July 17, 2007

RICK SMID- ARUBA’S DIRTIEST JUDGE

**Thanks to Natalee's Freebirds for this great article!




Many of the judicial rulings by the Dutch judges in the Natalee Holloway case have been highly questionable, some so openly biased in favor of the Van der Sloot family they smack of corruption. For instance, when a search warrant was being executed on the Van Der Sloot home on June 15, 2005 investigators were surprised to find Curacao Judge Bob Wit open the door and inform them their search would not include the main Van Der Sloot residence or the surrounding property.


Judge Bob Wit


Eight days later when Joran’s father Paulus Van Der Sloot was arrested for "reasonable suspicion" in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway Judge Bob Wit intervened again, disallowing a search of the Van Der Sloot home. Ironically, no such limitations were ever placed on the search of the homes of two black security guards who were arrested on June 5, 2005. In fact, Aruban police ransacked their homes and purposely walked them in front of the media, only later having to release them because there was no evidence that, unlike Joran Van Der Sloot and Deepak and Satish Kalpoe, they had ever been in contact with Natalee Holloway.


Since when do suspects in a murder investigation
get a free pass from having their house searched?



Prior to the disappearance of Natalee Holloway it is well known that Paulus Van Der Sloot had been a Dutch judge in training. Did his connections to the judiciary in Aruba and nearby Curacao have any influence on these rulings by Judge Bob Wit? Judge Bob Wit's early decisions in the Natalee Holloway case would start a chain reaction of pro-Dutch, anti-victim rulings that would eventually free the Van Der Sloots from facing criminal charges.



JUDGE RICK SMID, ARUBA’S DIRTIEST JUDGE,
IGNORES INCRIMINATING EVIDENCE

AGAINST THE MAIN SUSPECTS



However, “Aruba’s Dirtiest Judge”, goes to Dutch Judge Rick Smid for his extremely questionable rulings in the Natalee Holloway case. This one judge has caused as much damage to the Holloway case being solved as is humanly possible.



IT WAS RICK SMID WHO SET THE STAGE
FOR JORAN VAN DER SLOOT TO
FLEE THE ISLAND OF ARUBA.



Police statements from Joran and the Kalpoe brothers—the last people to be seen with Natalee Holloway-- have revealed many disparities in their accounts of what happened that night she disappeared.


In a secretly recorded conversation in a police van on June 25, 2005 the three suspects engaged in heated arguments about who was responsible for Nataleee’s demise, implicating not only each other but Joran’s father Paulus.


It is clear from these tapes and other statements the suspects gave to police, that the three suspects had detailed and intimate knowledge that something bad had happened to Miss Holloway. Joran even described the victim’s undergarments in great detail.


Judge Rick Smid chose to completely ignore the fact that the main suspects were telling different accounts of what happened to Natalee that night. Why did judge Smid ignore such glaring and obvious contradictions in the stories of the three suspects? Even the simplest of minds would know that some of the parties were telling lies, indicating a clear measure of guilt.


JOSSY MANSUR, EDITOR DIARIO ARUBA
Monday, November 21, 2005

No one has accused them of murder, but they themselves admitted to police during interrogations that something bad happened to Natalee while she was with them, without specifying what ‘something bad’ was! That they admitted to committing sexual abuse against her.


It is not extensive that the judge who presided over the case and decided that some things were inadmissible. He could be the best judge in the world, but in this case, he made light of and greatly neglected to pay attention to the three suspects’ admissions, since he didn’t even interrogate them about what was left hanging in the air, such as the declaration of Joran at the beach that he believes that Deepak raped and killed Natalee! How did this matter end there? How were the other accusations and counter-accusations among the three suspects not evaluated for their just content?



RICK SMID SHIELDS THE SUSPECTS FROM
FURTHER TESTIMONY AND ALLOWS
THE MAIN SUSPECT TO FLEE THE ISLAND


Judge Rick Smid was very aware of the discrepancies and inconsistencies in Joran Van der Sloot’s and the Kalpoe’s stories when he made several of his rulings in the case. Judge Smid was also aware Joran had lied about dropping off Natalee Holloway off at the Holiday Inn and had told four differing and contradictory stories as to how he got home that night. The Kalpoe brothers to this day disagree with Joran Van der Sloot on how he got home early that morning.


In an Aruban court on August 30, 2005 Judge Rick Smid ruled there was enough evidence that Joran Van Der Sloot should be held in police custody another 30 days. Then Judge Smid does something very unusual. He returns to his office in Curacao and faxes in a reversal of his ruling only hours later.



Citing an obscure Dutch case dubbed the “Ponson Rule”, Judge Smid ruled that Joran’s schoolwork was more important than the case of a missing, and most likely, murdered, tourist. It should be noted the Ponson Rule was originally instituted for a baseball player who was involved in a case nowhere near as serious as murder.


As a direct result of Judge Rick Smid's ruling, Joran Van Der Sloot (to this day the main suspect in Natalee Holloway’s disappearance) was released from police custody on September 3, 2005 and immediately fled the island of Aruba to the safety of Holland three days later.


Less than two weeks later three Dutch Superior Court judges in Curacao delivered their final coup de grace. On September 14, 2005, in a ruling by three Dutch judges from Curacao, Joran Van Der Sloot and the Kalpoes brothers were all released unconditionally. This order prevented law enforcement from taking any further testimony from the three suspects in the Natalee Holloway case - despite the fact their accounts of what happened the night Natalee Holloway disappeared in their company are drastically different.


Why would these three judges release the three main suspects from giving further testimony when those same judges knew full well the suspects lied to police, with conflicting stories from one suspect to the next?


Rogue Judge Rick Smid's rulings would be a devastating blow to the Natalee Holloway case. When Aruba spokesperson Steve Cohen promised the American public the three suspects would be brought back in for questioning in December 2005, it was revealed they would never have to testify again. All of this as a result of Judge Rick Smid's abuse of his position on the bench.



ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 1, 2005


The judge in the case issued two rulings: In the first, he agreed with prosecutors' request to extend the period of van der Sloot's pretrial detention by 30 more days. But later Thursday, the judge issued another ruling that sided with the defense — an order to immediately suspend the execution of his earlier pretrial detention order.



BETH TWITTY ON NANCY GRACE
September 13, 2005


GRACE: What was the grounds? Why did they release them?


TWITTY: You know, Nancy, there was absolutely no -- no grounds for them to be released. And I spoke with the Dutch interrogators. And even as of September the 1st, things were really progressing well, and Joran and Deepak and Satish, they had -- these young men had divided, and they were not denying a crime anymore. They were merely implicating each other. And the list of inconsistencies was presented before Judge Smit. The reasonable doubt was there. I don`t have any idea why he fled the island and then faxed a reversal decision. It just is incredible.



JOSSY MANSUR
Monday, October 1, 2005


Did the judge who came from Curacao probably plan take the decisions he took, spoiled the case? With all due respect for the position you have taken, have you seen what happened?


The case was resolved in phases the same judge planned: first release Paul v.d. Sloot , then he came back to release the Kalpoe brothers and the third phase he executed now when came to set Joran free because Joran expressed his wish to continue his studies.


I have similarly not made any accusations of any sort against the Kalpoe brothers; what I have repeated is what can be found in the Polis reports where they started pointing the fingers one against the other! It is in these three phases here that Americans see the corruption of our justice system.



THE DUTCH JUDGES ARE PART OF
THE
ARUBA "GOOD OLE BOY" NETWORK
THAT PROTECTS THEIR OWN



The Aruban government and law enforcement are riddled with good ole boy friendships that usurp their ability to exact justice when one of their own is involved in a crime. It has been rumored that Judge Rick Smid was a close personal friend of Paulus Van Der Sloot and had stayed in his residence on occasion during his visits to Aruba. Judging by his rulings, this would seem to be the case.


Jossy Mansur points out that the Dutch judges were in collusion all along in an editorial that ran in his newspaper, El Diario Aruba. Given such a biased series of rulings in the Natalee Holloway case it is hard not to believe these judges all worked in unison to deny justice to the American victim in favor of saving their fellow Dutch nationalists' from facing their crimes in a court of law.


To this day Joran Van Der Sloot is considered the main suspect in the Natalee Holloway case, and his father Paulus was recently denied compensation when it was revealed through a wiretapped conversation he had met Natalee Holloway the same day she disappeared – not once, but twice.


It is well known that Paulus Van Der Sloot is suspected of covering up his son's criminal acts against Natalee Holloway and some believe he had direct involvement in her demise. His lies in police statements concerning his whereabouts the night Holloway disappeared, in addition to stating he had never met Holloway, exposed in court, serve to reinforce such suspicions. Yet the Dutch have chosen to do nothing in the case even though it is well proven all of the suspects lied as both witnesses and suspects, and thanks to the Dutch judges' orders they will not have to face questioning again.



JOSSY MANSUR ON NANCY GRACE
October 4, 2005


GRACE: … Jossy, regarding the connection, what I perceived to be a close connection between the judge, Paulus Van Der Sloot and the retired chief of police who initially handled Natalee`s case, Van Der Stratten, were they friends?


MANSUR: Of course, they were friends. It stands to reason they were friends because Paul Van Der Sloot had many friends within the police department; he had many friends within the Department of Justice. And he had many friends with -- and he was friendly with all the judges in Aruba. He worked out of the same office as they did and did the same work.




RICK SMID'S HISTORY OF LENIENCE ON CRIMINALS
RAISES QUESTIONS OF HIS INTEGRITY
AND ABILITY TO SERVE AS A JUDGE.


IF RICK SMID WILL DO THIS FOR
NON-DUTCH CRIMINALS, IMAGINE WHAT HE WILL DO
FOR HIS DUTCH FRIENDS AND CO-WORKERS?



Rick Smid refuses to have human traffickers and drug dealers arrested:


PHILIPSBURG - Two men considered to be the local organisers of what the Prosecutor’s Office believes to be a Chinese-led human smuggling operation are facing six- and eight-year prison sentences. They were also accused Thursday of involvement in the drug trade, mainly cocaine. The Prosecutor further requested the immediate arrest of both suspects, who had been released from pre-trial detention in April, but this was turned down by Judge Rick Smid.




Rick Smid gives human trafficker 38 days in jail:


PHILIPSBURG--While investigations are ongoing into the alleged involvement of a police commissioner in human trafficking, a 28-year-old man was found guilty by the Court of First Instance on Wednesday of having tried to bribe Chief Immigration Officer Ademar Doran. Judge Rick Smid sentenced Stephen Bruney to 180 days, 142 of which to be suspended, with three years’ probation and 200 hours of community service.




IN COWARDLY FASHION, SMID RELEASES
THE SUSPECTS UNDER THE MEDIA
BLUR OF HURRICANE KATRINA


Had Hurricane Katrina not taken the spotlight off of Aruba, Judge Smid may have reconsidered his ruling. Instead it seems he found the catastrophe the perfect time to make such a bold and suspicious judgment. While American eyes were turned to the Gulf Coast of the U.S., Rick Smid took full advantage to free Joran van der Sloot and allow this suspect’s flight to Holland.



Smid takes advantage of a catastrophe to deal his own damage:



NANCY GRACE
September 13, 2005


BETH HOLLOWAY TWITTY: Well, you know, Nancy, I was thinking, I knew there was corruption and cover-up involved. But I certainly didn`t know they were cowards either, and to hide beneath the cloak of Hurricane Katrina is just reprehensible. And you know, I think -- I think of the Dutch government, and I want to keep the focus on this political party in place, NEP (ph). I think of this judge, Rick Smit. And I can`t imagine putting the suspects` rights or the suspects, you know, before the victim of Natalee, and that why should he choose to be concerned about Joran attending university in The Hague? It just is unbelievable.


GRACE: What was the grounds? Why did they release them?


TWITTY: You know, Nancy, there was absolutely no -- no grounds for them to be released. And I spoke with the Dutch interrogators. And even as of September the 1st, things were really progressing well, and Joran and Deepak and Satish, they had -- these young men had divided, and they were not denying a crime anymore. They were merely implicating each other. And the list of inconsistencies was presented before Judge Smit. The reasonable doubt was there. I don`t have any idea why he fled the island and then faxed a reversal decision. It just is incredible.




QUESTIONS ABOUT RICK SMID
AND HIS FELLOW JUDGE BOB WIT:


*Why would a judge block the search of the home belonging to a suspect in a murder investigation? Was this because Paulus Van Der Sloot was a Dutch judge in training? If not, why were the two black security guards not given the same consideration days earlier when their homes were ransacked by investigators and police?


*Why would Judge Rick Smid rule a suspect be held in custody for another 30 days and reverse his own ruling within hours after he had fled the island of Aruba to his office in Curacao? Was he afraid he might have to explain his ruling to the media while he was still on the island of Aruba? What was Judge Smid afraid of? Why the deception?


*Why did Judge Rick Smid overlook incriminating testimony by a suspect and release him by citing his “schoolwork” as being the more important factor in the case? Since when does a suspect’s "schoolwork" take precedence over finding justice for a murdered tourist? Is it because Joran Van der Sloot is Dutch and Natalee Holloway is merely a missing victim?


*What kind of judge can look at basic, rudimentary statements with conflicting testimonies from three suspects and release them from further questioning by the authorities?


*Why have all these Dutch judges made such favorable rulings in favor of Joran Van Der Sloot, shielding him from further legal action when, in fact, he is the main suspect in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway? Joran Van Der Sloot, who has been diagnosed by both Dutch and U.S. investigators as a "pathological liar", remains free today as a result of such obviously biased rulings.


*What kind of judicial system places favoritism over justice through the use of ambiguous rulings in favor of suspected criminals? The judges from Curacao, including Rick Smid, have given the Dutch judicial system a black eye worldwide.



"And he (Paulus Van der Sloot) was friendly with all the judges in Aruba. He worked out of the same office as they did and did the same work." --Jossy Mansur



Natalee and her family deserve justice, and we will not let up until they have it!


14 comments:

Anonymous said...

The Dutch Judges have a siblings system where their mother is Queen Bea. Bob Wit and Rik Smid were sired in the same litter by certain loyal Dutch elites. Most judges don't have formal law school training, all they have to do is to pass the oral exam given by the Queen every five years. The Dutch Law is an oral law template given by Napolean during the French Revolution. Dutch Law is not written in stone tablets, and they can be changed by the Dutch judges at will. That's why the Netherlands have been into such a death trap today of drugs, prostitutions, rapes and murders. Rik Smid might have commit some crimes in the past and was covered up by the siblings system. Joran is just a byproduct of the Dutch corruption and coverup process. Many law experts and historians discovered that the Dutch law is essential evil and injustice at the cost of the victims to protect the Queen's favorites.

Anonymous said...

Wow!

Just wow!!!!

Great job, Freebirds!

That is just disgusting. How does Aruba think they can get away with baloney like this?

BOYCOTT ARUBA!!!

Anonymous said...

Yes, it's true people with a criminal past can become a Dutch judge if his crime committed was to protect the Emperor as declared by Napolean on his comeback to power from the exile. As matter of fact the sailors who brought Napolean ahore on southern France were mostly Dutch,

Anonymous said...

All the Dutch judges rule the cases in closed chambers and locked inside and outside to prevent the escape of the instructions. They are trained to be secretive and elusive to support the Kingdom governing infrastructures.

Anonymous said...

Thank you, Freebirds!

Did you know that BFN is turning into
Blogs Forgetting Natalee?

Loyal supporters have left in disgust or
were banned.

Yet, Julia Renfro is permitted to freely
post her lies there.

Anonymous said...

The Family only read Michelle's blogs. They know Michelle is their true friend. BFN is now officially Dutch.

Michelle Says So 2.0 said...

Whatever! The "true friend" remark was stupid...and hopefully sarcasm. Everyone knows Robin hates me and this blog...I'm sure Dave feels the same way; and Beth doesn't have time to read blogs.

Although, I will agree that BFN is going dutch...at least that's the scoop. I heard that they allow Julia Renfro and other scumbags post there while they kick off loyal members.

Whatever. No comment.

Anonymous said...

Isn't BFN the site where Robin Holloway is so friendly with the Arubans?

Why does she do that? Seems to me you wouldn't befriend people who say terrible things about your step-daughter.

I guess I'm glad I don't read there.

Thank you Michelle and all of your contributors for continuing to uphold this victim and her family - and for DEMANDING THE TRUTH out of Aruba.

Anonymous said...

You have to ask yourself whether, after the HI lie
fell apart, this was all planned and sequenced in advance. One obvious question is whether the
arrest of Joran was delayed so that he could graduate from high school so that he would be eligible for
the educational waiver handed out by Smid. No
high school diploma, no college admission.

Anonymous said...

The Family include Natalee. You are a true friend to her. Natalee inspire her words to you from time to time when you are down.

Anonymous said...

Everyone knows Robin hates me and this blog...I'm sure Dave feels the same way; and Beth doesn't have time to read blogs ... Michelle
++++++++++++++++++++++

Michelle ... something does not make sense. When Dave publicly speaks ... it is obvious that his position has not wavered. He still contends that a corrupt Aruban investigation is distancing Paulus and Joran from implication and ... denying his daughter justice. He referred to the article/ video "The Other Side of the Holloway Case" as tabloid reporting "at best". This is the article/ video upheld by Robin's friend ... Mark Purcell. This is the article/ video which ... Mark Purcell's friend ... Julia Renfro ... was behind.
Janet AKA Tamikosmom
.
FOX ONLINE
July 15, 2007
JAMIE COLBY: The Dutch newspaper says Natalee's mother got a ransom call early on. Is it a ploy by Aruban authorities to cover their tracks for a botched investigation? John Q Kelly calls all of this absurd. Natalee Holloway disappeared in Aruba two years ago, now a Dutch newspaper is claiming that Natalee's mother stalled on a chance to find her daughter. According to that paper, Beth Twitty got a ransom call asking for $4,000 in return for information on the location of Natalee's body shortly after she disappeared. The report says that Beth offered to pay only $1,000 of the ransom.
DAVE HOLLOWAY: ... If this is something that was true, it was escalated out of control. I WOULD CALL THIS PROBABLY TABLOID REPORTING AT BEST.
.
Transcript Credit: Heli-RU

Dan in Tx said...

Hold on...I thought the Netherland Antilles didn't have any human trafficking problems!

Uncle Jossy even says so!

Dan in Tx said...

That reminds me of the case of Natasha Kamputsch. She was abducted at age 8 in Austria and escaped her captor after 10 years. One of the lies her captor told her? That he offered a ransom to her family but they didn't want to pay!

That's no coincidence- its criminals trying to place blame on the victim. JUlia is the same level of scumbag as a man who held and sexually abused a young girl for 10 years, plain and simple.

Anonymous said...

There's that word again. That Aruba and the Dutch use so often. "Botched" investigation. There was never anything "Botched" It was a coverup.