Who is Mel Marin, Democrat Candidate for Congress?

Written by Roberta Biros

There are many of us who have been asking the same question, and I felt I had some responsibility to shed some light on the topic.

On March 18th I posted a blog titled “Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper faces petition challenge”. In it I explained that Congresswoman Dahlkemper’s political challenger on the Democrat ticket in the Primary is also challenging her nomination petitions. Mel Marin of Erie filed the necessary paperwork in Harrisburg to officially challenge Mrs. Dahlkemper’s petitions.

“Mel Marin” is a bit of an anomaly in the 3rd Congressional District. There appears to be very little information about him available on the internet, and some of us find the lack of details particularly curious. In my post of March 18th I provided some information about Mr. Marin as it was originally reported in The Herald, and I also provided a link to Mr. Marin’s website.

Upon publication of the post I was contacted by an anonymous source. The source informed me that there was more to know about Mel Marin and they suggested that I take a closer look. They provided a few bread crumbs as a trail for me to follow. Since that time I’ve done a bit of research and I thought I should share my findings with all of you.

Additional information regarding Mel Marin is publicly accessible on-line if you know where to look. Mr. Marin is known by various names (aka Melvin Milivoj Marin, aka Mel Milivoj Marin, aka Mel M. Marin, aka Melvin Marin, aka Melvin Marinkovic). It is through the use of these various names and the names of his parents Milivoj and Eva Marinkovich (named as his campaign managers on his website) that additional information can be found through simple internet searches. Here are some of my findings [I urge you to review the internet links for additional details]:

The Sharon Herald reported HERE that “Marin made news in Mercer County last fall for filing a federal discrimination lawsuit against the city of Sharon for allegedly refusing to sell him condemned properties for $10 each because he is Serbian.” According to numerous sources sited on the internet, it seems that this is not Mel Marin’s first experience in the court system.

Mel Marin's name is associated with numerous instances of litigation throughout the US. Mr. Marin is currently listed as a VEXATIOUS LITIGANT in the State of California. A vexatious litigant (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vexatious_litigation) is an individual who repeatedly brings about frivolous lawsuits for the sole purpose of harassing individuals, groups, or corporations. Mr. Marin is listed HERE (a PDF file) on the Superior Court of California, County of Imperial website. In the published “vexatious litigant list” he is listed under his various names of Mel Marin, Mel M. Marin, Melvin M. Marin, and Mel M. Marinkovic.

Mr. Marin also has a legal history in the state of Arizona where he is listed in court documents HERE under the name of Mel M. Marin along with his parents, Milivoj Marinkovic and Eva Marinkovic.

A simple search found lawsuits in Mel Marin’s name in Arizona, California, District of Columbia, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania (including Mercer County).

Regarding his parents Milivoj and Eva Marinkovic, they are listed as his campaign managers on his website HERE (at the bottom of the page). Their names in that instance are listed as Milivoj and Eva Marinkovich with an address of PO Box 1651 in Hermitage PA. My anonymous source suggested that both Milivoj and Eva Marinkovic / Marinkovich are deceased. I did a search of the Social Security Death Index and found one Milivoj Marinkovic with a last residence in Utica NY that passed away in 2008 (and recorded in Ohio). I also found one Eva Marinkovic with a last residence in Escondido, CA that passed away in October of 2009 (and recorded in Ohio). These previous addresses are consistent with the other information that was available on-line regarding Mr. Marin’s parents. An on-line document provided by the USPS provides information regarding legal action by Mr. Marin against the US Postal Service. In the document references are made to his California and Utica NY addresses.

As a final note of interest, there is a story posted by a San Diego TV station regarding a Melvin Marin and his mother Eva. In the story it is explained that Oceanside California police were looking for Eva Marinkovic, who had gone missing from a La Paloma Convalescent Center. The story further stated "Family members believe her son, Melvin, may have checked her out of the facility, and taken the woman to another state for treatment of dementia and Alzheimer's." The story can be viewed on-line HERE. The on-line version of the story helps to tie the individuals from the San Diego incident to candidate Mel Marin of Erie as a photo of his mother, Eva, is supplied. The woman in the photo is strikingly similar to the woman in the photo that is provided of Marin's mother on his campaign website HERE.

I’d like to make it very clear that I am not making any specific accusations regarding Mr. Marin or his background. I simply followed information that was publicly available through simple internet searches. My concern for good government makes me wonder “Who exactly is Mel Marin?"

Once again, I urge you to make use of the links that I’ve provided and do a little research of your own. I am willing to share any information that is brought forward regarding this matter in an effort to uncover the truth.

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