
needs your help. He has mine.
As you obviously know if you
are reading this, Jack Cunningham's "Proud CAP Marine" blog and e-info
efforts reach a great number of Marines, friends and families
of Marines as well many active duty Marines from the past. I've
found it to be a powerful tool.
A couple of years ago,
I was the Operations Officer for the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center,
on the waterfront between the USS ARIZONA and the USS BOWFIN. The
Commandant of the Marine Corps was the featured speaker at the dedication
of the USS ARIZONA Marine Remembrance, 10 November 2006. The
National Park Service, which administers the USS ARIZONA Memorial
is renovating all of Halawa Landing, the site of the Marine Remembrance.
The Regional Director of the Natl Park Service
Western Region, Jon Jarvis, stated on the local TV news that the Marine Remembrance would be removed. I
challenged him on that statement and convinced
him that would not happen without a fight. I passed the word
to Jack, who in turn asked his readership to email Jarvis that
the entire USMC would make every effort to have him relieved of his duties
if he moved that monument. I was copied on many of the emails
to him from Marines, their friends and their families that it
nearly fried my computer. And...it worked. In order to save
his job, Jarvis backed down. The Remembrance now belongs to the USMC and
has its' rightful place in direct view of the USS ARIZONA.
That campaign
showed me the power of the internet
when focused on a meaningful issue. As I'm sure you also know, Jack has had an ongoing
battle with the State of New Jersey
regarding the way he was treated by corrupt politicians. We can help him. Marines
take care of Marines. I ask you to join me in a vigorous e-mail campaign (And
phone call campaign) to Congressman Scott Garrett as well as
Gov Jon Corzine (And now Governor Chris Christie) to
demand an investigation. The contact addresses are listed below. We never
leave a Marine on the battlefield - lets not leave one to the criminal
politicians. Join me in protest.
Semper Fidelis,
Colonel John R. Bates USMC (ret)
THIS CAN HAPPEN TO
ANYONE IN THIS CORRUPT STATE - OVER 3,300 VIEWS IN JUST OVER...
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