Transcript Day 1

8/3/2019 Transcript Day 1

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, . ; : 1{,;E I G H T H J U D I . D IS T R I C t C O U RT - ~ ''1 ~ i! J. .N D J U RO R S P R S E ~; T O N I I O V : a : R 8,

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- , ' 1 2011 '}~C L A R K C O U N '1 YJ ~ EYADA 2 L E ' D ~ ~3 3 LO RN A A Al!SE Y, rN epe~ re nE ' ,4 B E F O R E 1 HE : G R AN D J U R Y IH P A lI ~ r. E O B Y T H E A fO R ES A ID 4 KATH LEENBRON So . 'l , s e ~ i e t y5 DISrRm C O U R T 5 I l O A A l m E B R U M A GI N , A s s i s t a n t S ec r e t a r y6 O R I G I N A L 6 D A l H E L C O O l < D u , i Z 1 7 P H 1 07 T H E S T A 7 E O F l I E V A D A , 1 D E N N I S D U N Na P l a i n t i f f , S R IC R A lU l f A ll ,9 Y$. N o . l lA G JQ 3 1A B 9 L A ' II R E lI C E f E L C lW l ~_ , i!c :~ --v-~10 G A RY 7 RA F F O R D , G E R R I S H E PP AR D , 10 F E RN A I10 0 G A R C IA C L E R K , _ J ' ;-~H' ~ , O U R T

1 1 D e f e n d a n t s . C r J 1 1 . 5 ' 7 3 11 B Y RO N G E O RG E12 12 l ' .A R IO G O M E Z13 13 C H R I S TO P H E R H A LL E l!1 4 'i'a le n a t Las Ve qas , U evada 1 4 R O SA H E R G Y1 5 ~ esd aY t IlO v etlM { a t 2011 15 WR Y S E I C E R r16 8:35 a.VI. 16 M A R G AR E TE S O AA IC Kn 11 R O B E R ? l H SE I lA l lIS IS1 9 19 A ls o p r e s e n t a t t h e r e q u e s t o f th e G ra n d J u ry :2 0 R E P O R TE R 'S T RA N SC R IP T O f P RO C EE D i l iG S 2 0 John K e l l e h e r , R o b e r t G iu n t a ,21 2 l S a m K er ni H e le n e L es t e r rD ep u t y A t o r n e y G e n e r a l2 2 V 0 1l J l { E 1 2 22 3 2 32 4 2 42 5 R e p o r t e d b y : D a n e t t e L , A n to n a c c i , C ,C .R , N o . 2 2 2 25

J 41 J N D E X o r ; I lTNESSES 1 I N O E X o r E X J l I B l ~ S2 E x a m i n e d 23 3 G ra n d J u r y E xh i b i t s Identified4 L AU R A " B RU ' & T HR ID G ~ 11 4 2 - N R S S T A T U T E S 75 E U G E l I E I 1E U D I O L A H 5 3 - P H O '1 O o r G A R Y T R A F F O R D 9 56 M&GRA ll S H il l! 64 6 4 - P H O T O O r G Er o n S H EP P I \ R I I 1 47 1 0 D D G R O SZ S 4 1 5 - J O SE PH I IO EL N O T AR Y D O C l l M E N T S 2 68 R O O A SH J I A lI 1 0 6 8 6 - T R AC Y L A W R E N C E N O T M Y D O C U M E N TS 2 99 1 A A C Y 1M,R E ~CE : 1 1 8 9 7 - J E N NI F E R L O iI E N O T i lR Y O O C OM EH IS 34

1 0 10 8 - M Z C H A l I S L O E C K E R n o r A R Y D O C U M r t l T S 3 511 U 9 - COpy o r N O 'i 'A R Y H I ' . l I DB O O K 1 9 9 1 111 2 12 9 A - C O p y or ~ O ' i ' A R Y f lA l lOBQOK 2 U O I L 81 3 13 9 8 - copy or N W A R Y H A N D B O O K 2 0 0 3 1814 14 sc - cop y o r N O 'i 'A R Y H A N D B O O K 2 0 0 5 - 2 0 0 6 191 5 ( C-11-217573-1 ") 15 9 D - O O P Y o r N O T A RY H A N D B O O K 2 0 0 1 191 6 ' I R A N I 1 6 1 0 - D E E D or l R U S ' ! ' 5 6

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1 9 I 1 9 1 2 - T R US T E E C O R PS D C ( : O O N I S 17 22 0 I 2 0 1 3 - L A ! lD A H E R I C A D E F AU L T S ER 'l IC & S O O C U H n l l S 1 1 12 1 2 1 1 4 - H O U S EK E Y F IN J\ N C I A L C O RP O lU lT IO N D C ( : U H E I I T S 1 5 62 2 2 2 1 5 - T R U S T E E C O RP h c l I T L E ' lR U Sl D E W S E R V I C E , 1 5 9CAL -WESTER l l O N V E Y A N C E : C O R P , f t O U S E K E Y23 23 F 1N M'C IIIL C OR P O OC UH EN IS2 4 2 4 1 6 - C H IC A G O T U L E D O C U H W ,S 1 5 B2 5 2 5 1 1 - E M A IL 14 6

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eA S VEGA S ,N E V A D A , N O V E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 1234 D M lE H E t, A N ! O N A C C I ,5 havlnq been first duly Sl10rIl t o f ai th f u ll y6 an d accu rately tr an scr ibe th e fol lovlnq7 pro ceedings to th e best o f h er ab ili ty.a9 T H ~ F O R E P E R S O O : L e t th e r ec or d r eflec t1 0 that Ih av e c an va ss ed th e w ai ti ng area an d n o o ne h as11 appeared in respo n se to N o tice o f In ten t to S eek12 tndlctnent.1 3 M R , K E L L E H E R : Good no rn i nq eve ryone . M y

1 hearings go ing o n th is week and o ver ti le ner .t week as2 well so we've kind o f all c oo rd in ate d to \lo rk to ge th er3 to presen t th e case. W e proaiss to kMp t he e vi de n ce4 presen tatio n as pain less as po ssible. W e've tried to5 o rgan ize it in a H ay th at Ilill help yo u to fo llo w alo ng .6 H e'r e p re sen ti ng G ra nd J ur y C ase IIU J :1 be r1 llA G)031 AB , an d the case m aber ca n be fo und on the last8 page o f th e proposed Indictnent Which I as k the reco rd!I reE lect th at lIe've -- o hy. W e'll b e presen tin g to the10 Grand Jury p ro ba bly a t th e n e xt p r oc ee di n g.1 1 H e h ave pre:aarked th e exh ibits, ~ he n an e1 2 o f the case is th e S tate o f N evada versus Gary T raffo rd1 3 a nd G eu i sheppard. C ase co ntain s as I said nunerous1 4 do cuneo tary exh ibits and what the case deals w ith is1 5 do cuzen t.s th at h ave b een fi led lIi th th e co un ty reco rders16 o ffice by no tar ies and their superviso rs w ith respect to11 fo reclo sures In the county . ,he defendants in th isIS case, G ar y T raffo rd an d serrl Sheppard , ar e c h ar g ed w i th1 9 th e fo llow ing cr imes; Gary T raffo rd is charged ! li th20 no tarizatio n o f signature o f a perso n no t in the21 presence o f a no tary public, aid ing and abettin g , lih ich2 2 is a gro ss n i s dsneano r, vio latio n o f llR S 240 .155 . H~'s2 3 also ch ar ged w ith o ffer in g false instruaents fo r fi li ng2 4 o r reco rding, a catego ry C felo ny, in vio latio n o f N RS25 239 .330 , and he's ch arged w ith false certificatio n o n

1 pursuant to th is chapter shall n o t w illfully n o tarize2 th e signature o f a perso n unless th e perso n is in th e3 presence o f the no tary public and: (a] Is knovn to the4 no tary public; o r (b] If u nk no w n to th e n otar y p ub li c,S pro vides a credible w itn ess o r do cueentary evidence o f6 iden tificatio n to the no tary public .7 2. A perso n w ho : (a) V io lates th e pr ovisio n8 o f S Ubsectio n 1 ; o r [b) A ids and abets a no tary public9 to co ~ it a vio latio n o f swmctio n I, 1 $ guilty o f ato g r o ss n i sd e r: eano r .11 N R S 239.330; O ffer ln g false in stru cen t, fo r

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14 n am e i s J oh n K elleh er . I'n a ch ief depu ty atto rn ey1 5 q ~ ne ra l1 ii th th e lIe vad a A tto rn ey G en er al's F rau d Un i t1 6 an d I h ea d u p th e Mor t gage F r aud S tr ik e Fo rce. W ith me1 7 today are, I h av e de pu ty atto rn ey g en er al S an K er n a nd1 8 sen io r deputy atto rn ey general R obert G iunta. I also1 9 h ave an oth er atto rn ey th at is go ing to be helping us20 presen t th is case, H e1 ~n e L ester, sh e h asn 't ar r ived21 yet.22 Y ou r . ay b e w o nde ri ng w hy w e h ave fo ur23 atto rn eys o n th is case. 7here' s a sign ifican t ano un t o f2 4 dccuaen tar y eviden ce th at w e'r e 9 0in 9 to be pr esen tin g2 S an d w e a lso h ave n un ercu s tr ials an d o th er p reliain ary

1 cer tain Instruaen ts, aiding and abettin g, a cate90 ry 02 felo ny, a vio latio n o f N RS 205 .120 .3 rh e ato reren tto n ed crin cs co n sti tu te4 tech no lo gical cr i i l! es as defin ed in 2051 \ .030 wh i c h s ta te s5 th at the pro per ty lih ich lias der ived Iro n, realized6 th ro ugh o r used o r in tended fo r use in th e co urse o f a1 techno lo g ical cr in e is subject to fo r fei ture pursuant toS IlR S 1 79 .1 21 9.9 D efendant Geni Sheppard is c ha rg ed w ith

1 0 no tar lzat lo n o f signature o f perso n no t in th e presence1 1 o f a no tary public , aiding and abettin g , a gro ss12 n isdeaean or , a vio latio n o f llR S 240, lS S. S he's alsol3 charged w ith o ffer ing false Instrunen ts fo r filin g o r1 4 reco rding . a catego ry C felo ny, in vio latio n o f N ItS1 5 239.330, and sh e's charged w ith false cer tificatio n o n1 6 cer tain in strueen ts, aiding and abettin g, a catego ry 01 1 felo ny, in vio latio n o f !IR S205.120. r hese cz iass also1 8 co n sti tute techno lcq ical crin es as defin ed in N IlS19 205A.()30.20 I'll read th e specifics o f th e statutes21 th at H e're alleg in q. B oth defen dants are charged w ith22 each o f th ese trines as I just stat~ d.23 I IRS 240,155, N o tar i2atio n o f si9 nature o f2 4 perso n n ot in presen ce o f n otary public un iallfu i ;2 5 p en alty. !1 u. 'lber 1 : A n otar y pu blic w ho 1 s ap po in ted

12 filinq o r reco rd, "perso n w ho knO Hingly pro cures o r1 3 o ffers any false o r to rq ed Inst ruzen t to be filed,1 4 registered o r reco rded in any public o ffie.? , vh lch1 5 i nstr un en t, ifgen uin e, m igh t be filed, reg istered o r1 6 reco rded in a public o ffice under any law o f th is S tate1 1 o r o f th e U nited S tates, is gull ty o f a catego ry CIS felo ny an d sh all be pun ished as pro vided in l1 RS 19 3.1 30 .1 9 IIR S 205.120: F alse cer tificate to cer tain20 in stm r.en ts pun ishable as fo rgery . A perso n w ho is21 autho rized to take a pro of o r ackn ovledqn en t o f an22 in stn men t w hich by lay o ay h e reco rded, w ho w illfu lly23 c er ti fi es falsely that th e execu tio n o f th e in stru men t2 4 w as a ck no !lle dg ~ d by any par ty th areto , o r that th e25 executio n thereo f lias pro ved, is guilty o f a catego ry 0


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1 felo ny, an d shall be pun i! as provided in IIR S2 19 3.1 30 ,3 IA t th is th:e, D e pu ty A t to r ne y G en er al

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1 MR . KE L L EHE R :Is there any reaso n th at2 r elati on sh ip w ith yo ur co -so rker lIO uld in any way3 inpa~ t--45

1 1 JU RO R : 1 Io ne whatsoever,HR , KE L L EHBR ;Ohy, Yo u could be fair and

4 H elen e U lster en ter s th e proceedlnqa. )5 MR , KE L L EHE R :A re there any questions wit't6 re q a rd to t h e e le :l en t s o f th e ch a r g e d offenses?7 A sk the r eco rd to reflect that there's noa questio ns. A nd w ith that I'd like to call the state's9 fi r st -- o h , S o r ry,1 0 Before I call the S tate's fir st w itness, I1 1 \,'ould like to read a list o f th e lIitnesses we intend to1 2 call in th is pro ceeding and if any o f th e grand juro rs1 3 ar e fam iliar w ith th ese peo ple if yo u co uld p lease let14 us know.15 State wU I be cal l ing Bt u E th r id ge , Eugene1 6 M en di ola , R o ny A sh j:i an , H eg han B lo ec ker , T r acy L aw re nce,1 1 S tate In vestigato r T odd G rO S z , Jennifer L owe , Debra1 8 W atkin s, J oseph J lo el an d Peter Ho rn .1 9 I'd ask th e reco rd to l,'eflect that r have20 o ne qrsnd juro r --21 A JUROR : ' 1 r ac y Lawrenc e, is that !laIc o r22 femle?2 3 M R. K S],L E H8 R: T racy L aw ren ce is a fe;;tale.2 4 A J U R O R : I h ad a c o-w or ker w ho w as n ar rl e d25 to a T racy Lawrence . I'll n ot sure if that's her or not . 2S to r fi ling o r reco rding, and false certification on

I certain instrucen t, invo lving Gary T raffo rd and Geul2 S heppard.34

D o y o u u nd er sta nd th is a d~ ls e; ne nt?TH8 H l' lN S S : Yes, 1 do .5 T HE r o REPERSO t l : P le ase s ta te your f i rs t

6 and last n ane and spell bo th fo r th e r ec or d,7 T HE IH fN E S S ; M y f irst nane is L aura,S L -A -U -R -1 I, my last n i le is E t hr id ge , E - T -H - R -I -D -G -E ,9 but professionally I'ro knolln as Bru, B -R -U .1 0 THE FOREPERSO f l : ~ h an ~ y ou ,1 1 You eay pro ceed.12 L AU RA " S R U ' E IH R IO G & ,1 3 baying been f1 rst duly eso rn b y th e Fo reper so n o f th eit Grand Jury to testify to th e truth , th ~ w ho le truth,1 5 and no th ing but th e truth , testified as fcl lo vs:16111819 BY MR , KELLEHER :

E X A H l N A T I O . ' l

20 o . Miss Ethridge, ar e you currently 9'"Ptoyed?21 A . Y es , I an .22 Q. ~ 'h ere do y ou w or k?23 A , I ! ; o rk fo r th e N evada S ecr etary o f State 's24 o ffice.2S O . A nd how long have yo u b ee n e np lo y ed th er e?

6 inpart ial in this proceeding?7 11 JURO R : Y e9 .a MR . K E LL EHE R : h'hen lie do call her, if yo u9 do recoqnize h er lIO uld yo u let us kn O ll that?

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1 1 J U R O R : Absolutely.HR . KE LL EHE R: A nd n ow th e S tate l iould like

1 2 to call its fir st w itness, B ru Ethridge.13 .HE FO R EPER S O N : please raise your r igh t1 4 hand.1 5 You do sot~Mly $l


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1 the si gn in g o f a d oc ur .: en tllll to identify th e d oc un en t2 sign ers o n d cc nn sn ts th at h ave been in dicated th ~3 signatures need to be notarized.4 Q. O h. A nd 1 would l ike th e r eco rd to reflect5 that deputy at torney g en er al H elen e L ester h as joinedSus.7 h 'h at is th e purpose o f a notary public in8 the Statl). o f Nevada19 A. ~he p ur po se o f the notary is t o i de n ti fy1 0 do cuaen t sign er s an d attell.pt to deter fr au d.

11 Q. A nd hOIl does a n ota ry p ub li c a ssi st in12 att~apting to deter fraud?13 A , O n e o f th e no tary's respo nsibili ties is to1 4 iden tify a d o c u x e n t s ig ne r th ro u gh an ID card. He d o1 5 a11O'I I th e.1 \ -- an ID card nust h a ve th e i n di vi du al 's16 picture and signature o n it, o r in SOM C ases w e allo w a1 1 no tary to notarha an in dividu al's sig natu re th at's18 personal ly mosn to t h en w i th o u t r e qu ir i ng a n rD . B ut1 9 b asi ca lly their funct ion is to iden tify the do cunent20 signer .21 Q. When yo u s ay p er sQ n a ll y k n o l l n to th ea,22 I;o uld that req uire th em to h ave n et th e p er so n?23 A . W hile i t's no t defin ed in statute, sh at lie24 instruct n otar ies to do is that they have to have a25 sign ifican t ano un t o f in teractio n w ith th at perso n over

1 residen t no tary, but we do have IIh at lie call, they' re2 called non-resident no taries. T heir pro cess is a little3 bit differen t in the sense that th ey still have to take4 an e du ca ti o n c o ur se if i t's the fi rst tin e they' re b~ ing5 appo in ted a n otary in the S tate o f Nevada , do the bond ,6 the applicatio n , but th ey 're also required to suh :ti t ani affidavit bo th fro ~ their e; ;ployer an d an affidavit thatB they sign saying that th ey are a restdent of a b o r de ri n g9 state and th at they are pem anen tly enp1 0yed in th e1 0 S tate o f N evada.1 1 Q. I just lIan t to go hack to th e bond briefly.12 A , Uh - huh .13 Q. What type of i nsta nc es in y ou r e xp er ie nc e1 4 w ould scn eo ne su b:ti t a claim under the bond, fo r what1 5 type o f activ i ty lIo uld th e bo nd insure?H A . 7 h e issuance o f a clala and a p a y c e n t o f a17 cl aia is do ne strictly th ro ugh the insuran ce co xpan y.1 8 T he S ecretary o f S tate's o ffice really isn 't in vo lved In19 that. But what r have learn ed o ver ti r te is if an20 individual flies a co nplain t again st a n o tary an d th e2 1 secr etar y of S tate sanctio ns the no tary th ro ugh a f ln e22 th at th e no tary did no t (o l1 o il N evada lall, that th e23 in jured par ty w ho n ay h ave lo st a veh icle th ro ugh the2 4 S ign ing o f a do cuaent and notar ized that w as no t do no in25 acco rdance w ith law , th e injured party lo st a po r tio n o f

1 a sign ifican t ao ount o f time to al Iain ate any reaso nable2 doubt as to ~Ihat th eir tru e iden ti ty is. S o yo u3 couldn It o r yo u sh ouldn 't be in tro duced to a p er so n o ne4 tine and th en say lIeli, 1 p er so n ally k no w th el< l, b e ca use5 yo u don' t really know t hen .6 Q. If a no tary had never net a perso n and it1 was j us t say a vo ice o n a telephone o r so aeo ne th at li asB senoinq t hea an eotai l , would that be sufficient to Fleet9 th e known to the no tary public requireuent?1 0 A . N o , it is no t . T he statute is v er y c le ar1 1 and it says th at th e do cusen t sign er n ost presen t th e1 2 dccuaen t to th e no tary and au st p re se nt th e do cuasn t to1 3 th e n otary in perso n.1 4 Q. t,l1 at ar e ti le step s fo r beconing a no ta ry?15 How does soaeons i n n ev ad a ! lecona a n o ta ry p ub li c?1 6 A , Currently th ey are required to take an1 1 educatio n co urse th at's o ffered by the S ecretary o f16 State's office. T h ey n us t p ur ch as e a l() ,OOO-oollar1 9 surety bo nd fro :) a p ri va te i ns ur an ce cospany licensed to2 0 d o b u si n es s in the S tate o f N evada.2 1 Q. h'hat'5 th e purpose o f that o o nd?22 A . ~ he bond is a lO,OOO-dollar b on d a nd i t's23 to assist in reco uping lo sses to th e injured party . A nd24 th en they are to subalt an app li c at io n to t h e s e cr e ta r y25 o f S tate's o ffice. N Olithat is the cr i ter ia fo r a

IS1 a piece o f pro perty, they can fi le a claim again st th e2 surety bond an d recoup BOlle o f th eir lo sses.3 Q . A n d would th e Secretary o f S tate also h ave4 the au th or ity to adainiater an y o th er san ctio ns again st5 a notary16 1 1 . B y statute li e c an su sp en d th ei r1 ap po in tm en t, lie can r evo ke th eir ap po in tn en t and th en lo laa do , w e can can cel an d w e do inpose f ines .9 Q, ) :OH yo u stated previously t ha t c ur r en tl y10 t he p r o ce du r e is to u nd er go a n e du ca ti o n c o ur se . D idU th e requtreaents f or b ec on in g a n otar y ch an ge a t an y1 2 time?1 3 A . ~ h e r eq ui re me nts fo r th e e du ca ti o n c o ur se1 4 changed in 20G 1, as o f O cto ber 1 st, 2001 . rh e1 5 leg islato rs decided that it was a requirenent that a nell16 n otary h ad to take an educatio n co urse o ffered by th e1 7 S ecretary o f S tate 's o ffice. P r io r to th at th ey "~ re1B no t req uired to take an educatio n co urse. W edid o ffer1 9 th en as a vo lun tary pro gran and lie o f fe re d v o lu n ta r y20 educatio n since 1 99 3.21 Q. Ar ld prior to th e n an da to ry e du ca ti on co ur se22 did your o ffice o r did yo u do an yth in g to in fo rm the23 n otar ies o f w hat the req ntreaen ts w ere un der the l1 evada2 4 R e vi sed S tatu te s?2 5 1 1 . Y es, each an d ever y tine w e sen t a no tary,


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1 an indiv idual their n otar ! llI1 iS Sio n. If~ w o uld a lw ay s2 se nd th e]l a copy of th e statu tes o r a n otary h an db oo k.3 If we were o ut o f the handbook what w e d id w as w e n ade4 copies o f the statutes and included them in w ith their5 e p po t nt se n t ,6 Q. And if yo u had the handbo ok3 han dy , ar e th e7 statutes par t o f th e handbook?S A . Yes , th e h an dbo o k is in tliO parts. T he9 fir st par t is th e nest frequently asked questio ns and

10 then th e seco nd part is th e Nevada R e v is ed S t at ut es ,1 1 Q . I'd ask y o u to l o ok at State 's E r .h ib it 9 .1 2 lie have that b ro ken up in to fo ur sectio n s, S A , B , C an d1 3 D .141 5

A .Q .

Okay .C ould yo u take a eonent and lo o k th ro ug h

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I ch anges w ere made in 1 9 9 3 , '9 5 , '9 7, '9 9 , 2M 1 , 200 5 ,2 2~ ~ 7 an d 200 9 ; is that co r r ect?3 A . Y ou f o rgo t 2003 .

Q. A n d 2 00 3, Is th at c or re ct?

1& that exh ibit and let the Grand Jury knos if vo u ar e1 1 fam iliar w ith tho se dO CU Jr .en ts?1 8 A . Yes. These . ate copies, th e f i rs t page is a1 9 copy o f a breakdown o f the cha n ges th at wete added to20 the statutes, n o ta ry s ta tu te s by year . A n d then th e21 fo llo w in g is a co py o f a n ota ry h an db oo k.22 Q , $0 fo r th e reco rd the fir st page that the23 w itness is r eferr in g to is E xh ibit 9 , bate staap nunber24 893,2 5 And look ing a t that fi r st page, i t sh o ss

5 A . Yes, it is.6 Q. W er e y ou involved in th e p ro cess o f1 ado p ting th o se changes th ro ugh th e leghlature?e A , Yes, I was.9 Q. Okay . Let 's look at Exh ib i t 9

1 0 specifically . H o t 9A but 9 . tr 'l1 at year is th at handbo okII f o r?1211

A .Q .

1 9 9 7 .Okay. And then 9A 1

. 9 C ?2 A . It's a cpy o f the notary statute, th e3 no tary han dbo o k , excuse ne, fo r 200 5 th ro ugh 20~ 6 .~ Q. Fo r th e reco rd that is bates nusber 8555 th ro uqh 890 .619

A .Q.

A nd then lastly 9D .that w'\)uld th e no tary h andbo o k fo r 2 001 .A nd that 1 s bates "unbar s 9 4 2 th ro ugh 9 5 0 .

1 4 A nd fo r the reco rd E ~ h ib it 9 , th e 1 9 9 11 5 han dbo ok , is h ate sranp nuabers ~ 9 4 th ro ugh 9 ~ 9 ,1 6 A nd th en E xh ibi t S A ?1 7 A . that is a co py o f the statute bo o k [o r

9 W ith respect to th ese vario us no tary1 0 h an db oo ks, do th e general r equi reaen ts fo r beco /ling a1 1 no tary change betveen 1 9 9 1 an d 20 0?? I ' n so r ry , ootween12 1 9 9 3 and 2001,1 3 A . liell, no , th e q eneral r equ ireaen ts -_ well,14 let 's see.1 5 Q. P r o ba bly p o or ly p h ra se d quest ion. If I16 could 2ybe as k it I : IOre specif ical ly .17 A . O kay,1 8 Q. Y ou testified pr ev io usly the p ro cedure "-U can y o u tell us o n e no re tine what is th e procedure ' fo r20 so seo n e to beco n e a notary, w hat steps lIG uld th ey have21 to take122 A . O k ay . cu rr en tly s ince 200 1 they have to

1 8 20 01 .1 9 Q. O kay, A nd fo r th e reco rd th at is I: l (hibi t20 9A , ba te s 90 9 throuqh 922.2122 ~ .23 2003.24 Q. O kay . Fo r th e reco rd that is bates n \lJ 1 ber s25 923 t h r ough 94 1 .

Turn to 9B .9 B is a co py o f the no tary h an dbo o k fo r

191 S tate 's o ffice. T hey n eed to fi le a lO ,O O O -do llar2 su rety bend w ith the co un ty clerk. the co un ty clerk3 then returns to t he i ndi vi dual w ha t ~ ,. e ca l l a bo nd~ filin g no tice wh ich Is a co n f iraatto n that th e bo n d was5 tiled b y t he i n di vi du al. A n ? then they need to subn it6 their cer tificate o f coaplet io n o f the co ur se w ith the1 bo n d filing no tice and the applicatio n an d their fee to8 th e secretary o f S tate 's o ffice. N ow that is fo r w h at9 we call a res ident notary .

1 0 Q . Fo r th e reco rd, in O U I G ra nd J ur y11 pro ceedin g h ere w e'r e o n ly go ing to deal w ith residen t12 nctarfes,1314151 6

A .Q .A.Q .

Okay .Any r . o re? A ny o th e r r eq u tr ea en ts tI th ink I co vered then,! l ow yo u said that the educational

23 atten d a n o tary educatio n co u rse o ffered by tM Nevada21 secretary o f State's o ffice. T hey need to subn i t an25 app licatio n th at is p rescr ibed by the s~ cret< lry o f

1 1 req uir ezen t wa s in sti tu ted in 20 07 1 believe?16 A . Y e s , Oc t ob~ [ 1 st, 2 00 7.19 Q , When lias th e bond require: tent?

A . T he bo nd requirezen t as far as I ln ow h as21 been a requi reaent, well, sin ce 1 9 B 9 , it was th ere when22 I case to S ecretary o f State's o ffice and it w as th er e23 p r io r , bu t 1 do n 't know w he n i t o ri gi na lly lias24 inple![ented .25 Q . Has th er e a lw ay s been an applicatio n that


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2 2

1 h ad to b e sU b :t.i ted ?2 A . T o ' > y kn ow le dge , y e s.3 Q. A nd how abou t th e certificate o f cospletfon4 of the co urse, lio uld that, o bvio usly that Ho uld be5 subseq uen t to -- >7

A .Q .

2~~7 .S o p rio r to in itia tin g th e ed uc ati on al

21

A . Okay. If thllY neat tha requireaants lie

8 m an dato ry c ou rse, w hat WdS the steps; to 5UD.\1it an9 applicatio n and a bo nd?

10 A . Yes, they lIO uld so bn i t an applicatio n and a11 bond,12 Q. O kay, S o when we lo ok at all these var io us1 3 h an dO O o ks--I~1 5

A .Q.

Uh-huh .-- th ose pro cedur es th at yo u just testi fied

16 to, w ith th e ex cep tio n o f th e ed uc ati on al r eq ui resen t,17 w ere they pretty co nsisten t th ro ugho ut? rhere's always18 been an applicatio n, there's always been a bo nd as far19 as w hen y ou 'v e b een th er e?2 0 A . C o r rect.21n23

Q ,A .Q ,

Okay. Any o t h er s ?Ho , I believe that's it.O kay. IIhen yo u ! Jet the applicatio n and the

24 bo nd, Ilhat do es yo ur o ffice do then? lIhat do yo u send25 to th e n otary?

1 statutes beco as avai lable w e w ill sen (! yo u th e cur ren t2 statutes in the fo ra o f a handbo o k, yes.3 Q. W ith respect to the pro cess o f no tarl r inq a4 do cuaen t, what do es a no tary do ? can yo u \lalk us5 th ro ug h w hat n otar iz atio n i nc lu des?6 A . 'lhe individual is --7 Q. A nd w e're dealing in state no w.S 11 . I n s ta te .9 Q. Resident,

10 11 . O h , r esi den t n otar ies. Okay .1 1 When a do cuaen t, when an individual12 ap pr oac hes th e n otar y an d w an ts th ei r si gn ifi can t1 3 no tarhed, the no ta r y needs to see the do cumen t because1 4 they need to lo cate the no tary language o n the do cumen t.1 5 W e instruct then to read the language. N o wcurren tly1 they're no t suppo sed to be readin9 the co nten ts o f tha1 7 do cuaen t but they are suppo sed to read the no tary16 lan guage because th e n otary lan guage tells th e n otary19 w hat th ey'za suppo sed to do . It iden tifies IIh at th e20 recipien t o f that do cw :en t w an ts the no tary and the21 docunent signer to do . So the no tary is suppo sed to22 ho ld the do cuasn t in her hand, read the language,23 they're supposed to ask fo r their 1 0, because typically24 they pro bably are no tar i zing first signatU re, no tar izing25 a signature o f a perso n they have never met. S o they

2 wo uld send thea a certificate o f appointnent an d a copy3 o f "hat we have, either the no tary handbo ok o r ifwe4 do n't h ave th e h an dbo ok w e w o uld sen d thaa a co py of th e5 c ur re nt s ta tu te s.6 Q. W h a t abou t a notary staIlp?1 11 . We do no t issue no tary s t an p s .a Q. Whe re w ou ld - -9 A . T i l e in dividual h as to purch ase th eir m m1 0 atanp O r thei r co apsny will purchase thei r stal!p fo ru then.12 Q. Wh od o th ey p ur ch ase th em fr om ?1 3 11 . W ell, rubber staap sto res o r 5 01 .e o f yo ur14 statio nary supply sto res w ill have availability to15 p ur ch ase a stam p.16 Q . Yo u said that yo u send o ut the statutes and1 1 the handbo oks, yo u've always do ne that, w hatever18 in carnatio n o f the handbo ok is at that tlae, since theL 9 tine yo u've been there; is that co rrect?20 A , 'T hat is co rrect, except fo r a sho rt per io d21 o f ti r . :e in 2~ lO when lie vere in the pro cess o f changing22 legislature, but because the C lass was sandato ry I vo uld23 always tell them at the class yo u need to get o n the web24 si te, yo u need to pr ln t the statutes so that yo u can25 fam iliar ize yo urself \lith thea, but as so on as the

2 3 2~1 ho ld the ID in thei r hand, they q ive the dccuaen t stqner2 thei r no tary jo urnal and they'r e suppo sed to ask the3 dccunen t si9 ner to sign in the jo urnal.4 Q. W hat is a n otary jo urn al?5 A . T he jo urnal is a IIr ittM reco rd o f the6 tran sactio ns th at th e n otar ies h ave co spleted Of Ilaybe7 haven 't co trfleted but a transactio n o f an atte!> pt to doB a n o t ar i za ti o n .9 Q. Is th at req uir ed un der th e statutes?

1 0 A . Yes, it is.11 Q . W hat's the purpo se o f keepin g a n otar y1 2 journal?13 A. 7he purpo se o f the jo urnal is to have a14 reco rd o f tho signature en the docunen t, a reco rd o f the1 5 iden ti ficatio n used to iden tify the do curen t signer and1 6 the no tary jo urnal is a si len t w itness to the17 notar ization . H e c an 't reaei iber w hat w e d id n a} 'be 1a st18 ! l ee k bu t if yo u lo g i t in yo ur jo urnal yo u have a1 9 wr itten reco rd o f the no tar izatio n that to ok place.20 Q. B ased o n yo ur kncsledqe o f the statutes and21 th e h an dbo ok, are yo u asar e o f an y pr ovisio ns perso nally22 that allo w a no tary to no tar ize witho ut en ter ing,23 neno rializing the no tar izatio n in the jo urnal?2 4 A, uo , there isn 't any.2 5 Q, W o uld th at be so neth i n q th at yo ur o ffice


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261 lIould investigate?2 A. O u r investigation capabilities are very3 snall, but if we liue to . receive a cceplatnt Iroa a4 docuaent siqner that said they believe the notarizat ion5 w asn 't do ne accurately, they didn't sign a [o urn al ,~ Secretary of State's office would ask to. see a copy o.f1 the notari2~d docueent , that's so lie have a basis toa co ntact th e notary. I\nd then lie \/Ould contact the9 notary and as k to se e intraced in their jo.urnal fo r a

1 0 3fJ-day perio d. 'fh at 30-day p er io d w ou ld en co zp ass th e11 date this docunent lias notari zed. Then lie lIould review1 2 the journal to. see if this p ar ti cu la r n ota rh ati on lias13 in there. If the journal was not kept accurately and1 4 the entry wa s not in th e jo urn al th en w e 1 ';(lU ld san ctio n15 the notary for not beinq in cor rpl iance lIith l~evada law.16 Q. Is it peu lissible fo r a notary to charge a1 7 fea for th e notarization?lS A. Yes, it is.1 9 Q . A re there any restrictions on what th e cost2 0 would be of the fee?2 1 A , T he fee is set by lIevada lall and it' 5 in

27

22 the statutes. There is a group of, there's a business23 venture out there called Loan Signing c oc un en te o r,2 4 let's see, they call them Loan Signing, Loan S19oi09, I25 can't thii'll


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301 A pri l 1 4 , 2Q 01 un til A P r i! 201 1 .2 Q. Let 's turn to Exhib i t 6.3 C an 'Io u take a lo o k at th at do cuaent and

2 9

1 E xh ibi t 6 whether th is sas filed w ith your off i ce and2 kept in th e course o f lJusin ess?3 A . ?he nu:llber o n th e r i< )h t h and side is4 handw r itten in and we received th is o n March I, 2006 in5 the azo unt o f $35 .6 O . S o based 00 yo ur review o f th is do cunen t1 w as th is in fact filed with y o ur o ff ic e?9 A . Y e s , i t was.9 Q. A n< lcan you tell us .:h at the cccnisston

1 0 date fo r r racy tallrence is~1 1 A . A cco rdin q to th e applicatio n , in the upper1 2 r igh t h and comer yo u'il se e where it says 4 -26 '06, that1 3 is her co aaissio n date, so it \!Ould have been A pr il 26 ,1 4 2006 . O ur appo in ttlen ts run fo r fo ur years so it ~ 'Ou ld1 5 have expired A pril 26 , 2010 .16 Q. Let's turn to the next page o f Exhibit 611 wh ich is o ate steaped 839 . C an yo u tell us what th atis is?19 A. This is th e fillnq notice that the20 individual receives fro lll the co un ty clerk 's o ffice after21 they file the bo nd, th e 1 0,O OO -do llar surety bo nd w ith22 th e co un ty clerk . T he county clerk fi lls o ut th is forl'l23 which q ivcs ue o ur co ratssto n dates, th at's where w e qo t24 th e A pril 26 th date frOlll, an d it tells us that th e bo nd25 was filed i ll the C o un ty C lerk's o ffice o n the 24 th day

31

1 Q . Okay. S o if a no tary public sends in an2 applicatio n and sign s thei r nal,s a cer tain w ay, are they3 required to $ i9 n it that w ay w hen they no tarL ze4 dccun en tsj5 A . Yes, that's the intent th at th e siqn ature6 on th is applicatio n wo uld be th e sign ature o n the1 do cunen ts, 7he S ecretary o f S tate has ano th er pro cesse that's called an authentication of signatures.9 Q. I/hat is that?10 A . O kay. 'Iyp icaliy it's do n e when dccuzen t s1 1 are beinq sen t o ut o f th e Un i te d S ta te s and are go ing to1 2 iX ! used in fo reign co untr ies fo r n aybe ado ptio n s, O r if1 3 th e no tary, if the do cunen t s i ~ n er had a fanHy r : w 1 ) e r1 4 living in ano th er co un try and th at pro per ty lias lIilled1 5 to then , th e q overn aen t o f the o th er co un try requires1 6 legal red tape, special pro cess to vedfy th at th e1 1 giving , th e bequsath ln q o f the pro per ty is g iven to th e1 8 r ight perso n . S o if a do cuaent was subait. ted to th e1 9 S ecretary o f S tate's o ffice during 2006 to 201 0 fo r20 tracy L aw rence and th e signature cane in 100kin9 like21 th e applicatio n o n 2002 's applicatio n , Ite "' 'Q uld have22 rejected it because the o n ly app1 lcatio n we're dealin g23 w ith is the o ne fo r the April 26 , 2006 applicatio n . S o24 if sh e were to change her sign ature ! ro x the signature25 on the applicatio n o f 2006 to anyth ing th an what is o n

4 let us know if you 're fan iliar w ith it and what i t b?5 II . Y es . 'lh is again i s a n o ta ry a pp li ca ti o n6 th at is cur ren tly in our o ffice and it's fo r S tacy,7 excuse lie, T r ac y f l. L a llr en ce , L -A iI -R - ~- N C -E .89

Q . A nd fo r th e reco rd .. e 're referr in q toS tate's E :< h ibit 6 , bate steeps a,s, 839 , 84 0 , 8 1 1 , 85 3,1 0 an d 8 54 .

11 NO li th is E xh ib it 6, th e fern looks a little1 2 bit differen t th an th e o ne on E xhiM t 5 ; Is th at13 correct?1 4 A . Yes, it does.15 Q. D o yo u leno;; whether th ere "'ere any16 significilnt changes o r is it just- a forl'.atting change?1 1 A . It appears to be, th e chanqe is lIe've asked1 S fo r a residence address. tl~, i t's a fomatting change.L9 Q . S o the In fcreat lo n is th e sane th at yo u'r e2 0 asking for, i t 's just set up differen tly o n the page?21 A . Cor rec t .22 Q. Okay, A nd who do es th is applicatio n apply23 to ; who is th is fo r?242 5

A .Q ,

1 ra cy L a wr en c~ .A nd is there a way to tell fro ll lo o k ing at

1 o f february, 2 0 0 6 .2 0 , A nd let's turn th e page to th e next page,3 bates nurher 840 . C an yo u iden tify th at do cun ent?4 A . Yes, th is is an o th er applicatio n fo r nacy5 L aw rence, T llis cO:;Qission star ted A pr il lD , 2002 an d6 ran to A pri 1 26 , 2006 .1 Q. Soin cO llparing th ls page, bate stan pedS 8 40 , to th e fir st applicatio n o f E xh ibit 6 th at li e9 taHed abo ut, bates 939 , ~ ould it be fair to say th at1 0 the o ne you 're lo ok ing at r igh t n ow , bates 84 0 , was her1 1 first applicatio n , and th en th e 838 was th e seco nd o ne?12 A. COr r e c t .1 3 Q. Okay. S o basically a ren ewal?1 4 A . Yhe 426 06 was the r en ew al a pp li ca ti o n .15 Q. Okay. And in looking at th es e, c olJ pa ri ng1& the two applicatio n s fro :~ IIpr il 26 , 2002 , which is bate1 1 stamp mll)ber 84 0 , to th e o ne on Apr i l 2 6, 20 06 , whiCh is1 8 bate steeped 838 , th e si9 natures Q f M i ss L a w ce nc e1 9 lo o k _. do t h ey look th e sax e?20 A . t


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3 6

eth is app licatio n w e ~ "()uld no t au then ticate theZ s ignature. We " "Qu Id th in k th at i t \las forged . So th is3 is w h y we keep the cu rren t app licatio n o n file because4 as huaan bein gs w e do ch ange out s ignatures from t ille to5 tim e and it's no t I J f l c o : t ! I o n fo r a n in div idual w ho Is6 first appo in ted a n o tary to s i g n l ike T r a c y did o n tile7 app licatio n dated 20 02 , very n ice, very clear I bu t as aa n o tary yo u don ' t real ize ho w ! l !3ny do cum en ts y ou 'r e g olo g9 to be sign in g, so they scaetinea qu icUy change their

1 0 sign atu re an d y o u u y end up w ith th e signatu re o n th e1 1 application o n 20 06 .12 Q. h'hen these applications l> 'ere subn t t t . cd to1 3 y o u r o ffice, is it a r equ im '.en t that the person1 4 co l!plete the applicatio n at yo ur o ff ice o r can they ! : !a i l1 5 th is in o r en ai l it; ho w do they sub :n it it?16 A. ' 1 hey ca n subait it th ro ug h th e mail .11 Q . 1I0uid there be a n y w ay to kn~ vhether th e1 8 per so n subal. tt inq th e app licatio n is in fact the pISon1 9 applying o r is it p ossib le th at SOleo ne co uld sub nit an2 0 a pp li ca ti on on behalf o f so aeo n e else w ithD ut thea21 know ing?22 1\ . It is po ssib le fo r an individual to subllit23 an applicatio n using a ficti tio us n aee.24 Q. ~t'3 tu rn no w to the next page, E Y.h ibit 6 ,2S bates staep nuzber S U . C an y o u 1 den tify th at do cun en t?

1 rscai ved fro a th e co un ty clerk confiming th at J en ni fe r2 L o \le d id in fact file her bo nd H ith the co un ty clerk .3 Q. A nd am4 A . It is th e screen sho t o f th e no tary data5 base in the search ro de fo r J enn i fer L owe.6 Q. A n d 1 00 1 : at 8 5 2 . I t s h o w s that h e r7 coanlsston is f r on?8 A . February 24 , 200 4, e~piting F eb ru ar y 2 4,9 2008.

1 0 Q . O k a y . A r.d let's tu rn to E xh ibit a .1 1 B asically the sage questions I'n g01 ng to ask here.1 2 A , U hhuh , ~h is is an appl icat io n fo r Heghan1 3 B leecker , B-L -O -E -C- l \ - E -R . I\n d sh e w as c or nlssi on ed in1 4 l l~ ve u. be r 1 5 th , the y ear 20 00 . He r co nfirn :atio n th is1 5 apparently was faxed into us on O cto ber 1 4 , 2 00 0 --1 6 let's see. S he I I 1 U S t h ave received an i l p p l i c a t i o n f roa17 us o r he r conpany d id th ro ug h the f ax n ac hi ne .18 Q . S o th e fax h isto ry at th e to p o n bate stazp1 9 n usher 84 5 sho ss that y oU r o ffice --20 A . li e must h ave fax~ d an applicatio n to21 sOl1 .ebody th at she J :nell back in 1 9 9 7 and they used th e,22 o r were p ho to co py in g th e a pp li ca ti on ,2 3 Q . A n d can yo u tell w hether th is app licatio n24 was actually fi led \li th your off ice?25 A . W eil, w e do n 't have th e saae acco un ting

JJ

A . T h is is the bo n d filin q no tice th at was2 subar ttad w ith th e firs t appli catio n fo r T racy L aw ren ce3 an d th is is the do cuaen tattcn that the co un ty clerk4 g ives to the ind ividual after th ey fi le the bond.5 Q . O kay. How abou t the next t wo p a ge s, a5 36 an d 85 (, H hat are they ?7 A . 85 3 is th e screen sho t o f o u r n o tary dataB base under the search screen fo r rracy Lawrence .9 Q . A nd 8541

1 0 i '.. A nd it appear s that 8 5 4 is a dupl icate.1 1 Q . Okay . l !O l l let's turn to E xh ibit 7 . C ln12 y o u i de n ti fy th at do cU J:'.en t? lin d th is is bates 84 3 , 8 4 4 ,13 and 852.1 4 A , Yes, th is is a n o tary app licatio n suboitted15 fo r Jennifer L o w e, L - O -l1 -E , and h er comlsston wa s1 6 February 24 , 200 4 .1 1 Q . A nd is there a ~ ay to tell w heth er th is w a s1 8 in fact fU ed ! li th y ou r o ffice?19 A . Hell, th e r ec ei pt nurber o n th e r i~ ht h~ nd,20 Ioser r igh t h an d co rner , it' $ a little difficult to read21 bu t 1 reco gn ize th e diq its and such .2 2 Q . Oka y . S o th is w as fi led w ith y o u r o ffice?23 A . Yes, i t w as.242 5

Q.1\ .

84 4 ,It's the bo nd filin g no tice th at w e

351 systea as Ile did back then but the nuscer in the upper2 r igh t h an d co rner tells us that h er c()l~ issio n startedJ o n N C lV o m er 1 5 , 2000 . 'ihe next page is th e bond f i l ing4 conflrnation not ice.56

Q .A .

A n d the next page. 8 4 1 bates.T his is a renewal application fo r Heghan

1 B lo ecker , 1 h ls co aalsslo n w as renewed o n !to veB ber 1 5 ,S 200L In the low er tight hand co rner is th e acco un ting9 s ys te n s ta tl p c o nf ir ll li n g r ec ei ve d h er n on ey .1011

Q.A .

lIeK t page? B ate starp 84 8 ,This is the bo nd filing not ice to c on tlr n

1 2 th at the bo nd was filed H ith the C Lark C oun ty C lerk 's1 3 O ffice fo r th is cccn isslo n .1 4 Q. A nd last o ne bate stan p, nunber 85 1 .1 5 A . 8 5 1 is the screen sh o t o f the search screen1 6 of th e notary data b ase fo r H eghan Bloecke r ,n Q . S o based o n your rev ie\! o f all theselS do cueen ts, ' ,,'Q uid it be fair to sal' th at J oseph }lo el,1 9 T racy L a w t e n c e , . .lanniCe, L o w e an d Megh a n B l o ec k er l I e r e20 all licens~ no tar ies w ith the State o f ~ eva da ?2 1 1\ . T h a t is correct .22232 4

Q.A.

O kay . lind were th ey all residen t n o tar ies?Y es, th ey w er e.HR . KEJ" tEHE ! \ ; I h ave no further quest ions .

25 G ran d Jury have an y q ue st i on s?


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38CII~ f O R E ~ E R S ON :J u ro r s, q u es ti o n s?By law -- pa rdon Ite, I'm sor ry .I23 BY A JUR OR :4 Q . O n the bo nd , yo u've go t a 10 ,OOO - do l l a r5 bond, can t he i n di vi du al file fo r m or e? I aean ca n6 there be Q bo nd greater than 1 0, MO ?1 A . If th e in di vi du al w an ted to p ur ch as e th ei ra o an bo nd i t co uldn 't; be a surety bo nd because a su rety9 bo nd is requ ired by th e state in the aro un t o f 1 0,0 00 .10 In suran ce co mpan ies typ ically do n't like to issue a bond1 1 g reater th an 1 0 ,00 0 under the surety, but there is an1 2 o ptio n fo r the n o tary to pu rchase wha t they ca1 1 an E& O1 3 o r i t's always ca1 1ed an E rro rs and O ;sissio ns po licy ,H T ho s~ p olic ies can be purchased in an y aao an t. I1 5 believe they are an an nual po licy an d th e co st fo r them1 6 va rie s fr o:n c on pan y to co npany , B ut th at is an o ptio n ,1 1 it is no t requ ired by N evada law .1 8 Q . r have a coup le no re questions to o , tan1 9 anyone purchase a ste np wi thou t peralssicn o f the stat~?20 Y oU say th ey 'r e u su ally p ur ch ase d Iron stationary21 sto res.2 2 A , ' C h e statute says t h a t in o rder to23 nanufacture a notary stanp t h e I ! an u fa c tu r c r is supposed24 to get a cer ti fied co py o f the no tary cer tificate o r at25 least see th e o rig in al cert ificate. Bu t there ate

311 fo rgers o ut there th at are nak in g staltps.2 Q , B ut w ith th e certi fied co py that ueans that

1 nota ry my c harge fo r an ac~nowledgnen t is $$. T o2 adm in ister a ju rat, a jurat is wh ere th e no tary lan guageJ says that the do curen t was siqned In fro n t o f the no tary4 an d that they are q iven an o ath , th at's also $5 , to5 nake a cer tified co py o f a dccuzen t the n otery l t ay6 ch arge $2 .5 0, to adn in ister an o ath w ith o ut a signatu re7 is also $2.50.S Q. ?hat ha s been pr etty ll.uc ho f a stan dar d fee9 fo r q ui te a w o ile , i sn ' t it?1 0 A . It's been stan dard fo r several years. I'd1 1 h ave to lo o k at my no tes in o rder to find o ut vhen th ey1 2 chan ged it. I do n 't r eaeaber o ff the to p o f ny head.1 3 B ut pr io r to that the fee was like $2 to do an1 4 a ck no s le dq n en t.1 5 Q. O n e ; :.< )req uestio n. A r e th e bo nd s leg al16 be yon d the pareneters o f th e U nited S tates in i ts1 7 pro tecto ran ce (sic)?1 8 A . I do n 't kn ow the answer to that questio n .1 9 Q . 'i ha nk y o u.20 BY A J U R O R :21 Q. I h ave a questio n . Is there any so r t o f2 2 b ack gro un d check do n e o n anyo n e that tr ies to baco ze a23 nota ry?24 A . P r io r to 20 1 0 , no . Ihe legh lato rs gave us25 th e autho r i ty to in i tia te -- let's see. ! Ie h ave th e

3 they h ave, that th ere 's state pern lssio n fer the perso n4 to h ave, to req uest a stan p?

A. It " 'CuId, I h 'Cu ld a s sume it \ /Ould nean that6 th ey do h ave a cD m .'lIissio n. 7he nan ufacturers do no t7 have to reg ister w ith th e state in o rder to zanufacture89

staaps.Q . Is th e jo ur na l p ro vid ed by t he s ta te ? Is

1 0 it a standard forn o r is it a standard fo rn you p ick up1 1 in a s ta ti on ar y s to re, a standard book, booklet?1 2 A . T he jo u rnal Is the respo nsib ili ty o f the13 no tary to purchase, th ey co ne in very n any fo ms.1 4 E very nanutactursr decides, th ey so rt o f rev iew what Is1 5 ao st asked by all the states, E very no tary state has16 dif fe re nt n o ta ry lalls,17 Q. It's pretty nuch a standard torn then inlS th at respect?1 9 A . 1 he in fcmat icn that is in there nay be20 so r:ewhat standard. B ut o u r no tar ies have to fin d a21 jo urnal that neet o u r standards o r at least alter the2 2 jo urnal to n a k e it Ileet o u r s ta n da rd s.2 3 Q. lI 'h at are th e param eter s o f th e fees) is it2 4 a set price o r d o e s it f loat?25 A . I t is a se t fee curren tly. T h e fee th s t a

391 statute that says we can ask fo r it. l ie h a ven ' t2 d ev elo ped th e p ro ce du res to r eq ui re backqround checks.3 B ut we were o nly g iven that au th o ri ty as o f 20 1 0.4 Q . Th a nk you.5 THE FO R E P E R SO N : d d it io n al q ue st io n s?6 BY A JUROR :7 Q. l ihen a p er so n g et s a renesal notary do yo u8 quys send o ut a h an db oo k w ith t he u p da te d intoraat io n to9 that notary person?

1 0 A . Y e s . D u r i n g a leq islative year , an d ifw e1 1 have a b ill befo re the legislature that nay ch ange o r1 2 add req ulreaen ts to the no tary , what lie typically, what1 3 w e have do n e in the past is lie have sen t then a co py o f1 4 th e current statutes a n d then aftn th e law l I 'a s cod i f i ed15 an d it is w r i tten in th e statu te fo rn liS lIo uld do a m ass1 6 nai l i nq and sen d it to all the n o tar .ies and give th en11 the cur ren t updates. W ealso add the cu rren t updates o n1 9 the S ecretary o f S tate 's web p a g e and any tiM I held a1 9 no tary class, wheth er itw as ! 2a nd ato r y o r v o lu nta ry , r20 always tell the participan ts o f the C lass what the21 updates are .2 2 T HEFO R E P E R SO Il:Q-~~s t i on .2 3 BY A J UR O R :2 4 Q. W h y are yo u asking fo r thei r n o ther ' 525 a a i de n n an e?

4 0


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1 A . T he ! t< lther 's ! n M :t is a qualifier2 because believe it o r no t W 00 have notar ies o f the3 sane naae, first nsne, niddls in itial and last nane, an d4 th e o n ly d is ti ng ui sh in g d iffe re nc e Io i'o u ldbe th e Mther 's5 maiden nasa , Because we ate no t a l l ov ed to ask fo r th e6 date o f bir th anymore an d that's \lhat \Ie use it as a7 qual if ier .B ~HE FOREPERS011: Addit ional questions?s B Y A J UR OR :I n Q , Just one , When th e class b ecan e n an dato ry

1 1 in 2 0 07 w er e th e no tar ies p rev io us to that nade to take1 2 that class o r vas it just when they case up for reneKal13 they were nade to take the course?1 4 A . lIotaries that lIare cur ren tly appo in ted15 Oc t obe r 1st, 2007 \ le r e g r an d fa th e re d in , un less they had16 a vlclatton that th e secretary of State inposed a17 violat io n u po n th ea . T h at lIo ui d in itiate theIS r eq uir em en t fo r then to take a class. O r if their19 appointment ha d been expired fo r mra than 36 5 days. If2U their ap po in tm en t ex pi red an d itha d on ly been 51 ) (2 1 lI! on ths then we could no t requi re then to take tho22 educat ion course. S o there is sor t of a net there to23 catch sene (If then , but if they don ' t have their24 appo in tm en t expired o r they (!o n't ~ke a v iolat ion then25 they are no t required to take educatio n co urse.

1 is goin9 to call is E u ge n e M e nd io la .2 1m; r O R t P E R S O N : Please raise yo ur r i gh t3 hand .4 Y o u d o s ole nn ly SIIMr th e test luo ny y o u are5 abou t to give upon th e in ve~ tigatio n n ow p en di ng b efo re6 th is Grand Jury shall be th e truth , the ~ h o le truth , and7 no thing hu t the truth , so help yo u God?8 T HEHI1 IIE S S : I do .9 T HE FO R E P E R SO ll:P lease be seated.

1 0 Yo u are advised that you are here to day to1 1 give testteo ny in tile investigatio n pertain ing to th e12 o ffenses o f notar ization o f s lq n at ur > o f p er so n no t in1 3 presence o f no tary public, offer ing f al se I ns tr uz en ts14 for filing or reco rding, and false certificatio n o n15 certain in str un en ts, in vo lvin 9 G ary T raffo rd and G err i1 6 S heppard.17 D o y ou u nd er sta nd th is a ctvi seE le nt?

T H& Wnt lESS : Yes, I do .81 9 T HE FOREP ER SON : Please state yo ur fir st20 an d last name and spell bo tb fo r the reco rd.21 THE tlnIIESS: EU9 sn e Mendiola.22 E-U-G-E-I I -Er N-E-IHH-O-L-A.232 425

TlI8 FOR8PERSO ! I : .hank you .P i ea se p ro c ee d.

4 11 T H E r o R E P ~ R S O ~ : Add it io n al q ue st io n s?2 By!all, t he se p ro c ee di n gs a re sec re t an d3 y o u a re p ro h ib it ed f rom d i sc lo s i ng to any one anything4 that ha s t ranspired before us, including ev idence an d5 stater ; :Ents presen ted to the Grand Jury, an y event6 o cc ur ri ng o r staten en t nade in the presence o f th e G ran d1 Ju ry , a nd I nf o rn at Io n o btained by th e G ran d J ur y.a Failure to c o:;p ly w ith th is adocni t ion is a9 gross mi sdeaeancr punishable by a year in ti le ClarkIn Coun ty D eten tio n C en t~ r and a $2 ,000 fine. In addi tio n,11 yo u ! r a y be held in contempt of c ou rt p un is ha ble by an1 2 add it ional 9 5 0 0 fin e and 2 5 days in th e C lar k C o on ty13 Detent ion Center .141516

D o y ou u nd er stan d th is admonit ion?TlIE I H ' I N ESS : Yes, I do.1HE fOREPERSO l I : 7 ha nk y ou fo r your

1 7 test i J : 'Ofn by t he r cr ep er so n o f th e3 G rand Jury to testi fy to the truth, t he l -: ho l e t ru th ,4 and no th ing but the truth , testified as fo l lo vs:567a BY M S . L E S rE R ~

EXA' !WA' l ' ION

Q . C an y ou p le ase tell the Grand Jury whO yo u1 0 I /n r k f o r?1 1 A .12 off ice .1 3 O . A nd can you tell t hsGI a l it tl e bi t about1 4 yo u r e du ca ti on al b ac kg ro un d?15 A . I have a four year degree with a n e L ph as is

I Ho rk fo r the C lar k C o un ty R eco rder 's

16 in acco un ting and I also h ave an HB A with an e; ;phasis in17 business.IS O . C an yo u tell thea a little bit abo u t yo ur1 9 p ro fessi on al b ac kg ro un d before yo u cane to th e20 recorder!s off ice?21 A . I'm a 24 -year M ar ine C orp v eter an an d after22 I retir ed I vo rked fo r the S tate o f califo rn ia, the2 3 A d ll in is tr at iv e Offic~ o f th e C our ts. A nd o nce I24 relo cated to navada I a lso I/o rked fo r th e I lo u se ho ld25 Credi t Card Serv ices as an audit nanaq er IIhere K e


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1 co llecte~ , audited cOllectf.g~nCies. A nd then I2 started wo rk in g w it h th e C o un ty aud it d!!pattllent an d I3 h 'as a s ta ff a ud ito r with th e i nter nal a~ dit d epar tll.en t4 and then I started working w ith the Clark Coun ty5 Record ! ! r ' 5 Off ice f rO; : 1 there .

Q. W h a t year did y ou b egi n w or ki ng fo r th e

4 5

1 sene o f the qo ah o f, yo u kno 'J , what reco rder" 5 o f f i c ea ,2 their nain go als are w ith regard to reco rded do curen ts?3 A. 'lhe ma i n du ti es of th e recorder's office is4 to e ns ur e t ha t t he d oc ue en ts are recordable. A nd whatS w e sa y recordable, lie m ean th at th ey n eet th e reco rdin g6 r eq ui re ae nt s. Fo r ex ac .p le, th at th e docUlllents ar e7 legible, the do cuso nts have th e In tcruat.Io n that is8 required fo r us to index the in fo rmatio n so i t allo lls9 the dccuren t to 00 lo oked up and researched, and then

10 again like I said ~e make the;n available to th e public11 in th e easiest !lay possible , S o r lq ht nOli l


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1 are Jo o kinq at a no re e f f i l t ! lay to r ec or d d oc un en ts2 a nd ~ l ec tr o n ic reco rdlnq was o n e of t ho s e t ec h no l o gi es3 that has COl l ie a Ionq way whe r e l Ie 'r e able to captu re the4 docuaent i![aqe with a qood quali ty a nd a ls o it al lovs5 fo r a mre t lu . el y p r oces si n g O f th e dccunents, Fo r6 eK a:r ;ple, if yo u were to br in g a do cunen t in , o r let's1 say y o u n a il ed a docuaent in to reco rd and we h ad to8 rej ect that docuzent, it l>'ould take so nany days fo r the9 custo aar to ge t that docussnt back to reco rd an d to

lQ co r rect th e pro blsns and th en sen d i t back i n, w he re as11 in electronic r eC < lr di ng w e c an s en d it back to th e1 2 custo aer th e saJ ! ; .eday, they can til( it th e sane day and13 th en turn i t right back to us.1 4 Q. You n e n tl cn e d sO l '1 e th i ng a bo u t r eq u ir ea en ts15 and that's kind o f \ !hat I wan t to tan abo u t nex t. D oes16 y o ur o f fi ce neintain cer ta in requi rem en ts fo r the11 docuaents to be filed w ith in i t?1 a A . Yes, 1 ' 1 " 6 do . W henwe g et do cuaen ts In to1 9 reco rd, all o ur deputy reco rder s ace req uired to 1 eo k at20 th e do cunen ts to lo o k fo r the recording requirements.21 F or exa!l.pie, i f it'a a o o cu ne nt th at's r elated to2 2 property, I ' I - e r equ ire th at an assesso r's parcel nunber h e23 included in the upper left co rn er o f the do cuaen t, th e24 first paqe. T h e re s h o ul d be a 1 -i nc h m ar gin ar ou nd e ac h25 page. the do cuaen ts sh o uld be o n wh ite paper . It

4 9

23 a docuaent n eed s to b e n o ta ri ze d?24 A . y~s, like I s ai d d oc un en ts li ke n ec han ic s2~ lien s, tho se are req ui red to be: no tar ized .

1 that it's supposed to fo r that parttcular type o f2 dccun en t?3 A. '[hat's correct. We l o ok fo r th e recordinq4 r eq ulr er en ta . W e can 't verify th e accuracy o r the5 co mpleteness o f that dccucen t co nten t, all we 'r a lo oking6 fo r is the basic requi rexen ts that we 'r e requi red to7 1001: f o r .8 Q . G enerally h ow so on after a do cuzen t has

12

sh o uld b e 0 _ S 1 /2 by 1 1 paper . A nd w e also lo ok fo rsi gn atu re s an d n otar y s i qn atu res if a decuaen t is

9 been suh nitted for reco rdin g is i t o ffic ially recorded?10 A, R i g h t nO l i vlth O ur current syste;!l, on ce a11 do cu n e n t is recorded i t's available r i9 h t after that1 2 d oc un en t h as b ee n c O L "p letely r ec or de d.13 Q. fan a little b it abo ut th e pro cess th at1 4 you g o through.1 5 A . h llen we get a docusent in , like I said1 6 ear lier , w e rev iell th e do cunen ts fo r th e reco rding11 requireaents. O nce se see th at all th e recording1 8 requirenents have b ee n r r. et w e then E nter th at1 9 in fomatio n in to o ur reco rd in g systen , 7he do cunan t Is2U scanned in , th e deputies will revie. th e in fo matio n to21 R ake sure that the in fo rnatio n is what's o n the22 do cuzen t, the In aqe th at is scann ed in , we lo ok to lI ' .ake23 sure it's legible. O n ce ev er yth in g h as b een v er ifi ed ,24 the reco rding fees, the im age, that document, t he s ys te a25 ~jill ask do yo u lIan t to c om plete r ec ord in g an d w e say

3 r eq uir ed to b e n otar iz ed , If s . ; e d on 't fin d those4 r eq ui r~ tte nt s th at p ro v id es u s w ith th e reaso n to reject5 th e do curen t and to hava the custo aer co r rect it an d6 then rasubait fo r r ec o rd in g,1 Q. tih o deter min es th e req uireaen ts, th e th in gs8 th at y ou lIe re just talkin q abo ut?9 A . That is in l Ie va da Mv i se d S t at ut es .

1 0 Q. Can y o ur o ffi ce add a n y a dd it io n a l11 requireaents on to the o nes th at are la id o u t in the12 lall?13 A. No, basically ~" 6 just have to fol lo v w hat14 is in t he H e va da R e v !s ~ d s ta tu te s.1 5 O . A nd do the requl r en en ts v ar y d ep en di ng o n1 6 th e d oc ux en t t yp e?1 1 A . co rrect. C er tain do co sents, fo r exeaple18 like necaanics li en s, th os e h av e c er ta in r eq ui .r eae nts1 9 th at say they have to be notarlaed, S I) \ Ie h 'O u ld , y o u20 kn o s, always lo ok fo r that to be par t o f the doc~en t ,21 as w ell as the parties ' naxes an d th e arount o f the lien22 that's bein g pu t o n the co caaen t ,23 Q . SO th e main th ing that y o u'r e lo o k in g at at24 th e reco rder ' 5 o ffice is just th at the do cl. lllen t,2 5 ~ hatever it Illaybe, that it aests all th e requirements

51l yes, th e do cum en t then is reco rded and the reco rd in g2 in stru zen t n Q wer i s s ta !l'p ed i n the upper three-by-three3 area o f the fir st page.4 Q , A n d dld th at p ro cess or even th e tin e5 per io d c han ge tro ll \lh en yo u just a ll ow ed l l~ n u al6 reco rdlnq to when y ou went to th e electro nic reco rdin g?1 A . !'ieH, just abo u t r igh t after ! ;e did th e8 electro nic reco rding we also sw itched o ver to a n e:!9 r eco rd in g system in A ugust o f 200 9 . S o prior to that1 0 systen ch ange we u sed to scan the do co aen ts aftH lie1 1 en tered the reco rd in g in fo rnatio n in , after it ha d been1 2 reco rded an d assigned the in strun en t nun ber , ! lo wlIith1 3 the cur ren t systen th at \Ie have, \Ie scan th e do cun en t in1 4 and we h and the do cunen t back to th e c usto ner , o r we15 aal l thea back if th e y na i led then in . S o the big1 6 change there was that we didn 't scan it after we1 7 reco rded it, lie scanned it b e fo re w e a ctua 1 1y r eco rd th e1 8 do cussn t , S o that was a big ch ange fo r us because lie1 9 didn 't h ave a bun ch o f do cuxen t e th at ve had to p ro cess20 at the en d, we were ju s t h and in g th ea r igh t back to th e21 custoner .22 Q. D o y o u r r eq u ir en en ts sO::letices i nc lu de th at

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Q. C an yo u eX P la. th e Grand Jury ,2 l iWd , w ha t th e acknOilledgpent, w hat th e n otar y

yo u

3 ackn ollledq un t n ean s to your off ice?4 A . U ~ ually "h en lo 'e l ook at th e docunents an d5 they'r e notarized that's l ike a sigo fo r us to say th at6 th e p er so n th at actually s ig n ed th o se d o cu ae nts h ad been1 verif ied by th e n otary an d v alid atin g th at si qn atu re o fS that was th e p er so n th at subsl tted t he d cc ua en t an d that9 siq ned th at do cuxen t,

10 Q . S O basically you ' re relying o n th e n otar y1 1 to , yo u know, do all th e ch eckin g w ith regard to th e12 siqner o f th e docI, l l l ;ent113 A . T hat's correct .14 Q . Does th e reco rder 's o ffice have any U nd o f1 5 duty to reviex th e c on ten ts o f th e d oc un sn ts, an y of th e1 6 lan guage within thea o r ver ify th e slq natures o r11 anyth ing me that?1 8 A . 110, we're n ot req uired to verify ll.ke I1 9 said t he c o nt en t of the do c~ en t in fo rro atio n. He ar e20 just al losed to lo ok fo r th e r eco rdin g r eq uire:r .en ts an d21 as lo ng as th at is n et lie h ave to record t he d o cu n en ts .22 Aga i n that's by th e NM rcquiwaents .23 Q. A n d th at's w hy y o u place, yo u k no l l, s en e2 4 i npo r t ance o n th e n o ta ry ackn Olded~ en ts o n th e2 5 docll 'lents?

Q . C an y ou ta lk , an d aq ain yo u to uch ed o n th is2 a li ttle b it but Ijust want to go into a li ttle b it3 nore detail on it, What e xa ct ly then . 'O u ld c au se a4 do cuaent to be rejected froll th e recording process?5 A . If they di d n o t In clu de th e r eq ui re d6 in fo raat lo n like I said earlier . Let ' s say fo r exaaple7 it's a p r o pe r ty , a docusen t related to pro per ty. W e6 would requi re th e assesso r's par cel n un ber o n that!I d o cu ae nt , If th e docuzent wa s 1l1ssing signatures welU wo uld a lso reject i t fo r th at. If it was a docueent1 1 that req uired a notary acknowiedg ll len t we wou l d r e je c t it1 2 fo r that. If th e d ocu aen t lias illegi ble, w e co uld n't13 read th e in fo rm atio n , w e wo uld also reject i t fo r th at1 4 reaso n.1 5 Q. Is cer tifying do cunen ts also a part o f you r16 job d~t ies?1 1 A . ~ ha t' s c o rr ec t.1 6 Q. O k a y . A nd wele y o u a sk ed by o ur o ffice tol~ cer tify do cunen ta w ith regard to th is case?2a A . Yes, we were.n Q. Okay . A nd just l'n go ing to let the reco rd22 ref1 ~ ct th at we do h ave th e o r ig in al c er ti fi ed docw::ents23 available fo r th e Grand J ur y h er e if a ny bo dy ! la nts to24 see th es, but they 're also included in th e packet o f25 e~ hib it$ an d Ib eli ev e th ~ y start o n Exh i b i t 1 ~ .

53

2 explain to th e Grand Jury w hat th ose d oc uc en ts ar e?3 A . O kay. Exh i b i t 1 0 s h ows a document ulth th e4 In struren t nuxber , Ifyo u lo ok o n th e upper r igh t5 corner o f th e page th at E r.h ib i t 1 0 is shO '~ i n91 th e ver y6 to p nunber there is th e In strunen t nuzber and that1 in struaen t nuno er star ts o ut w ith th e first dght beinge th e date, S o th e first fo ur is th e year , 2009 , th e9 seco nd is th e ao nth , ",h ich is septen ber , an d th e last

1 0 th'O is th e day, wh ich is th e 26th. A nd then th e la st1 1 seven characters o f that n ueber is the a ctu al n ur .b er o f1 2 th e Instruxent. A nd O n th at d oc us en t yu'll also see1 3 th at th e In struaen t co ses Iro n our o ff ice because ~ eH have distin ct in fo rnatio n o n th ere that i s g en er ic to1 5 th e recorder'S off ice in C lar k County, S o we'll have1 6 the reco rder 's fees, th e date an d tirle that th e d o cu xe nt1 1 li as su oo itted fo r r eco rd in g, r ight ]) ; ) low that is againJ8 th e tran sactio n n un ber, th e req uester , in th is case1 9 Fidelity lIatio nal, and th en th e C lark Coun ty Reco rder2~ Pebbie Conway , an o th en th e i ni ti als RMS . 7h at's th e21 actual deputy th at reco rded that do cuaen t , 1 \n do n this22 par ticular do cum en t, th is w a s a no tice o f default w ith23 an election to 5 . , 1 1 un der deed o f trust, an d th is, since24 th is per tain ed to pro per ty we , r ig ht b eh in d th e2 5 u no ffic ial stamp here y o u v o u ld se e th e AP l Inuaber which

1Z

A , _at's correct,Q. Can y ou descr ib e th e sig nifican ce o f a

3 reco rded do cunent o nce it's been r eco rded to th e 9cneral4 public?5 A . O n c e th e d o cu ne nt h as b e en r e co r de d in the& r eco rder 's o ffice th at ] ) ; )c o n e s n o !> ' an o f ti c ia l record.7 S o if a c us to n er needed a copy o f that docuaent we would8 pro vide a cer tified co py to that custoeer an d that9 be cose s in e ss en ce a n o r ig in al.

10 Q . A nd li e t ouched o n this a li ttle b it but I1 1 just lIant to go in to a li ttle so re detai l, CO e s y o u r1 2 o ffice have a n y w a y o f knoliing whether o r no t the signar1 3 o f th e d o cu n cn t ac tu ally siq ned th e do cu nen tt1 4 A , N O , unless th e custo aer did it r ight in15 fr on t o f o ur depu ties at that tine there 1$ no \Iay they1 6 l{ould be able to sa y that th at lias th e perso n , A nd1 1 that's wh y H e rely on t he n o ta r y' s a ck n o :1 l ed g ll !e n tt olS ver ify th at that perso n had signed th at do cu se nt '~ as in19 fact that person.20 Q . poss y ou r o ffice h ave an y wa y o f v er if yi ng21 th e notary's s ignature?22 A . llo .23 Q . COe s you r off ice have an y du ty to verify2 4 th e notary's s ignature12 5 A . ! lo.

55ca n y ou g o a he ad an d lo o k at E xh ibit 1 0 and

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6 0

eis th e assesso r's p ar ce l nu : llhe r and th at's an ll-digit2 p ar cel n um be r o n that dccuaent , S o th at's o ne o f the3 th in gs th at w e w o uld b e l oo ki ng at,4 0, / ln d t he ! Jay that the general public could5 tell that a do cuaen t has ~ en fi led w ith your o ffice isIi by th e presence o f th e reco rding staap being o n th e1 docunent1$ 1 1 .9 Q.

1hat 's correct,can y o u ta ke a l oo k th ro ug h just th e

1 0 exhibits, and I believe i t's In th rough 1 6 r think i s in1 1 that packet, and just to verify th at th o se lo o k lHe th e1 2 do cu zen ts th at y o u c er ti fi ed fo r us that ar e available?1 3 1 1 . Yes, th ey all lo o k like th ey're Iro a our14 off ice,IS Q. S o they're all t ru e an d a cc ur a t e copie s o f1 6 the o r iq in al record?11 A . Yes .IS 0 , A nd th ey are generally kept in the ord inary19 course of bus ineas?2 0 1 1 , res.21 Q, C an yo u explain a little bi t to th e Grand22 Jury what you do when y ou do th e certification?23 A . W henlie get a request fo r a cer tified co py24 of a docunent, we vould make a copy o f th e docueent25 r igh t fro n o ur reco rding systen , we w ould then sterp th e

1 no t a r i zi ng?2 1 1 , N o .3 0, 00 y ou h ave an y w ay o f knoying wh eth er o r4 no t th e signer perso nally appeared in fro nt o f th e5 no ta ry?6 A , N o , w e d on 't,? Q. A nd do yo u h ave an y lIay o f verifying8 whether o r no t th e aiqn ature on th o do cu nen ts o f th e9 no tary actually belo ngs to that n o tary?10 A. n o , we don 't .11 Q . tilth regard to all of t ho s e d o cu z en ts , have1 2 y o u fo r~ ,e d any kind o f o pin io n o f wheth er o r no t, if13 th ere w as n otar y fr au d in vo lved in t he p r o ce ss , ho w that1 4 lIo uld affect th e r ~to rdin g pr ocess o verall?15 I t., th at \io uld p ro bab ly cr eate a pr oblem withl~ th e do cun en t's validity itself an d th at w ould th en star t1 1 to create a pro blea when peo ple are do ing ti tle searches18 and lo o king at th e ti tle h isto ry o f that property. S o1 9 Hco uld brin g in to questio n, yo u kno w, the w ho le ti tle20 ownership an d clo ud th e title is wh at th e i nd us tr y would21 say.22 Q. A nd w hat do yo u base yo ur o pin io n o n?23 A . T h is 1 & based o n o ur custo ners, the titie2 4 co sp an les that COLe in and, you 100:.1, th e} ' w o uld b e25 asking q uestio ns abo ut th e dccuaen ts th at ar e r eco rded,

5 7

9 Q , E arlier yo u said everyth ing is o n an S lIZ

1 last page o " t d oc un sn t lIi th a signature s tamp wh ic h2 has the reco rder-s naxe, w hich says C lark C ounty3 R eco rder , Deb l :> i e Conway , C la rk C o un ty R e co rd er , an d th en4 \i e w o uld a lso e cbos s th at p ag e w ith a raised seal th at5 again si gn ifi es C lar k C o un ty R e co rd er an d th en th at6 coapletes th e c er ti fi ca ti on p ro ce ss. So th at w h en ev er7 an agency o r 30ll\e o the r entity lI'O u ld lo ok at th at th ey8 liQ uid k n O l l th at th at c a n e fr o m th e r ec or de r' s o f f i c e in9 C lark Coun ty ,10 Q . Gen er ally w h o in y o u r o f fi ce doe s th e11 cert if icat ions?12 A . / lnybody tha t' s deputhed b y th e r eco rde r1 3 can do the cer tificatio n s, W elo ck those stan ps up at14 the end o f th e "",rx day so th at n o o ne th at's no tIS au th orized to act on behalf o f th e reco rder can use1 6 tho se stanps, S o each and every day lie lo ck th o se11 s tamps u p .IS Q, Andw i t h regard to the do cuasn ts th at you1 9 certified in th is case, do yo u have any Hay o f k ijo < ling20 xhether o r no t th e signer o n those d o cunen ts a c tua ll y21 siqned th e dccunentsr2 2 A , A r e yo u talkin g ab out th e cu stcn er23 th en se lve s si 9n in q th e d oc U Jte nt?24 Q . th e sig ner , w ho ever it [!ay be l whoever2 5 s tq n e d th e d oc ur en t, I Ih o ev er 'S signature th e n otar y lias

5 9

1 that are on file, you k n O l l , if they D a y o e d ou bt th at2 that d ocU !!e nt w as a go od docuc:ent . l I e11, it l ias3 sullllitted fo r reco rdin g and w e h ave to take the do cun en t4 as lo ng as it m et a ll th e r ec or di ng r eq ui rem en ts,5 ! !S . L E S T E R : I do n't h ave an y further6 que st i o n s . Thank you.7 T HE F O R E P E R S W : Ju[o r~?a f lY A J U R O R :10 by 1 1 sheet o f paper w ith a I-Inch b or de r ,11 1 1 , Yes, si r , th at's --1 2 Q . I know w hen r did m y pr op erty ti tle an d13 ever yth in g it lias o n le ga l p ap er . How do th ey get it to1 4 th e reco rder 's off ice in yo ur fo ra? D o th ey r ed uc e it1 5 and th en it's sti ll legal?1 6 A . It's fi r st required o n an S 1 /2 by 1 1 . Yo u17 ca n subai.t it O n an a 1 /2 by 1 4 , but that is th e maxinu:lIIS size that yo u can sub.'i li t. If y o u d o n 't sub;,it itHithin1 9 that size I;e l;o u1 d r eject it, N owif L t's ar t B 1 /2 by20 H th ere is a n o n , what is kno Hn as a nonco npl iance fee21 o f a $25 fee and so that allOWS yo u to reco rd a do cuaen t22 o n a S 1 /2 by 1 4 p ap er .2 3 Q , Okay ,24 A , A s lo ng as th e nOl1co~pl iance fee is plid.25 filE f O R E F R S O l f : A d di ti oMl q u es ti on s?


16/70

ti21 B Y 1 1 J U R O R :2J

Yeah. Idon ' t w a n t to get ah ead o f lIiyself

61

22 Q, Meg han , w her e d o y ou liv e!23 A , I live in Mo r g an , U t ah .24 Q . S o y o u' ve C01:Jl in to testi fy in front o f25 th is G rand Jury fro a o ut o f state?

Q.or ask th e wrong questio n, hut co uld yo u go to E xh ibit

4 1 0 a nd p ag e 69 2 . I [ust w ant to nake su re I u nd er stan d5 w h at th is docunent i s all about.

It appears like G ary T raffo rd sign ed th is7 docusen t in fr o n t o f, allegedly in fro n t o f a no tarya 'i 'r ac y L aw ren ce; is th at c or rec t19 A . Y e s ,10 Q. Okay . Ipresuse later you're 90 i ng to , o ne

Q. _ y . 7he o ther th ing is ) 'O Uguys do it2 electronically so that nesns yo u do n't take originals3 an '{llOre? I nean it used to be w here yo u h ad to turn in4 an o ri 9i nal do cunent siqn ed. N ow e1ectronicall y n ow y o u5 don't have to do t ha t a ny ;' .. o re 16 A , N o . T he electronic p ro c es s ju st l '. e an s t h at7 the dccuaen ts, we do n 't get the original docunentsa subel tted in to o ur o ffice, but the o riginal do cusen ts9 sti 1 1 has to be processed by the o riginato r and pe r user10 aq re~ en ts they'Ie validating that tho se liars or iginals11 that h av e b ee n subai t te d e le c tr on i ca ll y .1 2 Q. Okay .1 3 T H E F O R E P E R S O N : Quost i ons?14 By laK, th ese p ro ceed in gs ar e sec ret an d1 5 you a re p ro h ib it ed froa disclosing to an yo ne an yth in g1 6 that has transpired befo re us, including evidence and11 statesents presented to the G rand Jury, any even t19 o ccurr in g o r stateaent aade in the presence of th e G ra nd1 9 Jury, and In to raaticn o btained by the Grano Ju ry .20 Failu re to c ~o ply w ith th is adaonit lo n is a21 gro ss n isdeneano r pun ishable by a year In the Clark22 county D e te nt io n C e nt er and a $2,000 fine. In addi tion ,2l yo u nay be held in co nt~ npt o f co urt pun ishable by an24 addi tio nal $5 00 fine and 25 (lays in the C lark County2 ) C le ten tio n C en ter .

63

D o y o u u nd er sta nd t hi s a dv is el tl en t?T H E l i I l : N E S S ; Y es .' i "HEr o R e P E R SON ; P lease state yo ur fi rst

4 and last naae an d spell bo th fo r the reco rd.5 THE WITNE .S S : Meghan S h aw , H -E - C- M -A - tl ,6 S - H - A - W ,1 THE FO R P E R SO lI:ihank yo u.e Yo u 1 ' -3 . 1 ' proceed,9 HR . G IU N !A : T hank yo u.

I n H E G lW l S H A W ,1 1 having been first duly sxo rn b y the fo reperso n o f the1 2 G rand Jury to testify to the truth , the who le truth ,1 3 end ncth lnq but the truth , testifled a s fo llo w s:1 4

EKAHH lA1 ' lOO51 61 7 B Y M R . G II J N 11 1 :1 8 Q. H ~9 han , are yo u also kn ow n as Heghan1 9 alo ccker o r xere yo u at o ne ti$ .e kno wn as M eyhan20 Bloecker?~I A. I was.

6 4

11 of t h es e s i gn a tu r es n a y b e fo r ge d; Is th at c o rr ec t? O r1 2 is that a questio n I sho uldn 't ask r igh t n O K ?13 H R . K E LL EH R R : W e 'l l s ub !l it e vi de nc e th at1 4 Kill answer your q uestio n sufficien tly w ith T racy1 5 L aw rence who will 00 testifying later to day,1 6 A JU ROR : O kay. ~han~ yo u very nuch,n T H E F O R E P E R S O N : Quest i on?1 8 B Y A J U R O R :19 Q. Yeah. 1 ha ve a questio n. T his Gary guy20 who s i gn e d this, do y ou g uy s c hec k th ro ug h th e S ec retar y21 o f State to see if he 's a ! l ' .olnagingJ ;: .e l! .b cr o r t hi $22 co npany to sign do cunen ts? D o yo u guys do that o r M23 yo u just pro cess it th ro ugh?24 A . Aga in w e can 't ver ify the in fo matio n and25 Ke'ra no t requi red to ver ify that In fo rnatfo n,

1Z3

D o y ou u nd er st an d th is a dto n itl on ?tHE liI1N ESS : Yes.T H E F O RE PE R SO N : T hank yo u fo r yo ur

4 test iaony. ' fou ar e excused.56

1 H !: I U rN E S S : T h a nk y o u.M R . G IT Jm A : T he S tate's n ext w itn ess is

1 go ing to be M eghan Blo ecker . Her testiR ony i gD ing toa refer to C Oun ts 4 th ro ugh 1 5 o f the t~'O G r an d J u ry9 Indictllents that w e have o ut here. S he's also 9 0 in9 to10 be testifyin g abo ut E xh ibit II.11 T H ~ rO !U ;~ E R sO ll ! Please raise y o ur r ig ht1 2 hand.1 3 You do so lM 1 11 1 yssear th e te sti mo ny y ou ar e1 4 abo ut to give upo n the investigatio n no . pending befo re1 5 this Grand J ury shall be the truth , the who le truth , and1 6 no th ing but the truth , so help yo u God?17 THE liIT lIR S S : I do .18 THE FOREPER SO N : P le as e b e s ea te d,

Yo u are advised that yo u are here to day to2G give tcsti~ ony in the investigatio n pertain ing to the21 offenses o f n o t ar i za ti o n of signature o f perso n no t in22 presence o f n


17/70

666$eA . Ihave. 12 Q. Okay . l'J Id yo u did that pursuan t to a 23 subpoena? 34 A . Yes. 45 Q. h " h a t 1 s the exten t o f yo ur educatio n? 56 11 . sesester o f c olle ge , 67 Q. Okay . Du r ing the period oC 2000 to 2001 7s w er e y ou e mp lo ye d? 89 A . Yes. 91 0 O . H o w 50? 1 011 A . Iw as emplo yed w ith fideli ty N atio nal 1112 Default Solut ions . 1 213 O . In w hat c ap ac ity w e r e y ou w o rk in g a t 1314 N a ti on al F id eli ty ? 141 5 A . I l'ias a title $eatcher un ti l July o f 2003 1 51 6 an d then I w a s a n e r .a J 1 li n er . 1611 Q. Okay . What do es a title searcher do ? 1718 A . Various jo bs, date dosns, benef ic iary 1819 checks, t iie searchs s. 1 920 Q. IIh at's a date do wn ? 2021 A . A date down is ju st, J .t's ccep uter run 21Z Z print -out of any th ing that's happened to a certain 222 3 pro perty since the last t iae yo u've do ne an y th ing w ith 232 4 it. 242 5 Q. Y o u s ai d s Q 1! .e ti 'li ng e 1s ~, I'm so rry , I can ' t 2 5

A . Itli ink ny enp lo ysr did it. I do n 't recall

w rite that" You said so neth lnq else that yo u did.A . B en efi cia ry c hec ks.Q. C an yo u tell us what a beneficiary check

i s ?A , Y eah , i t's a search on the pro perty to see

IIh o th e cu rr en t b en efic iar y is in case any th ing h as beenchanged since the deed of trust.

Q. A nyth ing else that yo u did while yo u w ereeaployed at Fidelity Nat lonai 1

A . R eco rdinq docusents. O r setting then up tobe reco rded. I didn 't take th en do sn ,

O . s a reco rdin g th en n ean in g e c a e c n e actuallyt ook the do cunen ts that yo u vo rked o n and bro ugh t theno ver to the C lark County Recorder Is Off ice?

A . Yes.Q. A ll r igh t. D id yo u ever wo rk in a po sitio n

as a n otar y publ ic at fi de li ty N ati on al?A . I did.Q. 00 yo u renewer what period of tille y ou di d

that?A . I go t n y notary so n etr aa i n 2000, had it

th ro ugh , th ro ugh the t in e I left in 2007.Q. Y o u s ai d yo u go t yo ur no tary . o id y o u

actually sen d th e applicatio n in yoursel f o r is thatsO M th inq that the ezplo yer did fo r yo u?

61

123456

2007. 1 hat's w hat yo u were invo lved in?Ma i n ly f o r ec lo s u re s.h 'ho actually h ired yo u?Gerd Sheppard .O kay . lind yo ur o ffices were lo cated where?A t 500 N O rth R ai nb ow , S uite 300 .

r - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - r - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~ 63

2 setting it up.3 Q. D o yo u re:tell' .ber gettin g a bo nd?4 A . 1 1 0 . What I do m :e~ lIe[ is go ing d O l l n an d5 taking an o ath and then a,y sta~ and bo o k was sen t to6 ne,7 Q. O kay . S o yo u didn 't have to purchase the

Q.A .Q .A .O .1\ .

7 Q. Is that C lark C o un ty , N evada?8 1\ , '(es, it is.9 Q. O kay . A nd yo u say yo u were h ired by Gerci

1 0 S heppard. Was C er r i sheppard here to h ir e yo u o r w as11 this--1 2 A .13 Q .

l io , it lias o ver the pho ne.D ; : ) yo u kn ow w here G er ri S heppar d 1s o ffi ce s

1 4 are?1 516

A .Q .

Tust in , California.T ustin , C alifo rn ia. O kay . Have yo u ever

8 bo o k o r the stamp?9 A . Ifo .

In Q. D o yo u r en en ber w hat the o ath w as?

1 7 met Gerrl S heppard?1 8 A . I have.1 9 Q. O kay . A nd she 's the OM, I 'm assualnq as20 yo ur superviso r she described what yo ur jo b duties .. ere?21 1\ . S he did. I w as train ed by so neo na else but22 I did speak w ith her to o . L il:~ I know she kn ows what I2 3 d i d .Z ~ Q. Wh o w a s it th at train ed yo u actually?2 5 J o hn Mad ri d.

11 A . r do not .1 2 Q. Could yo u tell us how yo u cane to be1 3 eD -plo yed at N atio nal F ideli ty?1 4 1 '1 . M y dad wo rked fo r F ideli ty n atio nal T itle1 5 and I started to ~ o rk part t ime fo r Fi de li ty n atio na l16 titLe and part tine fo r r idellty}latio nal D efault1 7 S o lutio ns just do ing basic , like pulling do cunen ts,1a basic stuff, and then I just go t no ved up to thatl~ posit ion .2~2 1

Q.A .

What do those eonpanl as do if y ou k no w?Mo rtg ag es a nd f or ec lo su re s.

A .

2 2 O . O kay . A nd during the entire period o f tice23 that yo u lIere ~ 'O rkin9 there Ir o n, when h ' a s it, y ou sai d24 2000 to --25 A . 2007.


18/70

IVQ . ekay. A nd what lias Jo hn Hadrld's po sition 69

19 no tar izatio ns o f these do curaents, did yo u realize that20 the individual that lias sign ing these do cU lten ts lias21 required to be presen t in fron t of you?22 A . r didn 't realize that. I );r.OIl I had spo ken2J to ny bo ss and she to ld ne that th is is o kay to do so I24 just w en t \1 1 th it.25 Q . When you say yo ur bo ss, who is that?

2 if yo u kno ;(l3 A . H ~ wa s a title searcher .

Q. Okay . Younentioned o th er p os iti on s that5 y o u l Ie re working. A nd then you started \lo rking as a6 notary?1 A. '{es.B91011

Q.A .Q.A .

ror ridelity Nat ional?Yes.H o w did that c o n e a) ;out?lIell, itwa s part of the jo b duties, J o hn

12 Madrid lias leaving the cO :o lpany a nd that's \lhat he did so13 r bccane a no tary so 1 co uld take o ver h is po sitio n .1 4 Q . A n d w ha t klnd of docurents di d h e n otar ize?1 5 A . Mainly no tice o f defaults,16 Q. '{au said yo u wo rked fo r Fideli ty N atio nal1 7 D efault?1 8 A . Yes.1 9 Q, C an yo u descr ibs the difference in Fideli ty20 N atio nal D efault and F ideli ty N atio nal T itle?21 A . Yeah. A ll I knOl l i s , I believe th ey 're22 just sister ccnpan ies. It's kind Of l ike Fidelity's23 reain naae OhTIS a bunch of different coapanies M r24 un der stan d it. Ch icago T itle, U nited 1 itle, F ideli ty25 N atio nal D efault S o lutions, T hey 're just sister

S o is that abo ut 5 00 do cunen ts, a li ttleQ .2 bit more?3 A. Probably ro re , I nean that 's a hundred a4 lIeek fo r th ree years ba 5 ically.5 Q. C an you tell us what kind o f do curen ts you6 n otar ized?7 A. A ny docuaents that were a-aai lad to us.g Mainly no tice o f defaults, so aetines subat itutto ns o f9 trustee.

In Q . Was there a t iae when you were enplo ycd by1 1 N ational fideli ty when you \lere asked to no tar ize a12 docunent prior to yo u l:&in9actual Iy certified as alJ notary in nevada?14 A . Y e s .15 Q. Ca n yo u describe th at or tell us what16 happened at that po in t?17 A . Hell, I was to ld by Gerr i S heppard that IlS could use Jo hn Madrid's n otary staL 'p to no tar ize1 9 do cumen ts, sign h is nane and si qn her nase as the20 s igner ,21 Q. S O on these docuaents, fo r exanple if yo u22 loo k at, let' s say how about E r .h1bit N unber 1 1 , take a23 loo k at that do cuxen t, bate stanped 71 4 and thro ugh 11 6 .24 A . What w as your question?25 Q . Could yo u just take a loo k at that

1 bran ch es, tlave different presiden ts and people that2 tun th en .3 Q . P hysically IIhere are they lo cated?4567

A .Q.A .Q .

Fideli ty N atio nal D efault S Olutio ns?Yes.F ro: ! m y k nQ w le dg e, 'r us ti n, C ali fo rn ia .Yo ur o ffic~ lias lo cated you said o n

8 Ra inbow?9 A . Yes.1 0 (!. lIere there any o ther o ffices that \lete1 1 associated w ith Fidelity llati o nal in that building?1 2 A . Fidelity tlational Tit le W 3$ in that13 buildinq on the first flo o r .1 4 Q. Okay . S o yo u vere o n the fourth floor an d1 5 they li e re o n the first fIoo r?16 h, 1 was o n the third 100 ) : ,

Q . T hird floo r . I 'e so rry .A ll r ight. Getting back to your posit ion

19 o r yo ur job duties as a no tary . C an yo u estim ilte how20 l'.an y tin es yo u n ctar ized do cusen ts dur in g tM co urse of21 yo ur e~loy:rent?22 A . M y aain no tary duties \ lere Iro n A ugust o f23 2000 to July of 2003 and o n average I w o ul d p ro b ab ly24 notar ize 20 dccun en ts a day, A fter that time in 2M3 ]25 o n ly no tar ized IIhen I needed to fill in fo r so :r .ebo dy .

1 L

1 do cun entj2 A re these the type o f do cuaen ts that yo u3 were notar iz ing?4 A . Yes.5 Q . O kay . A nd yo u said prio r to actually even6 receivin g a no tary stall! ' fro :1 Fideli ty N atio nal you1 actually no tar ized cerri S hep pa rd's n an e?S A . Y es.9 Q . A nd that was usio g: J ohn Madrid's notary?101112 s i90113

A .Q .

Yes.S o in that in stance who se signature did yo u

A . I wo uld sign Gerr i S heppard's and then I14 wo uld sign Jo hn Madrid as no tary.1 5 Q. SO y o u signed Gerr i S heppard as the slqner1 6 and then Jo hn Madrid as th~ no tary?17 A . Y e s .18 Q . Okay. H hen yo u perfo rm ed th ese

7 2


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- 13 7 41 A , 1 . 1 co u ld h ave y o u take a lo o k at E xh ib ite rr i S h~ pp ar d. Q.2 Q, Okay . S o Geed S h eppard in structed yo u to 2 NuMer 4,3 sign her naae and then to n otarize -- 3 C ould yo u take a lo o k at that exh ibit.~ A , Yes. 4 What's that a picture o r ~ h o is th at a p ictu re o f?5 Q , -- h er n ase w ith yo u r sign ature? 5 A . G er ri S h ep pa rd .~ A . Yes. 6 Q . Okay . Yo u reco gn ize her fro n lio rkin9 w ith1 Q. A nd when did yo u learn that that was no t a 7 he r?a p ro pe r p ro ce du re ? a A . Yes.9 A . I th ink it was abo ut tw o mo n ths ago when 1 9 Q. Okay . A nd can yo u lo o k -- that's h er1 0 go t a call fro n th e atto rneys h ere. 10 dr iver 's licen se !guess it lo o ks to be?11 Q . Fran r nvestigato r G ro sz llay lJ e? 11 A . Yeah .12 A . Yes. 12 Q . Ok~y . C an yo u lo o k at her sign atu re?13 Q . D id yo u aaln tatn a no tary jo u rnal? 1 3 A . Yes .14 A . I had o n e. r didn 't use it fo r th is jo b. 14 Q , D oes th at appear to M a true and accurateIS Q. D id yo u use it at all: 15 replicatio n o f h er signatu re?1 6 A . I used it fiva t ines wh en I n o ter l zed 1 6 A , Yes.11 th in gs o utside o f Il y jo b, d ifferen t peo p le that asked Il.~ 11 Q . H ow d o yo u kn ow th at:1 8 to no tar ize I lio u id use the book. 1 6 A . lIell, I h ad seen h er sign ature o n do cuzen ts19 Q . B ut when vo u were no tar izing the no tices o f 1 9 that l I e r e sen t to U 9 . I can It say I've ever seen her2 0 default fo r N atio n al F ideli ty yo u never used th e no tary 2 0 perso nally sign her stq nature but they did sen d21 book? 21 do cunen ts that she had sign ed so .2 2 A . N o . 22 Q . A nd that's the signature yo u lIo uld see23 Q . Have y o u ever had o ccasio n to ! l!eet Ger r i 2 3 w hen --2~ Sheppard? 2 4 A . l o : eU , it lo o ks like she wro te her w ho le2 5 A . Yes , 2 5 naae, sh e w ou ld just w rite C err i. B u t y es, i t's the

7 5 7 6

1 salte stqnature , 1 Q. Garr i S heppard was no t there sign ing that2 Q . O kay . D id there co ne a tine I


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18e 7760 3 an d 6 04 pleilse? 12 A . Okay . 23 O . !That 's th a t docusent? 34 A. 11 notice of default , 45 Q . O kay. S ane th ing? 56 A , Yes, 67 Q. C an yo u look at th e siqn ature? 78 A. Y e s . e9 0, O l l a y . A n d that is lIhse signature? 9

1 0 A . I signed Gerd S hepN rd' a naze and I 1011 notadzed it, 111 2 Q. Okay. A n d let's look at o ne "ore, page 121 3 1 21 , 722 . lihat is that docunentt 1 314 1\ , A no tice o f default. 1415 Q . o k a y . A nd on paqe 7 2 2 there is a notary 1 516 stezp an d that is your si gn atu re; co rr ect? 1 617 A . Yes. 17I S Q . A n d there's a $i9Mture line fo r Cerd 1819 Sheppard? Yes? 192 0 A . Ye s . 2 021 Q. A n d - - 2122 A . I s iqned th a t. 2 22 3 Q. Yo u siq ned that. Okay. 2324 ! low o n al l o f th ese dccunents it's your 2 42 5 testlno ny that you w ere auth o r i zed o r directed by Carr! 2 S

I yo u kno,2 A . I don 1t kno ll why. T hat was the process3 that w e g et them recorded and s end thea to th en . I4 9UESS I didn't as k \lhy.5 Q . B ut yo u had a dtscassio n w ith Gerr i6 S heppard abo ut th e fact th at they ~ 'Ould be reco rded th e7 s a B e day?8 A . Yes,

Sheppardtot he r naae as th e beneficiary I believeit is?

A , U sually lie K ere just acting as aqent but.0 , O k a y .A . Yeah, it says th at we w ere assistin q th e

beneficlaty, S o lie w er e a cti nq as agent.Q, A nd it's y o ur te sti no n y that yo u were

directed in each o f tho se in stances to si< jn GerdSheppard ' s n ase a n d to 5 ign it wi th yo ur n otary star ,p?

A . res.Q. D o yo u r en en be r a ny c o-v or ke rs that yo u

n ight h ave wo rked with?A , I wo rked w ith tracy L awrence.Q, L et ae 90 back to the do cuaents that yo u

had, What happen s to th o se do cuaents after yo uno tar ize, yo u sign ccrrl Sheppard ' s naae and then yo uno tar ize thea, IIhat happen s to the!]?

A . t ie ga v e th e 3 ! to a run n e r that we h i red todo our reco rdings and she liQ uId take thsa down to do ou rreco rding. A fter they were reco rded she vould br in gth en back to the o ffice and we l< IO u ldp ut t he n in anovern ight ba 9 to ']0 to G er ri S hep par d.

Q . And this ..as done each day?A . Y es.Q. W h y did it have to be done every day? If

1 talU ng abo ut o n th e th ird flo o r o r o n th e fi rst flo o r2 o r bo th ?3 A . O n th e th ird floor.4 Q. A ll r igh t. S o they all w o rked fo r N atio nal5 Fideli ty D efault S ervices?6 A . Yes.

Q. O th er than cerrl S heppard an d Jo hn M adr id,

~ _L ~ ~

9 Q, 00 you re:::lelio er her tellin g yo u why they1 0 vo uld be do ing th at, just th at they had to be done the11 sa l ta day?1 2 A . T hat, yeah, th ey ju st had to be done the13 saac day.1 4 Q. Okay . A n d th ey xere reco rded at the Clark1 5 C ounty R eco rder 's O ffice?16 T I. Yes.1 1 Q.18 co-vorkers,19 A.2 0 Q .

O kay. You were talking about so ce o f your

Yes.00 you reBle~lJer th eir n alIi est

21 A . I wo rked with Tracy L aw ren ce, C her i22 Yasatar ian !ph onetic) and P eter Ho rn , Jen B leecker o r1 3 L owe, and Jessie B ewley. T ho se are the in dividuals th at242 5

l> 'O rked in that lo catio n at o n e ti !Ze o r another .Q. O kay, W hen y


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82

. .1 at Fideli ty N atio nal o th er . yo ur self?2 A , In our locat ion I know tr acy was a no t a ry ,3 I knoll I lias a n ota ry , I knO l l at some po in t C heri w as a4 no t a ry , Jell was a no t a ry , 1 do n't k no ll, 1 bel ieve Peter5 Ho r n lias a no ta ry .6 Q . Okay. AmI to your k no wle dg e li as th is1 po licy o f s ign ing an ind ividual's naae an d th enB notar iz ing it, was th at the policy o f the o ffice:9

10A . Y e s .

S o th e o ther no tar ies did th e sese th ing?.1 1 . A . Yes.1 2 Q . H ow lo n g d id yo u reaaln at L PS O r, excuse1 3 ae, I 'f,! SOHY, at N atio nal D efault S ervices?141 51 61 1

A .Q .A .

I H as there fo r abo ut seven y ear s.D id yo u qu it o r w ere y o u fir ed? H O i l d id --I r esign ed. I w as [w in g o u t o f the state.MR . G IU J l1A : O kay . A ll r igh t. I do n 't

la th in k J have anyno re questio n s. ~ han k y o u .1 9 T HE F O R E P E R S O H : J ur or s, q ue sti on s?2Q BY A J U R O R :21 Q , Here yo u paid in dividually fo r these when22 yo u no tar ized so :aeth ing o r w as that just built in to yo u23 pay check o r --24 A . 1 1 0 , I \las just salary .25 Q . Itl ia s s al ar y ?

61

T HE F O R E ~ E R S O t l : A d di ti on al q ue sti o ns !B y law, these p ro ceed ings are secret and

. 831 D o y ou u nder stan d .th is aclR on itio n? 12 THE ! In N ES S: r do. 23 T H g f O RE P ER S O ll : Yhank yo u fo r } 'o ur 34 test iaony. Y ou a re e xc use d, 45 M R . GIU llrA : 1 he nex t in div idual that's 56 go in g to testify in th e G ran d Ju ry p ro ceed ing w ill be 67 T o dd G r os z. 7S T H E F O R E P E R S O N : ~ lease raise yo ur r igh t e9 hand . 9

10 You do so le:rn ll' ssear th e testico ny yo u are 1 011 abo ut to give upo n the in vestigatio n nO li pend ing befo re 111 2 th i s G ran d Ju ry shall be the truth , the who le truth , an d 121 3 no th in g bu t the tru th , so help y o u Go d? 1314 THB HIT Il t: SS : I do . 141 5 T H E F O R EP E R S O Il : P lease b e seated. 151 6 You are advised th at yo u are h ere to day to 1 611 q ive testio o ny in th e investigatio n pertain ing to the 171S o ffen ses o f n o tar izatio n o f signatu re o f per so n n o t in 1S1 9 presence o f n o tary pub lic , o ffer in g false in strw r.en ts 192 0 fo r fi ling o r r eco rdin g, and false cer tificatio n o n 2021 cer tain In struzsn t, in vo lvin g Gary T raffo rd and Gen ! 212 2 Sheppa rd . 2 223 D o yo u un der stan d th is advisec:en t1 2 324 T I rS W IT! I S S : Yes, I do . 2 42 5 T H 8 f " O R E P E R S O N : P lease state y o u r fi r st 25

---_ .. . . . . ._---_._ .. _ _ . . .

12

A .Q Yo u didn 't r eceive any reauneret io n then ?

N ot at th at tin e. h1 Jen I c h an g ed p o si ti o n s

8 4

34 i nto e xa tli ne r I go t a bo n us, bu t n o t du r ing th is perio d.

T H E fO R E P ER S O N : J ur or s, q ue sti on s?

A .

56 B Y A J U R O R :7 Q .

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