Kansas City, Kansas May 13, 2024 (Issuewire.com) – Recent investigations by local court watchers in the District of Kansas federal courts have uncovered significant state court judicial misconduct by Chief Judge Charles Droege of Johnson County District Court, just south of Kansas City, igniting a firestorm national family court scandal. The following was all pulled out of an Unprecedent pro se display that is showing as public record in the high court dockets of Kansas. Federal filed documents from a pro se father into the ongoing civil rights lawsuit in the District of Kansas case Escalante et al minor children vs. Gardner Police (Case No. 2:23-CV02529), currently on appeal in the 10th Circuit, have revealed county transcripts showing a manipulation of the justice system and deviations from Kansas laws occurring by Chief Judge Droege in both civil and criminal cases involving the pro se litigant father, M.A.E. This father becoming widely known as the ‘Kansas Dad’, since October 2023, has ushered 6 federal civil rights lawsuits against several Kansas judges and officers of the Johnson County court.

The Chief Judge Droege, typically an administrative judge overseeing courthouse operations, has controversially now presided over several criminal cases in particular, raising serious ethical concerns. The concern brews when it’s seen those cases belong to the pro se dad, and the father just forced the state prosecution into dismissal of one of those cases in a victory on April 26, 2024.

Key Findings by Court Watchers released on Monday morning:

That pro se dad is painting a picture in a high court docket of state court corruption, and its unprecedented in approach. It’s a picture of fatherhood vs parental alienation in the highest court of the state.

Escalante v. Gardner, Kansas, City of (2:23-cv-02529), Kansas District Court (pacermonitor.com)

Dismissed Civil Rights Lawsuit: The pro se father and his children’s lawsuit against the Gardner Police Department (2:23-CV02529) was dismissed on April 17, 2024 but continues to receive docket uploads from the father. The case is under review in the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, CO. Also seen in the 10th circuit currently is Escalante vs Federal Judge John Broomes, Judicial Complaint No. 10-24-90011. It’s a misconduct inquiry investigation that has began the same week of the lawsuit dismissal and is probing into the Kansas cases and the federal judiciary’s handling of those matters.

Judicial Misconduct suggestion of evidence: The father has uploaded at least 20 exhibits labeled as county judicial fraud evidence. The most compelling is seen in images, as Exhibit 26-1, its a recent transcript from Johnson County criminal court, that strongly implicates Chief Judge Droege in controversial decisions involving two criminal cases against the father. One case, State vs. Escalante (24DV00172), was dismissed by the father two weeks ago. The other case (23DV00908) revolves around civil protection orders and alleged violation of it, originally issued by suspended family court Judge Paul W. Burmaster of Division 14. Burmaster was removed from the father’s civil proceedings in November 2023 (18CV03813). Droege’s takeover of the dad’s purported criminal proceeding raises serious ethical concerns, especially since the father managed to dismiss one entirely on April 26, 2023. It also alleged a violation of the protection order, finding was not guilty, dismissed by the prosecution.

The Unresolved Purported Criminal Complaint 23-DV00908: The federal exhibits lay out a linear timeline of Gardner Sergeant Miguel Viruetes filing a criminal complaint against the father a year ago, which remains still unprosecuted (23DV00908). Droege then appeared 5 weeks ago, as presiding judge of that case after removing yet another judge off the dads’ cases, and Droege appears to have disregarded Kansas’s statutory requirements for judicial disqualification to do it(KSA 20-311b) as Droege is seen holding now all of the father civil cases too. Transcript pages in Exhibit 26-1 show Droege speaking threateningly to the father, who is questioning Droege’s presence and involvement in the criminal case. The pair, judge and litigant in that transcript are in a very contentious verbal battle and the dad is telling the Chief to step down multiple times in the transcript and alleges fraud upon the court against him as a whistleblower. And the father showing no fear of corruption.

Ethical Violations: Other docket entries in the PD lawsuit reveal nearly two dozen ethical complaints against Droege assigned by the Kansas Commission of Judicial Conduct just in the last 10 days, predominantly from that transcript and hearing. Exhibit 26-1, file stamped into the high court on May 7th 2024, is followed by a Motion for Relief from Judgment under Rule 60(b)(2), indicating potential grounds to recall the dismissed lawsuit back to Kansas ahead of the appeal outcome. The Rule 60 motion is consistent with the transcript statements that are alleging the Sergeant has brought the case of 23-DV00908 with false affidavit statements, criminal perjury to bring a false arrest. That is a very serious allegation flying around in that transcript and case.

Overall, these findings come at a time when public trust in the judicial system is critically low, especially in the nations family courts. Advocates in Kansas City have begun speaking out, viciously against the JoCo judiciary with calls for transparency and justice appearing on social media. There is an urgent demand for a thorough investigation by appropriate legal authorities and third-party oversight in the 10th district. Because wait, there’s more…..

Broader Scandal Details:

Chief Judge Charles Droege faces further allegations of prolonged misconduct and abuse of power, not only in criminal matters but also in civil matters. A Johnson County civil case (24-CV02325), involving a protection from abuse petition filed by the same father on behalf of his daughters (Escalante et al minor children vs. Droege), named Chief Droege as a defendant. Despite this, Droege presided over the proceedings last week, and he dismissed his own case against him and sealed the records, but not before the dad flopped all the documents into the Gardner suit docket. This chief action as a whole is representing a clear conflict of interest and a flagrant violation of Kansas ethical judicial canons.
And parallel to all that occurring in the past months, there is another Kansas pro se dad, Steven Knoche, also from the court of former Judge Paul Burmaster. Knoche father, also has a civil rights lawsuit in the district of Kansas and it’s against Chief Judge Charles Droege, with federal claims of docket manipulation and court order tampering.

Knoche v. Droege (2:24-cv-02150), Kansas District Court (pacermonitor.com)

The case of Knoche vs Droege 2:24-CV02150, contains a damning Exhibit A, attached to the complaint showing in its docket. It’s an administrative order with the undersigned Charles James Droege, that appears as an administrative court order but upon inspection, it’s missing something on its document face. It’s not File Stamped into county records and it is essentially threatening the Knoche father with sanctions and contempt’s, if the father shows any of the documents in his kids custody case to anyone. There is discovery in the 10th district coming with Charles Droege that is sure to leave this country with their jaw dropped, pertaining to Johnson County family court matters.
Social media in the KC metro was exploding on Monday with conspiracy theories surrounding Droege and Burmaster. The public demands accountability and transparency in response to this blatant disregard for justice principles.

As the investigation unfolds, citizens of the State and beyond await assurances from the Kansas Supreme Court and the Kansas federal judiciary that justice will prevail and that the State Constitution is still intact, but moreover that Kansas family courts have not been contaminated with Corruption.

A large social crowd is beginning to follow these dads, over 2 million views had accrued just on TikTok of the KansasDadvocate

The Dadvocate (@thekansasdadvocate) | TikTok

The Dadvocate (@thekansasdadvocate) | TikTok