STATEN ISLAND FAMILY COURT SHAME

Dad Says He Was Assaulted Trying to Protect His Daughter

By Dick LaFontaine with Richard Luthmann

The Day Justice Died on Staten Island

On May 27, 2025, Marcello Roque walked into Richmond County Family Court on Staten Island seeking help. He walked out bruised, shaken, and betrayed by the very system he thought would protect his daughter.

“I just got assaulted by a court officer for recording in the hallway,” Roque said in a frantic message after the incident. “He tried to take my phone, delete the recording, and damaged my phone. I’m in pain.”

What began as a routine attempt to file a Family Offense Petition and request an Order of Protection turned into what Roque called a “coordinated ambush.”

He was manhandled by uniformed court officers, thrown out of a public building, and left with physical injuries and a deeper wound: the realization that justice is an illusion in New York’s Family Courts.

Staten Island Family Court Shame: A “Helpful” Clerk Turns Hostile in a Flash

Roque had served his ex with a custody modification petition that morning. His daughter, Valenttina, now eight, has been the subject of his seven-year battle in a system Roque says rewards abusers and punishes protectors.

He walked into the Clerk’s office with paperwork in hand. The staff initially cooperated.

 

But within the hour, the mood shifted.

A clerk told Roque she received a call from “Part Court” instructing her not to allow him to file anything.

The justification? A stale order signed by former Supervising Judge Alison Hamanjian, who had already been reassigned.

“I pointed out Judge Hamanjian wasn’t even there anymore,” Roque said. “I had just filed a writ earlier this month. They took it, then dismissed it. But now they’re saying I can’t even submit a petition?”

When he asked who had given the order, the staff refused. That’s when the supervisor looked Roque in the eye and said something chilling: “This court doesn’t follow constitutional law.”

The Assault in the Hallway

Feeling the tension escalate, Roque began recording the conversation. What happened next reads like a scene from a dystopian movie.

A court officer, who Roque says had lied about him previously to another judge, rushed toward him and yelled, “Mr. Roque, you’ve been coming here long enough. You know you can’t record!”

Roque replied, “I won’t stop recording. I don’t feel safe.”

The officer grabbed Roque and tried to wrest the phone from his hands. Roque refused, saying he’d leave peacefully but wouldn’t be bullied into silence or surrendering private property.

The officer didn’t stop. He followed Roque down the courthouse stairs, pushing him in the back, despite knowing Roque was recovering from a car accident that required physical therapy.

Roque clung to the railing to avoid a fall. “He was trying to provoke me into reacting so they could arrest me,” Roque said. “I didn’t take the bait.”

Staten Island Family Court Shame: Injured, Denied, and Still Ignored

Once outside, Roque called his son and drove to the Northwell ER for treatment. Then he called 911 and filed a criminal complaint against the officer.

Despite the assault, damage to his property, and the denial of his right to petition the court, Roque says no action has been taken against the officers—no internal review. No investigation.

“I was still denied the right to file for an Order of Protection,” Roque said. “Still unprotected. Still ignored. Still silenced.”

According to Roque, up to eight criminal charges may apply to the officer’s conduct, including unlawful seizure and deprivation of rights under color of law.

Richard Luthmann, a contributor to this outlet, has extensive experience with the New York State Court System.

“It’s corrupt to the core,” Luthmann said. “Marcello should find himself a good lawyer off-Staten Island. I would use a Court Street lawyer to walk this case directly into Brooklyn federal court. This is a clear civil rights violation in my opinion.”

Luthmann says his contacts close to the Trump Administration are signalling a reckoning.

“If you like President Trump, you’re on board with his push for needed justice reforms, particularly in the family courts, which receive a grotesque panoply of federal funds. If you don’t like him, you probably believe he would engage in a vendetta. Either way, the New York State Courts are in the crosshairs,” Luthmann said.

A Seven-Year Battle Against a Rigged System

Roque’s May 27 ordeal is just the latest chapter in a brutal saga that began in 2018. He has filed more than a dozen motions, endured two false arrests, and presented photographic evidence of bruises on his daughter’s body. Judges have ignored it all.

Court-appointed Attorney for the Child, Harry Chiu, refused to investigate abuse.

Judges recused themselves one after another. Protective orders were issued based on lies, and false arrests were later dismissed.

In one instance, a court record falsely claimed Roque had been arrested. In truth, the child’s mother had been arrested—but a judge reportedly called the DA and had the charges dropped. The judge then removed the child from Roque’s custody at his very first appearance, without counsel.

Roque says his daughter was left in the hands of an unstable mother who exposed her to abusive boyfriends, drug dealers, and an undocumented man who physically harmed the child.

“The courts have not just failed—they’ve become accomplices,” Roque said. “They silence the whistleblowers. They protect the predators.”

Staten Island Family Court Shame: The Men and Women in the Black Robes

The current Supervising Judge of Richmond County Family Court is Hon. Ben Darvil, Jr.

Roque wants to know: Did Judge Darvil call the Clerk’s office that day? Did he order the staff to block the petition?

“It’s a judicial shell game,” Roque said. “They move judges like chess pieces to erase their misconduct and dodge accountability.”

Roque’s emergency habeas petition was dismissed the same day it was filed. He was told it lacked standing because he currently doesn’t have custody. But in the same breath, the court accepted a custody modification petition and scheduled a June 12 hearing.

“This system doesn’t just bend the rules—it makes them up as it goes along,” Roque said.

To get answers, we went straight to the top. We emailed the Honorable Anne-Marie Jolly, Administrative Judge of the New York City Family Court.

We received no response as of press time. Here is what we asked:

From: Dick LaFontaine, Investigative Journalist <RALafontaine@protonmail.com>
Date: On Monday, June 9th, 2025 at 8:45 AM
Subject: Inquiry Regarding May 27 Incident at Richmond County Family Court
To: AJ-Family-Court@nycourts.gov <AJ-Family-Court@nycourts.gov>, ahackel@nycourts.gov <ahackel@nycourts.gov>, lchalfen <lchalfen@nycourts.gov>
CC: mvolpe998@gmail.com <mvolpe998@gmail.com>, RickLaRiviere@proton.me <RickLaRiviere@proton.me>, Richard Luthmann <richard.luthmann@protonmail.com>, mthomasnast@protonmail.com <mthomasnast@protonmail.com>, frankiepressman@protonmail.com <frankiepressman@protonmail.com>

Email to: Hon. Anne-Marie Jolly, Administrative Judge – NYC Family Court

Dear Judge Jolly,

We are investigative journalists covering a deeply troubling incident that occurred on May 27, 2025, at the Richmond County Family Court involving Staten Island father Marcello Roque.

Mr. Roque reports that after lawfully serving a custody modification petition that morning, he entered the courthouse to file a Family Offense Petition and seek an Order of Protection. He obtained forms from the Clerk’s office and was drafting his petition quietly in a hallway when he was suddenly informed he would not be permitted to file—allegedly based on a prior order from former Supervising Judge Alison Hamanjian, who no longer sits in that jurisdiction.

When Mr. Roque questioned the legality of the refusal, he was reportedly told by a Clerk Supervisor, “This court doesn’t follow constitutional law.” Shortly thereafter, multiple court officers surrounded him. One officer attempted to forcibly seize his phone, physically pushed him, and followed him as he descended the stairs, despite Mr. Roque’s known medical injuries. He has photographic and video evidence supporting his claims.

Mr. Roque left the courthouse in pain, sought emergency medical attention, and filed a police report that day.

The actions described raise serious concerns of:
Denial of access to the courts
Physical assault by a court officer
Suppression of public documentation
Disregard for constitutional rights

Mr. Roque is a self-represented litigant who has spent seven years trying to protect his daughter from documented abuse, neglect, and endangerment. He avers he has followed every lawful procedure and has encountered what appears to be systemic obstruction, retaliation, and suppression by officers of the court.

We respectfully request a response to the following from you or your Media Office

1. Did any judge or court official issue a directive on or before May 27, 2025, preventing Mr. Roque from filing petitions in Richmond County Family Court?
2. What is the current policy regarding public recording in courthouse hallways, and was it properly followed in this incident?
3. Has an internal review been initiated into the conduct of the court officer(s) involved?
4. Will the Office of Court Administration investigate or issue guidance regarding the reported statement that the court does not follow constitutional law?
5. What avenues of redress are available to litigants like Mr. Roque when denied access to the courts?

We appreciate a timely response as we prepare a forthcoming story for publication and wish to give the readership a fair and balanced perspective on the issues. If we do not hear from you by press time, we will incorporate your responses into a follow-up article.

Thank you in advance for your time and attention to this matter.

Regards,
Dick LaFontaine
Investigative Journalist

As promised, we will update the readership with any response received from official channels.

“This Court Doesn’t Follow Constitutional Law”

That one sentence—“This court doesn’t follow constitutional law”—might haunt Roque the rest of his life.

But he refuses to be silenced.

“I’ve walked through fire to protect my daughter,” Roque said. “Now I’m calling on the public to shine a light on this system. Because I’m not the only one.”

He’s urging lawmakers, journalists, and advocates to expose a “culture of suppression, fraud, and judicial abuse” within New York’s Family Court system.

“If we don’t hold them accountable,” Roque said, “they’ll keep destroying families and covering up the truth.”

---

If you have a tip or a similar experience, contact the author or email Marcello Roque directly at mroquenyc@gmail.com.