5thEstate.com has written extensively about the injustices perpetrated by Judge Hummer. Why does Hummer continue to support Wendy Flanders when he knows of her mental problems and the false allegations? Why doesn't he chastise her for her manipulation and exploitation of the system? There appears to be no reasonable explanation for why the judge continues to let Flanders use false allegations and charges to deny a father's right to see his son. In an attempt to understand what is going on inside Hummer's head, 5thEstate.com has researched his history back over 25 years, his family and his record and has made some interesting observations and discoveries.

While this 'zine has explored various official's lives, we have always been careful to not reveal or needlessly bring in family members. (It's a fact that when PoliticsPA.com and other sources were slandering John Barley - 5thEstate.com was the only publication to refute the horrible gossip against Barley.) This is no exception. However, while we are not revealing Hummer's daughter's name, we are going to explore her very public divorce papers, newspaper accounts and the Judge's actions. While we are not revealing the names of family members, we feel that it's important to scrutinize Hummer who routinely ruins people's lives with poor and intellectually deficient decisions and rulings, in order to shed some light on what might be motivating the judge's behavior.

In 1983, Hummer acted the part of a clumsy, bumbling police inspector in a Lititz play. So is Hummer now just play acting the part of a bumbling judge or are there health and mental problems being manifested in Hummer's courtroom? The following serious allegations were made by a number of respectable “officers of the court”.

To begin with, a number of lawyers have contacted us and have told of Hummer "falling asleep" both in the courtroom and in chambers. Others have said, "Don't give Hummer too many facts at once. He gets easily confused and can't follow it otherwise." Or "I saw Judge Hummer go off in another world and then he comes back and he snaps!" 5thEstate.com made multiple attempts to contact the judge to discuss these issues - including a letter - but the judge refused to return our calls. Interestingly, all three times we phoned the judge's office, a woman answered his phone with the phrase, "The Nurse"! The woman explained that when Judge Hummer's secretary is not working, that all calls are forwarded to the nurse that is stationed near the judge's chambers.

So how did Hummer get to the bench? He was only in Lancaster County 10 years when he was elected to the position of judge in 1980. (by law Hummer must retire when he reaches his 70th birthday on August 18, 2007) When 5thEstate.com contacted a bar association member to ask about Hummer's time on the bench, they responded that he was a judge "25 years too long".

In a September 3, 1980 Intell story, Hummer admitted that he “avoided the draft when the Vietnam War was heating up” by becoming a law specialist in the US Navy. A Lebanon county native, Hummer became the first judge handling what is commonly called “Family Court”. Interestingly, before becoming a judge, Hummer served as legal adviser to Lancaster County Domestic Relations. He later used that contact to get both his daughter and son-in-law jobs in the county agency that has the most dealings with Family Court! Hummer's family members held the conflictual court related jobs for 8 and 9 years respectively. Did Hummer's daughter and son-in-law ever share information over a b-b-que? Working with such a close family member is ordinarily frown upon – but for a judge it's even more questionable.

But Hummer's mental and health issues notwithstanding, our research shows that his judicial bias might be closer to home!

Here is what Hummer said about his teenage daughters in that same Setember 3, 1980 article:

“I am having trouble understanding why my children have no real ambition. They're like a lot of young people today, they say they'll wait and see. And they play their rock and roll full blast.”

No ambition? From the public court filings, it's apparent that Hummer's now 37 year-old daughter lives in a home that he owns! Hummer and his wife bought the house when this same daughter was losing the house in a Sherrif sale in January of 2002. The daughter was going bankrupt (and losing the house) and getting a divorce from her husband of less than 10 years. According to the United States Eastern District Bankruptcy court filing, Hummer's daughter may have showed up to court looking very pretty in clothes from the exclusive Doneckers in Ephrata. Why Doneckers? They were one of nearly a dozen and half corporations that were stuck with thousands of dollars of debt when Hummer's daughter went bankrupt. Thanks to her dad, she was able to continue living in same house and enjoy her expensive clothing she took from the store.

But how involved is Hummer and his wife with his divorcing daughter? Again, according to the court filings, Hummer was said to have his grandchildren living at his home! When Hummer's daughter answered this allegation in court papers, this what she said about Hummer's involvement:

“It is specifically denied that the children lived with their grandparents, Wayne and Cindy Hummer at [Deleted address for privacy], Lititz, Pennsylvania from June 29, 2000 through July 29, 2000. By way of further answer Defendant (Hummer's daughter) and the children would stay at the home of Wayne and Cindy Hummer in the evening hours because Plaintiff had refused to leave the marital residence.”

So all the while Hummer is hearing Divorce/Custody cases in the daytime, he is coming home to see his daughter and grandchildren who are going through a painful divorce! Given Hummer's lawyer expertise, does anyone seriously believe that Hummer wasn't looking over all the paperwork involving his daughter's divorce ? Does anyone seriously believe that Hummer could rule fairly in the daytime for the men in his court, while he is coming home to see his daughter fighting her her soon-to-be “ex” in another courtroom? Today, over three years later, Hummer continues to support his 37 year old daughter with housing while standing in judgement of the men and women of Lancaster that come before him.

Hummer's daughter's divorce became final on May 7, 2002. In just four months, Ben Vonderheide would be standing before Judge Hummer and fighting to see his only son. Vonderheide would soon make the unfortunate mistake of arguing that Wendy Flanders was engaged in “parent alienation” - trying to make the other parent not acceptable in the eyes of their child. This was the same argument that Hummer's ex son-in-law made for why custody of Hummer's grandchildren should be awarded to himself! How well did that argument go over in his courtroom?

But how do other father's make out in Hummer's courtroom? Hummer's “fathering” the women from the bench can easily be seen in other court proceedings. In a recent hearing, Hummer listened to the man's lawyer make a legal argument. Hummer proceeded to interupt and make an oral argument for the woman. After 5 minutes, Hummer caught himself in mid-sentence and realized that he should stop being the woman's lawyer and allow the woman's lawyer to do his job! He eventually ruled against the man and in favor of the woman.

So is Hummer sitting on the bench as a judge or father? Is Hummer letting his personal feelings toward his ex son-in-law color his rulings? In a March 16, 1983 Intell interview, here is what Hummer said in his own words regarding the courtroom and acting:

“The courtroom is in a sense a stage, because as an advocate, you have to communicate with the people in that room to the best of your ability. You have to be very aware of how you say things, the way you act and even facial expressions in the courtroom. Because of that, I really feel the stage experience has helped me in the courtroom.”

Is Hummer pretending to be judge while actually being a father to the daughters that show up in his courtroom? This is about as close as we can get to seeing what is going on inside Hummer's head. In the same article, Hummer says this about his days ruling over Lancaster County feuding men and women:

“Sometimes family law can get very grim and I find that being on the stage helps me forget about it for a while. When I am on stage I am playing somebody else and I don't have to think about what is going on in the courtroom.”

What does Hummer do to take his mind off the the drama in his daughter's life?

Continued...