Wells Fargo's Typo Victim Dies in Court

Wells Fargo's Forcloses on the Wrong Home Due to a Typographical error - Victim Dies in Court 

The bank billed Larry Delassus $13,361 owed by his neighbor, then foreclosed, and sold his home while he was critically ill in the hospital.

Originally published By

LA WEEKLY

By Jessica Ogilvie Thursday, Mar 7 2013

On the morning of Dec. 19, 2012, in a Torrance courtroom, Larry Delassus' heart stopped as he watched his attorney argue his negligence and discrimination case against banking behemoth Wells Fargo.

His death came more than two years after Wells Fargo mistakenly mixed up his Hermosa Beach address with that of a neighbor in the same condo complex. The bank's typo led Wells Fargo to demand that Delassus pay $13,361.90 — two years of late property taxes the bank said it had paid on his behalf in order to keep his Wells Fargo mortgage afloat. But Delassus, a quiet man who suffered from the rare blood-clot disorder Budd-Chiari syndrome and was often hospitalized, didn't owe a penny in taxes. One of his neighbors, whose condo "parcel number" was two digits different from Delassus', owed the back taxes. In a series of painfully tragic events, Wells Fargo relied on its typographical error to double Delassus' mortgage — from $1,237.69 to $2,429.13 — as its way of recouping the $13,361.90 in taxes Delassus didn't owe. Delassus, a retiree living on a $1,655 check, couldn't meet the mysteriously increased mortgage. He stopped paying, and soon was far behind on his mortgage. Delassus and his attorney did not discover until May 2010 that a mis-entered number had dragged Delassus into this spiral. As court documents obtained by L.A. Weekly show, after admitting its error, Wells Fargo foreclosed on Delassus anyway and sold his condo. Delassus had to move to a tiny apartment in an assisted-living home in Carson.

 

Friends say he didn't die of heart disease that day in court, as the coroner found. He was, they believe, killed by a system so inhumane that it could not undo a devastating piece of red tape the system itself created. “He was very sensitive," says close friend Debbie Popovich, 59. "He was a very good person. He was kind of shy, and he had a really good sense of humor — really, he was a very simple guy who just liked to work and do his thing. “In 1995, Delassus bought condo No. 105 at 320 Hermosa Beach Ave. The building, a white-stucco affair with blue trim, on a busy road with a grassy divider, is unremarkable, but a view of the Pacific glints in through the beach-facing windows.A neighbor, who gave her name only as Kelly, says Delassus participated in the homeowners association and helped around the complex. But the Navy veteran from St. Louis often was sick from Budd-Chiari syndrome, which made simple tasks difficult and could cause mental confusion. “Larry loved his home," Kelly says. "He wanted to die in that house."Delassus got the first odd letter from Wells Fargo on Jan. 29, 2009. It informed him that Wells’ tax service provider, First American Real Estate Tax Service, "reported delinquent taxes for the property located at: 320 Hermosa Beach Avenue 105."Delassus, told that he owed taxes of $13,361.90 for 2007 and '08, was baffled. His attorney Anthony Trujillo, a friend and next-door neighbor, says Delassus was actually six months ahead on his taxes, which he paid directly to L.A. County. On March 9, 2009, according to court documents, the bank informed Delassus that it was doubling his monthly mortgage payment to $2,429.13 to recoup the $13,361.90 in taxes. “He came to me and told me what was going on" a couple of months later, Trujillo said. At that point, neither man knew that a bank typo was to blame. In December 2009, Wells Fargo notified Delassus that it intended to foreclose. Then in May 2010, Trujillo discovered the erroneous fine print in Wells Fargo's original 2009letter to Delassus — the "parcel number" off by two digits and belonging to somebody else.

In court documents later, Wells Fargo attorney Robert Bailey of Anglin, Feeling Rasmussen, Campbell & Trytten LLP admitted the bank's mistake: "Wells Fargo paid the amount it determined was owed to the County Assessor: approximately $10,500. This was a mistake. The$10,500 was the tax amount owed on a neighboring property, not Plaintiff's." (Bailey did not address the discrepancy between $13,361 and $10,500.) Bailey added: "In September, 2010 Wells Fargo acknowledged its error in paying the taxes on Plaintiff’s neighbor's property and corrected it." By then, however, Delassus was so far behind on his mortgage payments wrongly doubled by Wells Fargo that the bank refused to let him resume   his $1,237.69 installments, Trujillo says. He faced a sizable "reinstatement" cost — which is often the past due amount plus fees. In an unsettling new twist, Delassus couldn't get Wells Fargo to tell him how much his reinstatement cost was. Later, in a videotaped deposition, Trujillo asks Michael Dolan, litigation-support manager for Wells Fargo: "So Plaintiff was never provided with the reinstatement amount after the bank discovered its error, correct? “Dolan responds, "That is correct."

Delassus and Trujillo — who is a business litigator but not a mortgage attorney — could have sought help from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or from the Comptroller of the Currency in Washington, D.C., says Brian Hubbard, spokesman for the comptroller's office. But neither man knew about this outside help.

On Jan. 19, 2011, Trujillo videotaped Delassus on the phone, quietly speaking to a Wells Fargo representative. (Wachovia merged with Wells Fargo in December of 2008.) "Wachovia's never sent me how much my monthly payments would be, if that includes escrow or anything, "Delassus says to the bank. "I'm kind of in the dark here. Reinstatement ... what would that be? After being transferred to another representative, Delassus says to Trujillo, "The music's gone, but nobody answers. I think we're disconnected. Shit. Hello? Hello?Bottom of Form Dial-tone. Fuckers."

Six days later, on Jan. 25, 2011, Delassus did hear, clearly, from Wells Fargo: It wanted the total payoff amount on the condo, $337,250.40. (Wells Fargo refused to comment on specifics of the case.)The huge sum was due the very next day, Trujillo says. Instead, he sued the bank on Jan. 26, claiming negligence and discrimination against a disabled person. On May 13, 2011, shortly after another bad bout of illness, Delassus' condo was sold by the bank.

In a videotaped court deposition later, Delassus breaks down crying. "I came back from the hospital, and that very day, they sold the son of a bitch," he says. "I'm homeless. I did not have a home. My condo — 16 years, gone. Gone. “At Carson Senior Assisted Living, to which Delassus moved, he became good friends with Popovich, who had lost her home as well. The duo planted flowers and trees in a small area behind the apartment, complete with a scarecrow and an ornamental owl, where they would talk late into the night. “He really thought he was gonna get his place back," Popovich says. "He thought if he told the truth, they could do something for him." Instead Delassus grew sicker and moved to Tender Live-in Care in Torrance, owned by Michelle Rogers. Rogers was in court last December when Delassus, listening to Trujillo arguing his case, slumped over and later died. "It was the most shocking thing I've been through in a long time," she said.

 

The night before, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Laura Ellison had indicated that she intended to side with Wells Fargo in a summary judgment.

Delassus had been very sick, and his speech was slurred — his illness, acting up. But he wanted his day in court, especially since the judge was considering a guardianship request. Instead, as his attorney spoke, somebody yelled, “Call 911!" His friends and neighbors believe his war with Wells Fargo killed Larry Delassus. Says Trujillo, “The stress just completely messed him up. Once you get in that state, this world is tough on you. “In a statement, Wells Fargo spokeswoman Vickee J. Adams expressed sympathy over his death. However, she added that, in light of Judge Ellison's indication that she planned to rule for Wells Fargo, "Given that there was no testimony or evidence to be presented at the hearing, there was no reason for Mr. Delassus to attend, and it is truly unfortunate that he was brought there."

Does it Matter if Mitt Romney was a "Vicious" Bully in the Exclusive Private High School He Attended?

Originally Published in the  Washington Post
Thursday, Mar. 10, 2012

See other posts on bullying.

The important question is whether Mitt Romney's character has changed since his high school bullying days. Obviously, he has learned to restrain from vocalizing about or physical aggression in public (If they ever existed). But if so, does he still have the urge to force others to think like him? To make them suffer for being different? Is he telling the truth when he says he does not remember the incident(s), to which other participants have confessed? (See second story below.)


Does it matter if Mitt Romney was a bully in high school? 
When Mitt Romney was a senior at his exclusive suburban Detroit’s Cranbrook High School. Romney led his own 'posse' that among other things, forcibly pinned to the ground and cut the long blond hair of a non-conformist junior, according to a Washington Post report.


Christian Science Monitor 
By Peter Grier
May 10, 2012

Does it matter if Mitt Romney misbehaved in high school? That question arises due to a report in Thursday’s Washington Post that when he was a senior at suburban Detroit’s Cranbrook school, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee led a “posse” that held down and forcibly cut the long blond hair of a nonconformist junior.

In this video, Romney apologizes for any pranks he may have pulled in high school that hurt or offended his fellows. However, according to fellow student Matthew Friedemann, quoted in the Post, “He can’t look like that. That’s wrong. Just look at him!” an incensed Mitt proclaimed at the time of one of his alleged victims.

Mr. Romney himself said Thursday that he cannot remember the incident. The longhaired student in question, John Lauber, is now deceased. But Romney gave some legs to the story by apologizing repeatedly for any pranks he may have pulled in high school that hurt or offended his fellows.

“As to pranks that were played back then, I don’t remember them all. But again, high school days – if I did stupid things, I’m afraid I've got to say sorry for it,” said Romney in an interview on Fox News Radio. Why would he be "afraid" to do so? Wouldn't a leader - the caliber of a US President - step forward to except responsibility? Complete responsibility?

Romney’s opponents say they are torn by the relevance of an alleged incident that would have occurred some 50 years ago. But they forge ahead nonetheless, saying that if true, the forcible haircut could provide some insight into the character of a man who wants to sit in the Oval Office.

“Romney was 18 – old enough to vote, old enough to serve in the military, and old enough to know not to attack a vulnerable teenager unprovoked... "



Here's a quote from the Washington Post story:

"The 'John Lauber' incident was recalled similarly by five fellow students, who gave their accounts independently of one another. Four of them — Friedemann, now a dentist; Phillip Maxwell, a lawyer; Thomas Buford, a retired prosecutor; and David Seed, a retired principal — spoke on the record. Another former student who witnessed the incident asked not to be identified... “It happened very quickly, and to this day it troubles me,” said Buford, the school’s wrestling champion, who said he joined Romney in restraining Lauber...“It was a hack job,” recalled Maxwell, a childhood friend of Romney who was in the dorm room when the incident occurred. “It was vicious. He was just easy pickin’s,” said Friedemann, then the student prefect, or student authority leader of Stevens Hall, expressing remorse about his failure to stop it. Friedemann, guilt ridden, made a point of not talking about it with his friend and waited to see what form of discipline would befall Romney at the famously strict institution. Nothing happened."

Mitt Romney forced to apologize after he 'mocked and assaulted high school classmate who was 'presumed gay' 

The Daily Mail
By DANIEL BATES
10 May 2012

Mitt Romney has been forced to apologize for forcibly shaving the head of a high school classmate who was regularly taunted for being gay.

The Republican presidential candidate grabbed tearful John Lauber and hacked away with a pair of scissors because he thought his bleached blond hair was "wrong".

Mr Romney also supposedly mocked another student who was a closeted gay by shouting "Atta girl!" when he tried to speak in class.

The damaging claims come a day after Barack Obama said he was in favour of gay marriage.

Mr Romney has made it clear he opposes it but issued an apology for fear of being seen as homophobic.

He said: "Back in high school, you know, I did some dumb things. If anyone was hurt by that or offended by that, obviously I apologize."

"But after all, high school years were a long time ago".

Interviews with Mr Romney’s former classmates at the $54,000 a year Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, reveal he was fond of jokes that were mostly good natured by sometimes had a hard edge.

After the shaving incident Mr Lauber ‘seemed to disappear’ from life in school and was later expelled for smoking and died in 2004 of liver cancer.

Torment: The republican presidential hopeful was said to have taunted students who were known to be gay and those from poor backgrounds at the exclusive Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

Decades after it happened Romney ran into one of his friends who helped hold Lauber down and told him: 'It was horrible.'

"It’s something I have thought about a lot since then'" said Romney.

The incident supposedly happened in the Summer term in 1965 when Mr Lauber, who was a year younger than Mr Romney, came back from Spring Break with his hair dyed blond and styled so it was draped over one eye.

According to the Washington Post Mitt Romney would not let it go and told his friend Matthew Friedemann: "He can’t look like that. That’s wrong. Just look at him!"

A few days later Mitt Romney assembled a four man posse which found Lauber, tackled him to the floor, held him down while the future governor of Massachusetts clipped away.

When it was completed the crowd cheered Romney as he walked out of the room.

The incident was recalled by five former Cranbrook pupils including Thomas Buford, a retired prosecutor, who helped hold Mr Lauber down.

"It happened very quickly, and to this day it troubles me. What a senseless, stupid, idiotic thing to do."

Phillip Maxwell, who is now a lawyer, added: "It was a hack job. It was vicious."

Mr Friedemann, who is now a dentist, also felt bad for not stopping it happening and admitted Lauber was "easy pickins" meaning he was unlikely to put up much of a fight.

Mr Romney’s time at Cranbrook is credited with shaping Romney into the hard-working, driven man he is today. It was also the time in his life when sports and socializing governed his life more than at any other time. Friends recalled how he and his friends would be up all night f....ing around, the sound of his laughter filling the corridors at 2am.

In English class Romney showed a less easy going side - Mitt Romney had a ritual of interrupting fellow pupil Gary Hummel, a closet gay, by shouting "Atta girl!"

According to the Washington Post he also behaved in very unfriendly manner towards scholarship student Lou Vierling when Romney found Vierling came from a poor area of Detroit.

Mr Romney’s wife Ann has claimed that contrary to his public image as a "tin man", as one friend has claimed, he is actually a "wild and crazy man."

And details about his pranks have come to light before, notably in the biography, ‘The Real Romney’, by Boston Globe investigative reporters Michael Kranish and Scott Helman

The problem with the latest revelations however is that they suggest a cruelty which voters might find hard to stomach.

Romney’s most famous such incident is also his most controversial - when he strapped his dog to the top of his car during a 12-hour drive from Massachusetts to Canada in 1983...

"An Error is not a Mistake until we refuse to Correct it!" Can your school board trustees comprehend that statement?

John F Kennedy

Robert Kennedy in South Africa 

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. speaking in support of striking AFSCME
sanitation workers at Mason Temple, Memphis, 4/3/68

"Negroes are almost entirely a working people. There are pitifully few Negro millionaires, and few Negro employers. Our needs are identical with labor's needs — decent wages, fair working conditions, livable housing, old age security, health and welfare measures, conditions in which families can grow, have education for their children and respect in the community. That is why Negroes support labor's demands and fight laws which curb labor. That is why the labor-hater and labor-baiter is virtually always a twin-headed creature spewing anti-Negro epithets from one mouth and anti-labor propaganda from the other mouth."