Bako bits: Huerta's speech raises cackles, a monster appears in court and goodbye to Larry

Lots happening around our community, plenty of controversy, Supervisors considering budget cuts, Dolores Huerta's commencement speech at CSUB and the dad accused of blinding his son finally shows up in court. Let's get to it:

* ... THE FACE OF A MONSTER? We finally got a fresh look at 34-year-old Angelo Vidal Mendoza, the man accused of eating out one of his son's eyes and badly damaging the other in what appears to have been a drug-induced craze. So there he was, in his wheelchair from a previous violent incident, draped in a pink blanket no less. Let's give him his innocence until proven guilty, but the cops say this is the guy who turned on his own son, gouged out his eye and then took an axe and broken ceramic to his own legs to pretend that he was a victim of a gang assault. What a dad! If guilty, that's a monstrous story by a monster of a man. Meanwhile little Angel, now 4, is said to be recovering the sight in one eye while a fund has been established in his name. Read the Californian's midday briefing here.



* ... HUERTA SPARKS CONTROVERSY: Lots of chatter on blogs and Facebook on a commencement speech that United Farm Workers founder Dolores Huerta gave at CSUB. Haven't yet seen a copy of the speech or seen a video but some folks are howling over its content, which was variously described as predictable and boring (on the tame side) to rabidly divisive and pedantic in tone. One poster told this to Californian editorial page editor Bob Price:

"Yawn. So, if anybody 'complained' or disagrees with Huerta's radial, left-wing world view then they are automatically attached to Rush, O'Reilly or Savage? What a load of dung! Sorry, the woman is a judgmental, anti-business polarizer, and CSUB should immediately apologize to the graduates who were trapped into listening to her pitiful harangue." Wow!

Bob says The Californian will have a package of letters to the editor on the controversy this Thursday, so be ready for it.

* ... SAYING GOODBYE TO LARRY: When someone as popular as Larry Reider retires, there are bound to be more than a few roasts and goodbye parties. Larry is longtime Kern Superintendent of Schools Larry Reider, who truly is one of the great public servants of our community. He's finally calling it quits but promises to hang around. I hear the Mendiburu Magic Foundation, on which Larry serves as a board member, will hold a dinner in his honor on June 18 at Wool Growers Basque Restaurant. A bigger communitywide dinner will be held Friday, July 10, at the Bakersfield Museum of Art (Larry served on that board too). If interested call Irma Tiner at (661) 636-4632. Tickets are $60 each and a table for eight can be reserved for $480. No host bar at 6 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m.

Angelo can see! Doctors say victim of savage attack by his father may be able to see

Here's some terrific news to start your weekend: the young lad who lost one eye when his father savagedly attacked him may not be blind in both eyes after all. The word comes in an exclusive report in The Bakersfield Californian (read full report here) by longtime crime report Steve Swenson. Because little Angelo Mendoza only recently turned 4 years old, the case is shrouded in secrecy, but Swenson learned the boy has regained some sight in his right eye and doctors say that should improve. The left eye is gone. His father literally ate it out in an April 28 attack that cops think was induced by a drug rage. Support from across the world has come to this lad and funds are being established. Meanwhile, there's not much sympathy for the dad, who after attacking his son starting chopping at his own legs and tried to tell cops he was the victim of a gang attack. The dad already was in a wheelchair because of a previous knife attack. And the mother? Well, she's missing and wanted on some drug related charges. What a joy to pick up today's paper and see a screaming black headline: "ANGELO CAN SEE."

Support from around the globe for the little boy whose father blinded him in a crazed attack

The story of little Angelo Mendoza just keeps capturing the attention of well wishers across the world. The Californian had a piece today talking about efforts to raise money for the lad, who was blinded when his father - in what I assume was an apparent drug craze - literally ate his eye out, leaving him blind in one and perhaps both eyes. The Californian didn't give an update on the condition of the 4-year-old, but it did update us on all the fund raising efforts under way to help him. The problem with establishing a fund for Angelo goes right to his parents: it's his father Angelo Vidal Mendoza who is charged mayhem, torture and child cruelty in the April 28 assault, and the mother is nowhere to be found. She's apparently wanted on a $15,000 arrest warrant for failing to attend drug classes. Can this story get any sadder? What kind of life did this boy have before the attack? One can only wonder. Apparently Kern Schools Federal Credit Union is working with the boy's uncle to establish a fund, but others are doing the same. Following is another email I received recently. If you want to get involved, feel free to contact this person via their website.

"My name is Brandi Crump and I live in Panama City Florida. I am CC Devon Cox of Denver, CO that I am in communication with trying to start a trust and foundation for this child. We are committed to helping this little boy succeed in life. You recently wrote a post on the Angelo Mendoza Jr. case and mentioned something about starting a trust. We have been trying to get local churches involved to let us open an account under their not for profit business but have not been successful at this time. I am asking for your help to find a not-for profit organization to sponsor us so we can open the bank account and legally continue taking donations. We may already have an attorney that will do the trust paperwork for free but need the not for profit organization sponsorship first. Below is a website that Devon started and I recently got involved trying to help get the word out for Angelo and as you can see we already have donations as well as people continuing to get involved and join our website. Anything you can do would be greatly appreciated as we have people here that want to help this little boy.

http//:friendsofangelo.wikidot.com/start (click here for direct link)

Weekend Bako Bits: A drowning at RiverWalk, DUI checkpoints and more on the monster Mendoza

In the middle of a long Memorial Day weekend and while it's hot, it's certainly bearable and there is much for which to be thankful. Plenty happening around town, so let's get to it:

* ... ANOTHER DROWNING: When it heats up, it's a given that the crowds will descend on the new RiverWalk park off Stockdale Highway and - you guessed it - completely disregard the no swimming signs posted around the lakes. So I suppose we shouldn't be surprised that we've had the first drowning of the year, a 16-year-old named Ricardo Lopez. He died today (Saturday) after being pulled from the water Friday. KGET reported the family waited 15 minutes before calling 911, but that won't stop our slip and fall lawyers from filing suit against the city. It's a terrible tragedy, but a little common sense could prevent these things.



* ... COPS OUT IN FORCE: When the cops tell you they're going to be out in full force on a holiday weekend, believe them. I ran into my first DUI checkpoint Friday afternoon (on Ming Avenue near The Marketplace) where KGET reports they nabbed four drunks. Then this morning, I saw a Highway Patrolman posted by the side of Granite Road headed to Woody clocking speeders. And I saw another Bakersfield police officer pull over a green SUV full of teenagers and ticketing them near Cal State Bakersfield. Be safe out there.
* ... MORE ON MENDOZA: If you haven't read today's report in The Californian about Angelo Mendoza, the 4-year-old who was left blind when his drug crazed father literally ate his eye, pick it up. (or go to bakersfield.com to check it out) Reporter Steve Swenson is all over this story and reports exclusively today that the cops were called to the suspect's home about an hour before the actual incident, left and then were called back. I am not implying that BPD did anything wrong, just another tragic chapter in this sad story.
* ... PEOPLE ON THE MOVE: Heard yesterday that Cindy Pollard, the longtime spokesman for PG&E, is moving to Sacramento for a higher job with the utility. Cindy is one of those community activists that made this a better place to live, and she will be missed. Meanwhile I had a nice chat with former CSUB development director Mike Chertok (he retired) who tells me he is now the volunteer development director for the Bakersfield Symphony.

Cops: Man who blinded son by biting out his eye once tried to hide dope in the boy's crib

Another day and yet another stunning development in the tragic story of the man who blinded his son by biting out his eye in an apparent drug crazed frenzy. The boy, little Angelo Mendoza, was left blind while the cops are trying to put together exactly what happened. One thing is clear: there are no good guys in this sordid story that involves drugs, possible gang involvement, a missing mother and possible malfeasance by Child Protective Services. The latest development comes from The Californian, which reports that three years ago - when the lad was just 1 year old - cops were at the boy's house when they found a container with traces of drugs hidden in his crib. His parents were taken into custody, CPS was called and the boy was taken into protective custody.






But somehow, the boy was returned home to live with his dad, who reportedly has a long criminal record and possible gang involvement. Then, a few days ago, he attacks his son and literally bites one eye out and damages the other. So many questions: where was the mother, Desirae Bermudez? A TV station says she didn't live with the boy. And where was CPS, particularly if they knew the father had tried to hide his drug stash in the boy's crib three years earlier! This is one of those stories that has made the rounds across the globe, and just this afternoon a family in New Zealand emailed me asking how they could help. Stay tuned. We'll look into establishing a trust fund for little Angelo, who is apparently now blind in both eyes. So much sadness for a boy who did nothing wrong.

Witness: Angelo Mendoza had "wild look" in days before blinding his son

Details are beginning to emerge about the man accused of attacking his 4-year-old son and literally biting one of his eyes out. The boy remains hospitalized and it is not known if he is blind in one or both eyes. This is the most talked about story in town, an utterly outrageous and disgusting story, and it has captured the attention of readers across the globe. The suspectg, confined to a wheelchair, was apparently on some kind of drug rage when he attacked his son. The boy told police: "Daddy ate my eyes out." The latest details come from KBAK TV's Carol Ferguson, a longtime veteran reporter who knows how to work a story.(read her report here) She tracked down friends of the suspect, Angelo Mendoza Sr., who said he had been enrolled at Bakersfield College last year and had been training for a long bike ride in his wheelchair. And, to the first of my knowledge, Ferguson tracked down the boy's mother (lots of questions about where she was since the boy was living with his father).



From the KBAK report:
"The child's mother, who called herself Desirae but would not disclose her last name, said Mendoza has been wheelchair-bound since December 2004 when he was stabbed in the back and left paralyzed from the waist down. Desirae said Mendoza had hoped to organize a bicycle ride from Disneyland to Disney World."
KBAK also quoted another friend, Harvey Clowers, as saying Mendoza seemed enthusiastic about wheelchair sports but had recently showed a change in attitude.
"It just seems like ... he had a wild look in his eyes," Clowers said on Wednesday. "He was kind of speeding around, rolling fast and just moving around like he was under the influence of something."

Photo courtesy of KBAK TV website

"My daddy ate my eyes out" yet suspect remembered as loving, doting father

I have long lost any sense of shock at the horrors some people are capable of, but then a story comes along that simply leaves you speechless. The latest Bakersfield savagery to unfold locally involved a drug crazed father who - brace yourself here - literally ate the eyes out of his son and left him blind in one and perhaps both eyes. The victim in this case was 4-year-old "baby" Mendoza, who according to neighbors had been living with his father (Angelo Mendoza Sr.) even though he told his mother he was afraid of his father. Check out all the chilling details on KERO-TV's website available here. The unanswered questions surrounding this tragedy are endless, including:
* Why was the boy living with the father when, according to KERO, his father had a substance abuse issue and was confined to a wheelchair?
* Where was the mother?
* Why did the mother leave the boy after he expressed such fear of his father?
And of course there are the inevitable interviews with neighbors and the father's brother who are simply shocked this could happen because the father just loved his son so much. Unfortunately these are the kinds of stories coming out of Bakersfield that folks remember.
Photo courtesy of KERO-TV website.