Congressional Candidate Carries More Baggage Than Samsonite

Ellen Simon, who is running for a U.S. House Seat in District 1, seems to be carrying around a good deal of baggage these days. Husband, Blaine Tanner, has issues as a "deadbeat dad" for $500,000+; a history of allegedly defaulting on loans made by Ohio banks (one account shows nearly $19 million in alleged defaulted loans while judgments filed in 2002 indicate alleged defaults of around $39.5 million in loans); and a 1993 conviction for tax evasion. There are also rumors of an FBI investigation into Commercial Money Center of Las Vegas, with whom Mr. Tanner has been active in business as a principal of Guardian Financial, regarding claims for leases for equipment and/or lessees that didn't exist, which haven't been confirmed or denied by the FBI as of press time. Mr. Tanner is currently a defendant in a civil case in Yavapai County Superior Court. The case, involving a foreign judgment, was filed by Cadlerock Joint Venture, who when contacted by this publication, was unable to comment on that case while it is still in litigation. According to court documents obtained from the Court of Common Pleas, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, a judgment for the plaintiff, FirstMerit Bank, N.A., in the sum of $500,000 plus costs and 10% interest was issued by the court and assessed to the defendant, Blaine Tanner, on May 29, 2002 in the amount of $500,000. The case and an assignment of judgment were filed on September 13, 2004. A certificate of transfer was issued to Summit County on May 30, 2006, and a deposit amount was paid to the Cadle Company on the same day. Mr. Tanner, who has had "nine lawyers in nine years," including Steven Bell of the Simon Law Firm of Cleveland (of which Ellen Simon, now running for a Congressional House seat is a principal), "was convicted on fraud charges in his native Canada in 1975 and has another conviction for evading more than $360,000 in income tax in 1994. A Canadian court also ordered him in 2000 to pay $740,000 in back child support owed to a former wife; however, he claims he is no longer a resident of Canada."1 As of press time, on July 24, 2006, there was a hearing on defendant's motion to strike plaintiff's (Cadlerock) notice of filing foreign judgment and motion to stay enforcement of judgment. Defendant (Tanner) withdrew objection concerning lack of representation of the plaintiff by an Arizona attorney. Motions were presented for oral argument and the matter was taken under advisement. The judge is reviewing the motions and has not yet made a ruling. An extensive article printed by the Toronto Star detailing information on Mr. Tanner's "deadbeat dad" background, from which this publication obtained the rights to reprint, can be found on our website at http:tontobasinnews.com. Ellen Simon married Blaine Tanner in December 1997. Simon's Ohio law firm represented Tanner on at least one occasion, and his office was located on those same legal premises. It seems questionable that Ms Simon could claim she had no knowledge of Tanner's corporate dealings. In fact, Mr. Tanner stated at one point, that he "manages his wife's family assets under the Guardian Group umbrella." Court documents filed in Cleveland, Ohio show Guardian acknowledged that it defaulted on the $10.5 million dollar loan balance from Sky Bank of Toledo in the Guardian Financial matter. If Ms Simon is elected to a Congressional Seat, what else will Mr. Tanner be managing for Ms. Simon's constituency? An updated article on Mr. Tanner and Ms Simon was recently written by the Toronto Star. Click here to link to that article. 1 Courts Still Trying to Get Guardian's Tanner Back to Canada, Leasing News