Richard Luthmann, a contributor for this outlet, has been covering corruption in the Chicago Family courts. A recent article about the Girard case investigates whether Beermann LLP, an Illinois law firm, is embroiled in a web of dishonesty, fraud, and child abuse.
Luthmann, who provided background and comments for this article, said in a recent Episode of THE UNKNOWN PODCAST that Beermann LLP and Managing Partner John D’Arco have been a nuisance to him ever since he started reporting on them.
Richard Luthmann
“I'll tell you one thing: every time we mention the word BEERMANN, and every time I do, I get attacked online by ‘Sock Puppet’ accounts. People make new accounts just to come in and attack me. So it shows, I think, Mike, that we're doing something right. It shows that John D’Acro, the Managing Partner over Beerman, we’re getting under their skin,” Luthmann told fellow reporter Michael Volpe, who is also covering the Girard case.
Now, Luthmann says Beermann LLP and Managing Partner John D’Arco have crossed a legal line and made things personal.
John D’Arco, Managing Partner of Beermann LLP
“They conspired to criminally impersonate me and committed aggravated identity theft, Luthmann alleges. But what is worse, they ‘doxxed’ my senior citizen father, who has nothing to do with this,” he said.
I am a local journalist who writes about regional and national issues. I write at Substack and other local and national outlets including Sun Bay Paper and FL Gulf News. The harm occurred to me in Lee County, where I work.
In a story in Chicago involving family court, Beermann LLP and Attorney John D'Arco have conspired to make Fake Substack Accounts and criminally impersonate me in violation of the law.
They have falsified the business record of Substack as their agent and used that not only to harm me but also my senior citizen father, Richard A. Luthmann, Sr., a retired pharmacist who lives in Ponte Vedra, FL. Beermann LLP and Attorney John D'Arco have conspired to "doxx" my father, by placing his personal information in the posts. My father has health issues and has no relationship to any dispute. This situation is causing him severe grief and anxiety. Their actions are criminal.
There are violations under state and federal law, including the two-year mandatory minimum of Aggravated Identity under Federal Law.
I would like a meeting to present my evidence so that State Attorney Amira Fox's office can review it to make a prosecutorial decision. I am also seeking an appointment with federal authorities to put this matter on record, with the hopes that next year, a newly revamped Trump Administration DOJ will clean house of these losers.
I seek the protection of the laws from these online vigilantes. Absent legal protection and consequences, there is no rule of law. Good people become forced to become vigilantes for self-defense and protection. President Trump and Governor DeSantis both understand this.
Thank you in advance for your time.
Richard A. Luthmann, Jr.
Luthmann says that he will be able to show Beermann LLP’s involvement between a combination of circumstantial and direct digital evidence.
“Anyone who knows my background knows no one can do this stuff better than me. And too many coincidences make a fact. They don’t think I’ll be able to show IP addresses. F-cking amateurs,” Luthmann said.
Luthmann says that “sock-puppets” first appeared on his Substack after he started writing about Beermann LLP and the Girard case.
“Digital forensic evidence is better than a blood-spatter at a crime scene. No amount of ‘digital ammonia’ can wipe it away,” Luthmann said.
Luthmann says he has already identified several fake email accounts they created and used to perpetrate the impersonation scheme:
“These idiots didn’t realize that I have the entire Substack backend monitored. Their most recent ‘drive-by’ will remain up as a reminder that my father and I are victims. Maybe in Chicago, ‘drive-bys’ - even digital ones - are a way of life. But not in the rest of the country, and definitely not in Florida,” Luthmann said.
Richard A. Luthmann, Sr.
We spoke to Richard A. Luthmann, Sr., a retired pharmacist who lives in Ponte Vedra, Florida. He was agitated.
“These actions are criminal. They included addresses and information about me - places where my son never lived. Now I have to worry. The fact that Chicago lawyers are connected to this makes it even worse,” the elder Luthmann said.
Luthmann said he received multiple emails from the fraudulent accounts alerting him to the criminal impersonation, aggravated identity theft, and doxxing of his father. Here is a portion of one, with protected information removed:
Richard Albert Luthmann, a 45-year-old man from Staten Island, New York, has a history that spans a once-prominent legal career to a dramatic fall from grace, involving multiple criminal charges and eventual disbarment. He was previously associated with phone numbers like XXXXXXXXX and an email address, XXXXXXXXXX. His primary residence is listed as XXXXXXXXXXXXXX, though he has also been connected to an address at XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX.
Luthmann was a practicing attorney in both New York and New Jersey, with a law office in Staten Island and another in Iselin, NJ …
Luthmann the reporter says he’s concerned for Luthmann the pharmacist.
“The Old Man doesn’t have a great ticker, and I’m worried he can go at any minute,” the younger Luthmann said. “But more importantly, he’s not involved. He’s a civilian. And now, he has to get his Glock ready.”
Luthmann says he is livid that Beermann has made things personal.
Luthmann says he’s moved on from his ‘fake Facebook’ days. And if it’s a crime for him but not others, then the system is a hypocritical ‘Clockwork Orange.’
“It doesn’t pay to do things in cyberspace. They call it ‘IRL’ - IN REAL LIFE. I will ensure that John D’Arco and Beermann LLP get their just deserts IN REAL LIFE. I’m starting with lawyers, the media, and the criminal justice system. And then we go down the list,” Luthmann said.
Beermann LLP Managing Partner John D’Arco
He said that he would be able to locate the perpetrators despite their belief that there was ‘Internet anonymity.’
“Most of these idiots don’t realize that the CIA and the DOJ have deals with Proton and other so-called ‘anonymous’ foreign services. When there is a criminal investigation, the Switzerland-based group disreagrds subpoenas as a matter of course. That is, until they get the right phone call,” Luthmann said. “Plus, there are ways to make that shit walk out the door. Look at the Panama Papers. Nothing ‘secret’ is ever safe.”
Luthmann says he saw this firsthand in the Silk Road case, the Government’s prosecution of Ross Ulbricht. Luthmann was with Ulbricht’s #2, Roger Thomas Clark, at MDC Brooklyn and has previously written about it.
Some who followed the Silk Road case believe the Feds cheated, and railroaded Ulbricht, faking fraud and murder charges, and tampered with evidence.
At the trial, the Feds never spoke about the website admin guys. That's because the FBI took over as admin of The Silk Road website and allegedly stole money.
During the trial, Ulbricht described Clark as his "real mentor," and Clark emerged as a behind-the-scenes puppet master.
Clark was arrested in Thailand in 2015, and extradited to the United States in 2018 and charged with narcotics trafficking conspiracy; narcotics trafficking; distributing narcotics by the internet; conspiracy to commit, aid, and abet, a computer hacking conspiracy; conspiracy to traffic in fraudulent identification documents; and money laundering conspiracy.
I spent about a year with Clark. He claimed dirty FBI agents hacked the website. I guess if you’re an FBI agent, you may believe that to enforce the law and stop bad guys, you can break the law - or you are above the law.
Clark said the FBI hacked into the Silk Road website's servers in Reykjavik, Iceland. After observing the activities of the website, the Feds told the Reykjavik police there was suspected criminal activity in their jurisdiction, and told them to seize the servers.
The Reykjavik police raided the server facility, seized the servers, and delivered them to US authorities.
There’s no Fourth Amendment in Reykjavik. There is no Fourth Amendment in a foreign country. The Reykjavik police provided the servers on a "silver platter" based on an information-sharing treaty or agreement with the US, Interpol, and others.
Roger had no standing to contest the seizure in US courts.
The Reykjavik police dropped the evidence off to the Feds based on the “silver platter doctrine,” which applies to the international activity of non-US citizens. There used to be a silver platter doctrine in the United States. It allowed federal prosecutors to use evidence illegally gathered by state police. This was abused by federal and state authorities or two different state authorities and violated citizens' rights against unlawful search and seizure.
In Elkins v. US, the US Supreme Court overturned the domestic “silver platter doctrine,” which violated the Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution.
There is no silver platter doctrine in US criminal law, except where is property seized outside the US border - as was the case with the Silk Road. The elimination of the silver platter doctrine was not extended to international activities.
In Roger’s case, any evidence the Feds obtained was fair game.
In United States v. Verdugo-Urquidez, the United States Supreme Court stated that Fourth Amendment protections do not apply to searches and seizures by US agents of property owned in a foreign country.
Roger Clark, who used to sign his posts with a threat: ‘The last thing you fucking want is my undivided attention,’ wasextradited from Thailand to the US.
The silver platter doctrine was a substantial legal issue in Roger’s case.
When we were at MDC, I investigated his claims and did some legal research for him.
He told me once, “You know, Rich, if we can find a way around this, I have more money than anybody you’ll probably ever meet in your life. I’m never going to see it. I’m probably going to prison for the rest of my life. But if you find a way to get me out here, I will take care of you.”
I declined his offer.
“Roger," I said, "the second you sent me even one dollar of Bitcoin, that would be a very, very bad problem for me and everyone around me. The Feds would be on that in a second.”
Still, Roger was charming, and we got along well.
According to Luthmann, the servers for these email addresses are housed in Switzerland, among other places. He thinks they’ll be fair game. Luthmann believes that if a criminal investigation is opened anywhere in the country, he will be able to get the full IP records. He’s confident because of who John D’Arco is.
John D’Arco, Sr.
“They brought my family in, so I’m going to bring in theirs. Beermann’s Managing Partner’s grandfather, John D’ Arco Sr., was, according to a former FBI agent, a ranking member of the Chicago Mob. He was also an Alderman and Ward Committeeman of the infamous 1st Ward. Classic Chicago - as crooked as they come,” Luthmann said.
Luthmann says he is very concerned that someone might come to “whack” him, or even worse, his senior citizen father, who isn’t even involved.
“My dad is a civilian, as squeaky clean as they come. For Christ’s sake, the guy is an Eagle Scout. They should have never dragged him into this,” Luthmann said. “Thank God for his sake, Florida has the ‘castle doctrine.’ DeSantis even said it: when you go into a house in Florida, you don’t know what’s behind that door.”
John D’Arco, Sr. [R] with Frank Sinatra [L]. It’s guaranteed that someone there knew something about Kennedy, Chicago, and the 1960 Presidential Election …
Luthmann says he worries even more because D’Arco’s father isn’t “clean” either.
“Maybe John D’Arco should ask his dad what it’s like when they look up your prison purse. Better yet, now that there is potential litigation, I can promise him that journalists and private investigators will become very cozy with him in Fort Lauderdale. When he eats corn, I’ll know when and how many kernels come out of his ass,” Luthmann said.
John A. D’Arco, Jr.
Luthmann is ready for war with the entire D’Arco clan. And he doesn’t think he’ll be the only one.
“Daddy D’Arco is a big-time Democrat Party Crook. He writes poetry that he uses to piss on Donald Trump,” Luthmann said. “It’s my opinion Daddy D’Arco says it exactly how his son and that whole law firm feels. And between the Madigan trial and Trump coming in and fixing the Feds and the DOJ come January, all their chickens will soon be coming home to roost.”
Luthmann called the entire issue “selective” and “weaponized” justice.
“If they weaponized justice against me and Trump and a slew of others for ‘Falsification,’ then what’s good for the goose is good for the gander. And I think Beermann and D’Arco’s goose will be cooked,” Luthmann said.
Luthmann said that Beermann LLP “fucked up” when they “made it personal.”
“John D’Arco is a sad Chicago Italian-American. He’s a ‘Wonderbread WOP.’ He knows nothing about family, loyalty, respect, or tradition. He attacked my senior citizen father. It’s on,” Luthmann said.
“D’Arco and Beermann LLP know they are screwed on the Girard case. They think I am low-hanging fruit, and I’ll just go away. They don’t know me. They f-cked with the wrong one,” Luthmann said.
Luthmann sent a spoliation notice to the fake email accounts impersonating him, several attorneys at Beermann LLP, and others. A spoliation notice is often one of the first steps in preparing for a lawsuit:
From: Richard Luthmann <richard.luthmann@protonmail.com> Date: On Friday, October 18th, 2024 at 11:52 AM Subject: Spoliation Notice - Richard Luthmann To: richardluthman@proton.me <richardluthman@proton.me>, luthmann.illusion204@passinbox.com <luthmann.illusion204@passinbox.com>, luthmann.superior874@slmail.me <luthmann.superior874@slmail.me>, luthmann.slacked611@slmails.com <luthmann.slacked611@slmails.com>, luthmann.dollar690@silomails.com <luthmann.dollar690@silomails.com>, luthmann.frivolous876@aleeas.com <luthmann.frivolous876@aleeas.com>, contact@beermannlaw.com <contact@beermannlaw.com>, jmdarco@beermannlaw.com <jmdarco@beermannlaw.com>, ttfield@beermannlaw.com <ttfield@beermannlaw.com>, ejmirabelli@beermannlaw.com <ejmirabelli@beermannlaw.com>, jmquigley@beermannlaw.com <jmquigley@beermannlaw.com>, Goodman, Max <mgoodman@amundsendavislaw.com> CC: Michael Volpe <mvolpe998@gmail.com>, Rick LaRivière <RickLaRiviere@proton.me>, RALafontaine <RALafontaine@protonmail.com>, mthomasnast@protonmail.com <mthomasnast@protonmail.com>, frankiepressman@protonmail.com <frankiepressman@protonmail.com>
Dear Sirs and/or Madams:
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE:
We ask that you preserve any and all materials (in written or printed format), laptop and desktop computers, smart phones, tablets, mobile devices, as well as any email, messaging and social media accounts used by you concerning Richard A. Luthmann, Richard A. Luthmann, Sr., and/or Richard A. Luthmann, Jr., any social media posts concerning luthmann.substack.com, https://substack.com/@rickluthmann or which mention Richard A. Luthmann, Richard A. Luthmann, Sr., and/or Richard A. Luthmann, Jr., any sources for the posts, materials received as background for the posts, correspondence concerning the article or Ms. Castro, correspondence with anyone, particularly BEERMANN LLP and its attorneys, employees, agents, and/or affiliates concerning Richard A. Luthmann, Richard A. Luthmann, Sr., and/or Richard A. Luthmann, Jr., any financial records of amounts paid to you by any source for these social media accounts and posts, and all records concerning views, clicks, reads, shares, restacks, retweets, likes, and comments concerning the subject article.
Any materials erased, altered, tampered with or destroyed may warrant an additional claim for spoliation if litigation is necessary here.
Please be further advised of the provisions of Illinois criminal law, particularly the provisions related to Falsification of Records, a Class 4 felony.
When asked if Luthmann thought this could be resolved, he said maybe and “relatively peaceably.”
“I’d do a sit-down to try to squash this. But only somewhere I can be guaranteed my safety. Maybe Pittsburgh. I had the worst two weeks of my life one night in Pittsburgh,” Luthmann said.
Law Firm from Hell? Beermann LLP Accused of Doxxing a Journalist’s Elderly Father
luthmann.substack.com
Family Court Corruption
We shine a light on corruption in Family Courts. Subscribe for the latest news.
For story ideas, tips, or help: richard.luthmann@protonmail.com or (239) 631-5957.
We shine a light on corruption in Family Courts. Subscribe for the latest news.
For story ideas, tips, or help: richard.luthmann@protonmail.com or (239) 631-5957.
Law Firm from Hell? Beermann LLP Accused of Doxxing a Journalist’s Elderly Father