Published: July 26, 2008 10:04 pm      

JPD files felony warrant against House of Israel’s Fox

By Kelly Young

kyoung@jacksonvilleprogress.com

The Jacksonville Police Department’s investigation into House of Israel leader Robert Fox led to the filing of a felony arrest warrant Thursday afternoon for barratry — the first felony brought against Fox by the department.

The new charge will be added to the pile of active charges against Fox, which includes three counts of possession of dangerous drugs, two counts of the unauthorized practice of law and one count of possession of a controlled substance.

Barratry is the practice of creating legal business by stirring up disputes and quarrels, generally for the benefit of the lawyer in question. The offense is a third-degree felony, punishable by two to 10 years in prison.

“Our investigation into Robert James Fox, also known as Robert Nicholas Fotti when he was in Canada, has produced a felony warrant for barratry,” Detective Jason Price said. “Fox made contact with an incarcerated individual and offered them a 10 percent finders fee for people that they sent to him for legal advice. It would be similar to if a personal injury attorney hired a nurse to send car crash victims to him.”

Earlier in the summer, JPD executed three search warrants at the House of Israel building, confiscating evidence, including about 20 boxes and two file cabinets full of Fox’s legal and financial documents, seven computers, a cache of illegal prescription drugs and a large collection of political propaganda hailing Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols as patriots.

Price said, among the avalanche of evidence, he found documents linking Fox to known terrorists.

“One interesting thing we came across while going through these boxes and boxes of paperwork was a legal document prepared by Fox a number of years ago which was an affidavit regarding John Walker Lindh, who is the American Taliban,” he said. “One of the main tenets of that document is that John Walker Lindh must be freed, basically supporting the American terrorist who was captured abroad.”

JPD also has video tape of Fox claiming to have traveled to Waco seven times during the Branch Davidian holdout in attempts to defend the Davidians against what he called religious persecution.

While Price said ties to Lindh and David Koresh probably won’t result in additional criminal charges being filed in and of themselves, he said they provide powerful insights into Fox’s ideology.

“He’s very involved in what’s called the sovereignty or patriot movement, and he’s a fairly major player in their society on both the state and national levels. I have evidence where he has put on seminars where people have paid $175 per person to hear him lecture,” Price said. “I know of at least two lectures in California, one in Las Vegas and numerous here in this state. He also has DVD collections of his speeches that he sells.”

Price said Fox had been operating an illegal law business from the House of Israel building for several years, offering legal advice and assistance in exchange for compensation despite not having a license to practice law. Two charges for unauthorized practice of law have been filed, and Price said numerous similar charges could be filed in the future.

The detective’s research also revealed Fox was declared a vexatious litigant in 2006 by the district court in Dallas, which bans him from filing civil lawsuits in the state of Texas without special permission from the judge. The Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee also has made an $80,000 judgment against Fox for operating a law practice without a license.

According to Price, he will soon be contacting Fox in order to let him know he is wanted. At this time Fox’s whereabouts are unknown, but it is believed he is in the Austin area.

Police Chief Reece Daniel complimented the efforts his Criminal Investigations Division has made in filing the new charge against Fox.

“Jason has been the lead investigator, but all of CID has been involved, and they have spent an enormous amount of time on this case. It’s an important case, and as time went on and facts revealed themselves, it has become more and more important,” Daniel said. “I’m very grateful and I’m very impressed by what they have done. They have gone way above and beyond in this investigation.”

The investigation is ongoing, and Price said he was not at liberty to discuss potential additional charges at this time

Daniel says Fox, and his like-minded followers, present a danger to society that should not be discounted. He has been highly disappointed by the response his department has received from the Department of Homeland Security in its efforts to deport Fox, a Canadian citizen here as a resident alien.

“These people are not to be toyed with. Here we have a person whose beliefs are part-and-parcel to those of known terrorists, who is not a citizen of this country, who is in our country committing numerous crimes, ” he said. “We have contacted homeland security time after time and we are either told empty promises or we are told they can’t do anything about it. Why are they allowing him to run free? I wish someone could answer that for me. Does he actually have to blow something up before they will act?”

Price, who has spent countless hours during the past months pouring over the Fox evidence, said he agrees with the chief’s assessment.

“Why spend so much time and effort on a guy who until now has only committed misdemeanors? Because he has the potential and he has the mindset to be dangerous, and he attracts the kind of people who commit major, violent felonies,” he said. “Does he have to do something horrible before we take action? No, we’ve identified him for what he is, and that’s why we are taking these steps to prosecute him. Take the lightning rod down before the lightning strikes.”