Jessica Medeiros Garrison
An Alabama lawyer states in a recent letter that Republican political operative Jessica Medeiros Garrison lied under oath in her divorce case from Tuscaloosa politician and insurance man Lee Garrison.Jessica Garrison perhaps is best known at the moment for her long-running extramarital affair with Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange. Garrison apparently has filed a lawsuit against me, claiming my reports on the Strange affair are false and defamatory. (I say "apparently" because I have not been lawfully served with the complaint and have not read it. All I know about it comes from a report at Alabama Political Reporter.)
Jessica Garrison's credibility, however, takes a serious hit in an August 26 letter from Birmingham attorney Lisa L. Woods. The letter is addressed to W. Cam Parsons, a lawyer for Tuscaloosa businessman Stan Pate.
During the recent campaign for Tuscaloosa's municipal elections, Pate allegedly established a Web site and purchased outdoor advertising that claimed Lee Garrison was a poor choice to be chair of the city's school board. To help drive his point home, Pate apparently borrowed from the Garrison v. Garrison divorce case, in which Jessica Garrison made a number of unfavorable statements, under oath, about her ex husband.
If Pate's goal was to keep Lee Garrison out of office, he failed. Garrison narrowly won his race in an election that drew national attention after reports about sorority girls receiving free drinks and other improper enticements during the voting process. How bizarre was the normally quiet Tuscaloosa election? Photos surfaced of Lee Garrison wearing a penis nose--and he still won, with the help of a University of Alabama Greek community that must approve of such hi-jinks.
No one can accuse Stan Pate of being unclear about his feelings on the school-board race. Pate allegedly published the following from a Verified Amended Petition for Modification of Custody that Jessica Garrison filed in her divorce case. (See the full document at the end of this post.)
The father has repeatedly exhibited a willingness to forfeit time with his son to pursue recreational and social activities that often involve excessive drinking and late nights. He also admittedly has had a gambling problem and takes controlled medications for which he has no prescription or medical need. The father also has a bad temper and a consistent tendency to rage, often in the presence of the child. Moreover, the father and his wife are cigarette smokers and have pets, both of which contribute to the child's ongoing allergies.
Obviously, the Garrison divorce/custody battle generated some rancor. And Lee Garrison hired Lisa Woods to help express his unhappiness about Stan Pate's alleged use of the above language. Here is a portion of what Ms. Woods stated to Pate's lawyer, Cam Parsons:
Given your years in practice, I am certain that you understand that, sometimes, things are said in the course of divorce and post-divorce matters that are not true. Simply stating that some third party "swore" to such information does not make the statements true. That said, we ask that you advise Mr. Pate to take his website down and refrain from making or repeating false statements against my client.
To ensure that her position was clear, Ms. Woods pretty much repeated it in a letter directly to Pate. (See both Pate letters at the end of this post.)
You have posted a court filing, purportedly by Ms. Jessica Garrison and/or her counsel. It is our position that the statements contained in the same were false then and are false now. An Objection and Response to those false allegations was filed on my client's behalf. We notice that you did not bother to place that document on your post. We perceive this as disregard for the truth in your posting.
In her zest to defend Lee Garrison's honor, Ms. Woods seemingly does not recognize the serious nature of what she is saying about Jessica Garrison. The court filing is not "purportedly by Ms. Jessica Garrison and/or her counsel." It is by Jessica Garrison, in the form of a verified petition--and that means it is signed under oath. Here is the language at the end of the petition:
Before me, the undersigned authority in and for said county, in said state, personally appeared JESSICA MEDEIROS GARRISON, who, being first duly sworn, deposes and says that she has read the above and Verified Amended Petition for Modification, and the facts therein are correct and true.
Jessica Garrison has signed her name on the line above the word "Affiant," which is defined as "a person who signs an affidavit and swears to its truth before a Notary Public or some person authorized to take oaths, like a County Clerk."
In a likely attempt to protect a fellow member of the legal tribe, Lisa Woods makes it sound like Jessica Garrison's false statements are no big deal. In fact, they are of the utmost seriousness, under the law. In essence, Lisa Woods is claiming that Jessica Garrison committed first-degree perjury--and that is a felony that could send Garrison to prison and cost her a bar card.
Is Jessica Garrison a glorified con artist who cheated in a sexual way with Luther Strange and cheated in a criminal way to help maintain custody of her child? Does that mean any legal complaint Jessica Garrison has filed against me is likely to be fraudulent?
Based on the words of lawyer Lisa Woods, a reasonable person could concludes the answer to both questions is yes.
Garrison Divorce--Modification of Custody by Roger ShulerStan Pate Lawsuit Letters by Roger Shuler
