"Wise up or die" guy found guilty

[Demosthenes]

Judge: Man's E-mail a Threat
Lebanon Councilor Was Target
By Peter Jamison
Valley News Staff Writer

Lebanon -- A longtime supporter of tax protesters Ed and Elaine Brown was found guilty yesterday of criminally threatening a 78-year-old Lebanon City Councilor.

Joe Haas, 54, of Gilmanton Iron Works, N.H., was fined the maximum $1,200 fine for the nonjailable offense by Judge Bruce Cardello, who said he would suspend $750 of the fine on the condition that Haas avoid all contact with Councilor Terri Dudley for the next two years. Haas had sent an e-mail to Dudley in June in which he wrote, “WISE UP OR DIE.”

“I share the same concern that others have about the degree of unnecessary fear and consternation you have caused the victim,” Cardello told Haas as he delivered the ruling in Lebanon District Court. Cardello, a Newport District Court judge, heard the case because both regular Lebanon judges had recused themselves because of ties to Dudley.

“I feel justice has been served,” Dudley said of the ruling. “It is long overdue in the case of Mr. Haas. He has threatened many people and gotten away with it, and this time, he was called to account for his actions.”

Haas, who represented himself, paused from arguing with a court clerk about his fine after the trial yesterday to say that he would seek an attorney's aid in drafting a motion to reconsider. “I acknowledge it was a nasty letter,” he said of his e-mail to Dudley. “But since when can you be found guilty on a nasty letter?”

The contents of that letter were the subject of yesterday's trial, in which Haas, a night janitor whose long crusade against various branches of state and local government has earned him a reputation as an eccentric political gadfly, sought to prove that nothing in his e-mail constituted a criminal offense.

“I am guilty of the crime of terrorizing,” Haas said after the trial. “But it's not criminal terrorizing. It's civil.”

The e-mail itself is rambling mÐlange of Biblical rhetoric and legalese that assails Dudley and other councilors for not doing more to protect Ed and Elaine Brown, the Plainfield couple now serving five-year prison sentences for not paying income taxes, from federal agents.

It reads, “You all live in a dream land of lies, the father of which is the devil himself: devil worshipers you must be… Either do your job, or get out of the way. WISE UP OR DIE. If the latter be your choice, then BE GONE with you NOW!” Dudley was the only councilor mentioned by name in the e-mail.

The central element of Haas' ill fated legal strategy yesterday was his argument that Dudley had a choice of whether to “wise up or die,” and didn't have to pursue the latter option unless she wanted to.

Given his chance to cross-examine Dudley, Haas began, “If I ask a question of choice, why did you choose to die rather than to wise up?”

“I beg your pardon?” Dudley said.

“The word choice has a question mark.”

“I don't see it as a question mark,” Dudley said.

The judge interjected, “What is your question?”

After examining his own e-mail, Haas corrected himself: “Well, I guess I answered my own question. There is no question mark.”

The exchange set the tone for the two-hour trial, in which Haas called himself to the stand and proceeded to invoke everything from the state license plate (“Wise up or die” is equivalent to “Live free or die,” Haas argued) to Irish ghost stories. At one point, he sought to enter into evidence Internet documents telling the story of the “Radiant Boy of Corby Castle,” but the judge refused his request. (Those who see the radiant boy, according to legend, rise to power and then die a violent death.)

Meanwhile, a visibly nervous Dudley testified that Haas' e-mail “shocked and frightened” her. She said Haas had previously threatened to send her anthrax when she was serving in the state Legislature. Haas has never acknowledged sending such a threat to Dudley, though he did say yesterday during the trial that he had told the state House Judiciary Committee, of which Dudley was once clerk, that they all “deserve” anthrax.

Haas said it was “absurd” to think that he would try to murder Dudley. Rather, if the city councilor does not heed his request and look into the actions of the federal government, Haas said, she would “shrivel up and die of natural causes.”

Cardello ruled that Haas' June e-mail demonstrated an “intention to terrorize” with a threat and thus made him guilty of criminal threatening.

Haas' habit of corresponding with public officials has gotten him in trouble before. In 2005, he faced criminal charges after he sent New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte an e-mail warning that her baby daughter would die if she didn't drop a case against one of his friends. However, the judge ruled that the law under which he was tried, improper influence of a public official, was unconstitutional because it was too broad.

[Quixote]

Given his chance to cross-examine Dudley, Haas began, “If I ask a question of choice, why did you choose to die rather than to wise up?”

“I beg your pardon?” Dudley said.

“The word choice has a question mark.”

“I don't see it as a question mark,” Dudley said.

The judge interjected, “What is your question?”

After examining his own e-mail, Haas corrected himself: “Well, I guess I answered my own question. There is no question mark.”

I think a I'm-just-a-blithering-idiot-who-says-whatever-pops-into-my-head-so-nobody-should-anything-I-say-seriously defense would have worked better.

[The Observer]

The exchange set the tone for the two-hour trial, in which Haas called himself to the stand and proceeded to invoke everything from the state license plate (“Wise up or die” is equivalent to “Live free or die,” Haas argued) to Irish ghost stories.

Irish ghost stories? Was his plan to scare the entire courtroom into running away, allowing him the chance to escape?

At one point, he sought to enter into evidence Internet documents telling the story of the “Radiant Boy of Corby Castle,” but the judge refused his request. (Those who see the radiant boy, according to legend, rise to power and then die a violent death.)

It's too bad the judge was not more lenient - I would have loved to see how the Radiant Boy explains why it is all right to threaten people with harm/death.

Haas said it was “absurd” to think that he would try to murder Dudley.

In other words, we shouldn't take anything he says seriously. But it also means whatever they say about the illegality of income tax can't bet taken seriously either.

Rather, if the city councilor does not heed his request and look into the actions of the federal government, Haas said, she would “shrivel up and die of natural causes.”

And Haas makes a valiant effort to get into the Tax Protestor Hall of Shame by tap-dancing his way in.

[.]

Haas, a night janitor

Obviously the most authoritative and definitive source one can possibly obtain when it comes to legal expertise.

He could be the next TP guru. A fine successor to MulletBoy and a long list of TP jailbirds.

[Demosthenes]

Joe Haas is interesting. He works as a night janitor but he comes from money and is extremely smart. He reminds me quite a bit of DMVP in many many ways. David has a serious advantage over Joe, though, in that David doesn't threaten to kill people and hasn't been involved in a bomb investigation.

[Dezcad]

Joe Haas is interesting. He works as a night janitor but he comes from money and is extremely smart. He reminds me quite a bit of DMVP in many many ways. David has a serious advantage over Joe, though, in that David doesn't threaten to kill people and hasn't been involved in a bomb investigation.

Joe does have a lot of "book knowledge" but I wouldn't characterize him as smart. Have you seen his incessant ramblings about how the US Gov't has no jurisdiction in NH at all because of a faliure to file under NH RSA 123:1? Or his assistance given to the Habeaus Corpus petition written by Dan Riley?

IMHO, that is not the workings of an extremely smart man.

[Demosthenes]

Joe is indeed bonkers but his long rambling rants have subtle threads and sub threads woven throughout. It's like watching an impressionist movie.

[Dezcad]

Joe is certainly good for entertainment and for bits of trivia and the mental challenge of following along his "flowing" thought processes in most of his posts.

I think his threats/challenges are mostly bravado and if he would eliminate them, he would be entertaining and mostly harmless.

He's quite different from Bill Miller.