About Me

Have you ever seen something at work that you KNEW was wrong? You knew it violated regulations, or safety, or was fraudulent, or wasted taxpayer money, and you did not know what to do?  So you did not say anything because you understood what would happen, am I right?  Or, did you say something and now your life has been turned upside down, your health suffered, you lost your job, the list goes on and on.

Welcome to my world.

I'm a lawyer who passed the bar and was asked to stay with the firm I had been working for while in law school. I said "yes" and we moved to the highest floor in the tallest building in Birmingham.  Personal injury was good work but I decided to apply for federal government jobs. I was thrilled when I was asked to be an attorney advisor in Jacksonville, Florida. My husband and I had an agreement, since I was the breadwinner, he would go wherever I went. Naturally, I applied for promotions, which took us to Chattanooga, Baltimore, Washington, DC and while riding the metro, I got a call asking if I would accept a position as a chief/managing judge in St. Louis. "Yes!"

All these promotions and paid relocations took place in a 4 year span.

I loved, loved, loved my job as a judge. I heard and decided Social Security Disability cases and the St. Louis "project" was a new concept (Shout out to the late Ray Meisels and Judge Robert Wright).

We would hear and decide the OLDEST cases all across the country. We held hearings by video, with experts via telephone and the claimant only had to travel to his/her local office or attorney's office. Attorneys had to spend up to $10k to get compatible equipment, we had some bugs, but soon, we were hearing 1700 day-old cases, then 1600, then 1500, etc. We were literally whittling down the back up.  Statistics published online at the time showed I was the most productive judge and heard the most cases, Every month, I received letters of commendation for my work (# letters reminder) and I also received an award for excellence management which immediately found its place on the wall behind my desk.

I loved my ob so much, I loved helping people but most of all, I loved being a public servant.  Trust me, I had worked with hundreds of judges who thought they were high and mighty. They thought they were Article III judges. They believed the only difference between God and themselves was that could could see them.

It was none of my business. I just worked on my cases, did the best I could, erred on the side of the claimant, and was fair and unbiased.  

I can provide a list of at least 150-200 people who would vouch for my work ethic. Seriously. I will never lie to you.

Meanwhile, I missed Alabama and wanted a transfer home so I put my name on the transfer list with 3 cities: Birmingham, Montgomery, and Mobile. "KFO" warned me in 2006 or 2007 that I should stay away from Mobile because 1) she had worked there and it was cliquish; 2) the working environment was very toxic; and (3) that office violated rules and regulations with blessings from high up. When I applied for a transfer to Alabama in 2011, I totally forgot about that tidbit. Just never came to mind, that's all.

It started happening 4 weeks before I arrived....