The mountains of North Georgia are some of the most beautiful and peaceful country in America. The air is cleaner and cooler than the state in general. The rolling countryside is covered, end-to-end, in old-growth trees. The people (most of them) are as friendly as can be. The pace is slower. There’s a happiness that descends on the spirit there. There’s also a malignancy. I know all of this first-hand; I used to live in the shadow of those hills.

Remember Boss Hogg (J.D. Hogg) from The Dukes of Hazard? He was the fat guy in the white suit who owned and controlled everything – the bank, the court, the police, the roads, etc. He was a gangster and a crook, although a very lovable one. To a degree, that funny, fictional character was based on some very real but not very funny people.

Warner Brothers, CBS.

A local journalist suspected there might have been a little financial hanky-panky in the local Superior Court. Pursuant to state law he and his attorney filed an open records request, looking for canceled checks and other evidence of (minor) misconduct.

His legal requests stirred the anger of Superior Court Judge Brenda Weaver, who obviously felt she had something to hide. Rather than letting the requests play out (admitting a little impropriety, if necessary, and moving on) or administratively (legally) moving to block the requests, she single-handedly instigated a fake criminal investigation. Both the journalist and his attorney were charged with utterly false counts of felony identity theft. The local district attorney and the local police were complicit in this scheme.

Much of Georgia government works that way. For instance, sometimes an insurance company will audit a policy and arbitrarily decide someone owes more premium money – even if the person isn’t a policy-holder. That’s barely even a civil matter. If the person (rightly) refuses to give his money to the insurance crooks, the crooks turn him over to the state Insurance Commission. The Commission has its own police force, who will bring felony fraud charges against the completely unconnected and innocent person as a form of revenge for the real crooks. The insurance industry, and others, pay a lot of money for this malicious extortion privilege. They’re aren’t above the law – they are the law.

So it is with Judge Weaver and her friends. They would be more than happy to use a major crime to cover up a small malfeasance. But for national news coverage of their plot, they might have gotten away with it. Once the story broke on the Drudge Report, the charges were dropped. The FBI is now investigating.

Of course, the FBI is looking for financial irregularities, not into corruption and false prosecution. Being agents of the banksters, they look after money – not after you and me. That’s why Denny Hastert is in prison: not for molesting children, but for technical banking deviance.

Even the end of the trumped-up felony charges in this case smacked of evil oppression. A visiting, senior judge was brought in to dismiss the charges. He held a hearing reminiscent of Soviet-style censorship and threat. I read the comments in the above-linked story about the bizarre hearing. One was written by a friend of mine, the very best adoption attorney in the state of Georgia. She recounted how tyrannical and terrible the hearing judge had been to her clients in the past.

None of this surprises me. I used to live nearby and I know of a few of these Boss Hogg-like characters. Only a few years ago, in the same location, several elected officials were arrested for their parts in a cock-fighting and gambling ring. I think every one of them was re-elected. It makes sense. Even when he was out to get them, the Duke boys frequently stood up for old J.D.

So, what becomes of justice in the hills? I imagine a civil suit and an expensive settlement will come along sooner or later. The FBI is following the money for the money’s sake. If the governor or the attorney general cared, they could take action. They don’t and they won’t. What else is left?

There are two ways to (legally) get rid of a bad Georgia judge. A judge can be impeached by the General Assembly. This is extraordinarily rare. Getting that body to do anything is a difficult task. Asking them (corrupt to the core, mostly) to investigate corruption is like asking the fox to look into a hen-house attack.

The other option is for a formal complaint to be filed with the Georgia Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC). If the Commission finds cause, they will recommend the Supreme Court order the judge to vacate her office. This is almost as rare as an impeachment.

In this particular case, complaints have already been filed with the JQC. They will slowly investigate. I don’t look for much to come out of it. The Chairman of the JQC is none other than Judge Brenda Weaver. Convenient, huh?

Yeeeah….. State of Georgia.

I still encourage people to visit those mountains. From the Reese Apple Farm to Amicalola Falls, it’s a fantastic region. Just mind your P’s and Q’s; don’t upset their apple cart or you may be in for a fall.