A judge who in December ruled a San Benito man convicted of
scamming thousands of dollars from innocent motorists could still
file lawsuits from jail without court approval reversed his
decision Friday, likely bringing an end to the man’s parade of
frivolous, illegal pursuits.
A judge who in December ruled a San Benito man convicted of scamming thousands of dollars from innocent motorists could still file lawsuits from jail without court approval reversed his decision Friday, likely bringing an end to the man’s parade of frivolous, illegal pursuits.
James Kleinberg vacated his own Dec. 9, 2010, ruling that allowed Vincent Cardinalli, 68, to keep filing small claims court lawsuits because a 2007 decision tagging him a vexatious litigant relied on a statute that didn’t apply to small claims actions. Vexatious litigants cannot file lawsuits without prior court approval.
On Friday, Kleinberg admitted he made a mistake. He said he misinterpreted the vexatious litigant guidelines, and he ordered the tag be reattached to Cardinalli.
After his ruling – made in front of an almost empty San Jose courtroom – Kleinberg addressed retired San Jose firefighter John Castro Jr., a man Cardinalli attempted to scam. Missteps sometimes occurred, Kleinberg said, because judges like him often dealt with as many as 1,400 cases at a given time.
“Sometimes it’s not surprising that things don’t go as smoothly,” Kleinberg said.
Castro said he appreciated Kleinberg’s candidness. More so than anything, however, he said he was relieved he’d likely no longer have to battle Cardinalli in court.
“The good guys won,” Castro shouted outside the courthouse.
Minutes earlier inside, Castro recounted how Cardinalli tried to sue him and his late father for a car they never owned. Castro eventually sought the help of attorney Greg Adler, who was credited by Judge Gilbert Brown in January for leading the charge against the family’s scheme.
Castro said he was proud to have taken on the role of spokesman for all the people Cardinalli and his family had tried to swindle.
“I’m probably speaking for the hundreds of others that are not here,” he said.
Cardinalli was sentenced to 14 years in prison in January for running a tow-and-sue scam in San Benito and Santa Clara counties, scamming hundreds of unwitting motorists out of untold thousands of dollars via bogus small claims lawsuits. His son, Paul Greer, 34, was sentenced to eight years for his role.
Even after his arrest, Cardinalli continued to pursue lawsuits. His most recent filing came in February, when he attempted to sue two jail guards, according to the Santa Clara County Superior Court.
Kleinberg denied a request from Cardinalli to delay Friday’s hearing for 240 days. Arrangements were made to allow Cardinalli to participate in the hearing via a court call-in system, but he never contacted the court to do so, Kleinberg said.
Cardinalli and Greer are incarcerated at a North Kern County state prison in Delano, Adler said.
“The court did the right thing,” Adler said Friday. “The public should feel happy they’ll have increased protection from vexatious litigants.”
He added, “Hopefully the courts in Santa Clara County are all on the same page with respect to vexatious litigants.”
For years, Cardinalli and his son filed lawsuits against motorists for towing and storage fees on vehicles they either had sold or never owned in the first place. Deputy District Attorney Victor Chen said the family also targeted undocumented residents or those who spoke little English.
The majority of the small claims cases were presided over by South County Commissioner Gregory Saldivar, who often ruled in favor of Cardinalli. Adler and Chen said they would neither confirm nor deny Saldivar was being investigated for his rulings.
Cardinalli and Greer sometimes attempted to sue multiple people over the same vehicle, and victims often paid them off to prevent the stress of having to fight in court, Chen said.
During a Jan. 7 sentencing hearing, Judge Brown likened the family’s activities to those of Bernie Madoff, who defrauded thousands of investors out of billions of dollars. Brown said, however, that, “Mr. Greer and Mr. Cardinalli are worse” because many of their victims were already very poor.
Cardinalli pleaded no contest to 99 felonies and one misdemeanor. His daughter, Rosemary Ball, 35, was sentenced to six months in prison, while his son-in-law, Michael Ball, 39, was given 150 days for their roles in the family’s dealings.
The Dispatch first reported on the family’s unorthodox business dealings in April 2006. Cardinalli and Greer were arrested in June 2007.
