Updates on My Case of Investment Advisor Fraud in Arizona

Stay connected and informed by visiting this “Updates” tab regularly for the latest information on my journey with investment advisor fraud in Arizona and insights from my financial investment fraud experience. This page is your go-to source for case updates, revelations, and valuable lessons I’ve learned while navigating the complex and often disheartening world of financial fraud.

As my case progresses, I will share critical updates, including details about regulatory responses, legal developments, and the systemic challenges that allow unethical practices in the financial industry to persist. These updates aim to shine a light on how investors can protect themselves and demand accountability from those entrusted with their financial well-being.

My story highlights the vulnerabilities inherent in investment agreements and the significant risks posed by discretionary investment authority. By sharing these updates, I hope to empower others who have been impacted by investment advisor fraud or want to better understand how to safeguard their investments.

Bookmark this page and check back frequently for the latest developments in my journey. Together, we can bring attention to these critical issues and work towards stronger protections for investors everywhere. Your support is vital in spreading awareness and advocating for meaningful change.

Janelle Smith-Haff
USPS only: 38400 N. Schoolhouse Rd., #7094
Cave Creek, AZ 85331
C: 480-720-7792
E: janelle@jellybeanink.com

SUBMITTED VIA USPS PRIORITY MAIL EXPRESS
July 17, 2024

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Office of Investor Education and Advocacy
100 F Street, N.E.
Washington, DC 20549-0213

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
Investor Complaint Center
9509 Key West Avenue
Rockville, MD 20850

RE: Noah Kendrick/Kendrick Wealth Management and Raymond James Financial

To Whom It May Concern,

I submitted a formal request to the SEC on August 7, 2023 asking for their investigation into financial advisor Noah Kendrick’s theft of my $2 million dollar investment portfolio. On September 5, 2023 this request was expanded to include FINRA.

According to information posted by Raymond James Financial on the BrokerCheck website the investigations are “pending.” According to my investigation, a “pending” investigation does not require your agency to make certain reporting requirements, requirements that otherwise could result in Noah Kendrick’s expulsion from the financial industry.

FINRA claims that its BrokerCheck website is the preeminent resource for investors to gather information about the employment history, certifications, licenses, and any violations of brokers and investment advisors. What is the purpose of encouraging the investing public to use the BrokerCheck website if information posted by brokers on the BrokerCheck website about a financial advisor is a lie? The following information about my “dispute” with Noah Kendrick was posted by Raymond James Financial on the BrokerCheck website:

Letter to SEC and FINRA dated July 17, 2024
Page 2 of 2

“The client alleged the advisor did not follow trade instruction. Allegation Activity.
Dates: 7/07/2023 – 7/25/2023. Product Type: Mutual Fund. Alleged Damages: $5,000.00.”

What mathematical or other methodology was used to reduce Noah Kendrick’s $2 million dollar theft of my investment portfolio down to a $5,000 mutual fund transaction? Did the SEC and FINRA authorize the use of this methodology?

There is no shred of evidence that I ever made the claim or submitted any documentation to Raymond James Financial, the SEC, FINRA or the CFP Board to support the Raymond James Financial post on the BrokerCheck website. The failure by BrokerCheck and FINRA to verify information that is posted on BrokerCheck evidences that BrokerCheck is not a trusted source for information and should not be relied on by the investing public.

A nationally-known investment fraud law firm recently relied on the BrokerCheck information posted by Raymond James Financial to write and post an article on their website titled “Noah Kendrick from Raymond James Accused of Ignoring Trade Instructions.” The law firm had no way of knowing that the information posted on BrokerCheck by Raymond James Financial was a lie. They do now.

The investing public believes that they have 100% ownership and 100% control of their money in their investment portfolio, but that is not an absolute. Discretionary investment authority is not fully understood by the investing public, yet these three words are more important to an investor’s financial security than DJIA, NASDAQ, or S&P. I have written a book to educate investors about the role and risks that discretionary investment authority plays in their financial security.

In addition to this letter, if/when the SEC or FINRA issue a decision and that decision is provided to me, I will post the decision on the website created as an adjunct to my forthcoming book, Is It Really Your Money? Tracking Money from Paycheck to Portfolio. The book will be available for purchase in soft cover and e-book formats at all the usual on-line book seller sites as well as brick and mortars. The publication date is September. All proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to animal charities.

Janelle Smith-Haff

According to an obituary notice published in the Ohio newspaper “The Dalton Gazette & News” at the age of 44, Noah Kendrick died of cancer on August 26, 2024.

Noah Kendrick’s death does not absolve him of his theft of my investment portfolio. Nor does his death absolve our securities regulatory agencies of their obligation to protect investors from financial fraud.

What happens from this point forward is up to the SEC and FINRA.

To recap: The theft of my investment portfolio rested on one issue of law: who was the owner of the money contained in my $2 million dollar investment portfolio? The decision of ownership would resolve all the other issues, and with it my requested investigation could be put to rest. But, that is not how our securities regulatory agencies chose to proceed. Instead, over a period of more than fourteen months, secret discussions and hearings were held that I was not privy to, yet they had a direct impact on my rights as Noah Kendrick’s victim. Those secret discussions and hearings resulted in the reduction in the dollar amount of Noah Kendrick’s theft from $2 million dollars down to a $5,000 mutual fund dispute. Those secret discussions and hearings also resulted in their positioning of Noah Kendrick’s theft as “pending,” thus delaying my right to their decision over ownership of the money in my investment portfolio—a decision that required no delay!

Now that Noah Kendrick has died, it is pertinent to ask: Was the reduction in the dollar amount of Noah Kendrick’s theft and the “pending” status by our securities regulatory agencies acquiescence to Noah Kendrick due to his terminal condition?

Justice delayed, is justice denied.

A Google search of “Noah Kendrick” reveals that several national investment fraud law firms have posted on-line articles about financial investment fraud—specifically citing Noah Kendrick’s July, 2023, theft of my $2 million dollar investment portfolio to support their articles.

The investing public believes that they have 100% ownership and 100% control over their money in their investment portfolio, but due to a financial advisor’s discretionary investment authority, our securities regulatory agencies have refused to declare that the investor’s money equates to ownership and control as an absolute right of the investor. Discretionary investment authority is not fully understood by the investing public, yet these three words are more important to an investor’s financial security than DJIA, NASDAQ, or S&P.

Recent statistics indicate that women now control more than half of all U.S. wealth and that their growing financial power is changing the landscape of investing. My personal experience has evidenced how the financial industry is flexing its unfettered discretionary investment authority in response to women flexing their financial power. Without a decision by our securities regulatory agencies, the extent to which the financial industry is allowed to flex their authority remains unfettered.

Raymond James Financial never offered to return my money. The SEC and FINRA never ordered that my money be returned to me. I had to fight like hell for MY money.

Until there is a decision by our securities regulatory agencies, is it really your money?

Any decision issued by the SEC or FINRA will be posted on this website.

September 2024

 

Update #3

July 7, 2023 – the date I formally notified my financial advisor, Noah Kendrick, to liquidate my investment portfolio.

February 10, 2025 – the date I received the final disbursement.

The length of time that I had to fight for MY money was:

1 year, 7 months, and 3 days, or

584 days, or

83 weeks and 3 days, or

14,016 hours, or

840, 960 minutes, or

50,457,600 seconds.

Do you have this kind of time to fight for YOUR money?

Do your beneficiaries have this kind of time to fight for their inheritance?

Is It Really Your Money? when you have to fight for your money?

Posted 2/12/2025

 

Update #4

The DOJ recently asserted their legal position in a matter that is currently in federal court claiming that money is not “property” and therefore it is within the government’s authority to seize money without benefit of any trial because you don’t own the money.

From the DOJ’s pleading:

(1) the government creates money, so you can’t own it; (2) the government can tax your money, so you don’t own it; and (3) the Constitution allows the government to spend money for the “general welfare.”

“Discretionary investment authority” severs the investor’s right to make decisions about their money the moment the investor hires a financial advisor.  Under the SEC, FINRA, and DOJ’s legal theory my financial advisor wasn’t prosecuted for theft of my money because the money was not my property.  Consequently my financial advisor was never prosecuted. 

The DOJ’s position is no different from that taken by the SEC and FINRA in my matter.  Here’s the link to the DOJ pleading:

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.255899/gov.uscourts.dcd.255899.18.0.pdf

If that link does not work:  C.S. Lawn & Landscape, Inc. v. U.S. Dept. of Labor, et al. Case No. 1:23-cv-01533-TSC

 Is It Really Your Money? 

Posted: 2/12/25