Orange County, California
For decades, family court cases in Orange County, California, have faced systemic issues that detrimentally impact families, especially in cases involving domestic violence and child abuse. The 2014 case of Ruby Dillon and her daughter Lexi, 2023 cases of Tawny Minna Grossman and Tar Nolan, along with multiple cases in my series on Jessica St. Clair, illustrates these problems, as judges ignored serious abuse allegations and awarded custody to the accused parent, statically fathers.
Judge James L. Waltz has presided over cases in Orange County family court since 2002, often accused of disproportionately favoring fathers, law enforcement, and established community figures over protective parents. His conduct in several cases has raised red flags, sparking both complaints and calls for investigation. Waltz also worked alongside of Jessica St. Clair since 2007, appointing her or recommending her in many cases. Waltz is set to retire before the end of this November.
In April, St. Clair abruptly withdrew from all her family law cases (see related article). Shortly after, it was revealed that she had misled the courts by falsely claiming to hold a Ph.D. (see article and documents here). St. Clair has been linked to a network of mental health professionals, judges, lawyers and minors’ counsels working to “reunify” children with abusive parents, while unjustly separating them from protective ones in Orange County family court cases. In many cases cutting off all contact with the safe parent.