Re: Shamema Honzagool Sloan

Dear Judge Trabue,

I have been notified that you have been designated as the judge in this case. I also understand that attorney Lisa Schenkel has provided you with a short list of dates on which she will be available.

This is to notify you that I object strenuously to any appearance by Lisa Schenkel at all in this case. Miss Schenkel represents nobody in this case. Although she claims to represent the mother, Honzagool, in fact Honzagool has never appeared in this case nor has she ever authorized anyone to appear in her behalf.

Starting back in 1986, Judge Janow appointed counsel to represent Honzagool as a person under a disability. The alleged disability of Honzagool was that she resides in Pakistan. Although I have no doubt that she does in fact reside in Pakistan, that is not a legal disability entitling her to the appointment of counsel. Honzagool is now 33 years old. (Her date of birth is March 17, 1962). She is mentally and physically fit, as far as I am aware. More than that, she is married to a lawyer in Pakistan named Raja Abdul Rashid, who is regarded as a highly qualified and distinguished member of the bar of the Rawalpindi High Court in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.

Raja Abdul Rashid has written one letter to the court (signed by Honzagool) in which he objected to the jurisdiction of the Amherst County Courts. Since then, there have been no further letters from Raja Abdul Rashid or from Honzagool. At no time has Honzagool ever requested the appointment of counsel to represent her. Honzagool has never signed an authorization for Lisa Schenkel or for anybody else to appear in court in her behalf.

More than that, a number of qualified attorneys in Pakistan and also attorneys from Pakistan practicing in the United States have contacted Honzagool repeatedly over the past several years offering to appear in this case and represent her free of charge. One such attorney is a law partner of Melvin Belli in San Francisco. On each and every occasion, Honzagool has refused to authorize the appearance of counsel in the courts of Virginia in her behalf.

It is obvious that Honzagool takes the position that Virginia has no jurisdiction because she was awarded custody of her daughter by order of the Bronx Supreme Court dated June 4, 1982. (That court has since modified its order and awarded custody to me.) Accordingly, under the Uniform Child Custody Act, Virginia has no jurisdiction to modify an order of the Bronx Supreme Court.

In reality, Miss Lisa Schenkel represents Charles and Shelby Roberts. Consistently from the date of her first appearance in this case, Miss Schenkel has advocated the position of Charles and Shelby Roberts. Not once has Miss Schenkel ever argued that the order of the Bronx Supreme Court, which initially awarded custody to her supposed client Honzagool, be enforced. Instead, Miss Schenkel consistently advocates what ever position would be of the greatest benefit of Charles and Shelby Roberts.

Regarding her list of available dates, back in 1991, the same problem repeatedly arose. At times when all of the other lawyers were ready to proceed, Miss Schenkel found that she had conflicting court dates. It was because of Miss Schenkel that this case kept getting postponed. The last court date of September 25, 1991 was set because Miss Schenkel could be available at no earlier date. Then, prior to that date, Charles and Shelby Roberts contrived to have me arrested on false pretenses so that they could get custody of the child.

Finally, there is no statutory or legal basis for Miss Schenkel to be appointed to appear in the case. Remember that Miss Schenkel is being paid at state expense. Nowhere in the Code of Virginia is there authority for state funds to be expended in a case such as this. Indeed, it is apparent that Judge Janow appointed Miss Schenkel just so as to be able to claim that the courts of Virginia have jurisdiction over Honzagool and over this case when indeed it has none.

Accordingly,. Miss Schenkel should be removed and disqualified from this case, which will also solve the problem of her not having many available court dates.

Very Truly Yours,

Ismail Sloan

Copy to: Lisa Schenkel
J. Thompson Shrader
Charles & Shelby Roberts
Honzagool
Roy C. Mayo, Clerk