Water level at Lake Isabella rises amid predictions we will have water in the river through the summer, a former priest has a bad day in court and Bakersfield loses two prominent businessmen and notables

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this community such a special place. The views expressed here are strictly my own and do not represent any other company or publication.

 * ... LAKE ISABELLA: All this rain is finally having a positive impact on filling some of the states reservoirs, which were drained dangerously low during the long drought. Closer to home the rains almost doubled the amount of water stored at Lake Isabella, going from a low of about 135,000 acre feet to

around 265,000 acre feet now. Mark Mulkay, Kern Water Master, told KGET it was "a once-in-a-generation event that’s going to happen this year. There’s going to be a lot of water in the river all year long.” Mulkay said. Depending on the depth of the water in the river, that means we could be seeing a lot of kayaking, canoeing and swimming this summer along the Kern River through town. (file photo of Lake Isabella)

 * ... GOOD NEWS? Is there finally some good news for our beleaguered downtown? Did the powers at be finally listen to the people and businesses who have been crying for help for years? Hopefully that answer is a firm yes now that the City Council has authorized city staff to  place bids on 13 different properties that are deemed eyesores, and potential fire hazards. This is a terrific start and it deserves our applause, but we should all be aware that the city may need to pony up yet more money to buy and refurbish these old properties. It's a start in the right direction.

 

 * ... CRAIG HARRISON COURT LOSS: It has been a bad - and expensive - week for Craig Harrison following yet another loss in court, the latest setback for the embattled former monsignor who is fighting allegations he spent part of his career as a repeated abuser. Harrison and his civil defense team, led by local attorney Craig Edmonston, have been ordered to pay $219,800 in attorney costs after their defamation lawsuit against Stephen Brady was tossed out of court. Brady was among a handful of people that Harrison sued for defamation, and so far his defense team has struck out in court, racking up hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees without a single win show for their efforts. In addition to the lawsuit against Brady, Harrison's defamation lawsuit against former monk Ryan Gilligan was also thrown out of court. If Harrison is ordered to pay those attorney fees as well, he could be on the hook for almost a half million dollars in fees. And all this before Harrison even steps foot in trial to defend two civil lawsuits from men who claim to have been abused by the former priest. Those cases, and thousands of dollars in attorney fees, are making their way through the courts. Edmonston told KGET it is unlikely Harrison can pay the fees. “He spent his entire life in the church, and he was compensated slightly above subsistence,” the attorney said. While that may be true, Harrison's lifestyle has been anything but subsistence level. He lives in a downtown home valued at more than $700,000 (owned by supporters) routinely posts pictures of himself on an oceanview property on the central coast and often takes long excursions to Italy with friends. Stay tuned to see how all that plays out in court. (file photos of Harrison and Craig Edmonston)

 * ... REST IN PEACE: Our community has lost some good people lately, business men and women and community members whose individual sweat and toil helped make Bakersfield a better place. Some of these names may not be familiar, but each deserves a recognition for being part of the fabric of a community we call home.

  HENRY MARTIN "MARTY" MAYFOHRT Jr.: Marty Mayfohrt lost his battle with cancer on March 10 after spending a lifetime raising his family and working in the San Joaquin Valley. He was a graduate of West High and CSUB and worked as an accountant with Lou Barbich and Geoff King before he got "the car bug" and became general manager of Bill Wright Toyota and later Family Motors. In 2000 Marty realized a lifelong dream and purchased the Madera Auto Center and moved to Clovis where he lived with his wife, Lela, and daughters Lauren and Michelle. A proud graduate of CSUB, Marty was a member of the downtown Rotary Club, Seven Oaks Country Club and other civic organizations. He was 68. Marty is shown here with his wife, Lela.

 JOHN  BROCK JR. A descendant of the family that ran the famous Brock's Department store, John Brock Jr. was a lifelong resident of Bakersfield and a prominent member of the business community. After his family sold the department store Brock joined Gregory Bynum and Associates in 1988 where he was integral in hundreds of developments around down. John graduated with a BA degree from Stanford and a Master's degree in business administration from the University of Southern California. A true gentleman with a soft touch and dry wit, John is shown with his wife, Ginette. John was 75 years ago.

 * ... MEMORIES: From the archives of the Kern County History Fans' page on Facebook comes this look at Guarantee Shoe Center over the years.

Former Bakersfield priest Craig Harrison, accused of sexual misdeeds, is ordered to pay $219,000 in attorney fees to a critic who was investigating the sexual abuse allegations against him; it is Harrison's latest loss in court

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this community such a special place. The views expressed here are strictly my own and do not represent any other company or publication.

 A Kern County Superior Court judge has ruled that accused sexual molester Craig Harrison must pay $219,000 in legal fees to a man who criticized Harrison and was promptly sued for libel by Harrison and his team of attorneys.

 The ruling by Judge Eric Bradshaw was handed down last week and made public by The Church Militant, a national organization that is devoted to outing sexual predators in the Catholic clergy. The ruling came in the case of Stephen Brady, who runs the organization The Roman Catholic Faithful, which helps track and report on priests accused of wrongdoing.

 In the ruling, the court named two Harrison attorneys: civil attorney Craig Edmonston and criminal lawyer Kyle Humphrey. Both were part of Harrison's defense team that worked to silence critics by slapping them with lawsuits, several of which were thrown out of court.

 Brady was represented by the San Diego law firm of Limandri & Jonna, which specializes in church abuse cases.

 Brady was accused of libel after he held a press conference in Bakersfield to talk about the accusations against Harrison. At the time the libel suit was filed Humphrey said the intent was "to restore the reputation and good name of Monsignor Craig Harrison and to hold accountable these defendants for their false, malicious and reckless accusations." 

 The court disagreed.

 Harrison's lawsuit claimed Brady published false defamatory, libelous, and slanderous statements about Harrison, including that he had sex with two high school students while a pastor in Firebaugh. The lawsuit also claimed that Brady said Harrison would examine boy's private parts every morning. Another claim stated that he had sex with a minor in a Ford Explorer and that teen committed suicide following abuse by Monsignor.

 Brady's attorneys argued the case against him was frivolous - they claimed it violated his First Amendment rights to speak about matters already in the public arena - and that they should be reimbursed for attorney costs. The judgment presumably will be paid by Harrison or his group of local supporters.

 The $219,000 judgment comes in the Brady case, and a similar outcome could be expected in a second libel case that Harrison lost against Ryan Gilligan, a former Benedictine monk and confident of Harrison's who accused the former priest of sexually inappropriate behavior. Harrison sued Gilligan and lost that case as well.

 All of this harkens back to when Harrison, once a wildly popular monsignor, media darling and accomplished fund raiser, was suspended by the Diocese of Fresno in April 2019 after a man came forward to say Harrison abused him when he was a young man. After that numerous other accusations from once young men followed, the church launched a formal investigation, Harrison sued the church and lost and Harrison eventually voluntarily left the church.

 So far all of Harrison's lawsuits against his detractors handled by Edmonston and his team - The Catholic Church, Stephen Brady, Ryan Gilligan and a diocese employee - have failed in the courts.

 Once Harrison had surrendered all of his priest duties, the church responded by removing all memories of Harrison at St. Francis Church, including taking Harrison's name off the side of a youth center that had been named after him. Harrison is shielded from any criminal charges because of the statute of limitations, but two civil lawsuits by men accusing Harrison of sexual impropriety are making their way through the courts and appear headed to trial.

More lurid details emerge as the case of Monsignor Craig Harrison plays itself out in court filings, the state of Texas seeks to benefit from California's ongoing woes, and Olvia LaVoice leaves KGET for greener pastures in Seattle

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this community such a special place. The views expressed here are strictly my own and do not reflect the views of any other individual, organization or company. 

 * ... FATHER CRAIG: Are overzealous supporters of Father Craig Harrison harassing and intimidating those who speak out against the suspended priest? Those are the allegations made by a San Diego lawyer who wants to have a Harrison defamation lawsuit dismissed because it targets free speech. The allegations came in two statements included in a legal filing (called an anti-SLAPP motion) filed in response to Harrison's defamation lawsuits against two critics. Those two men are

Stephen Brady, head of a group called Roman Catholic Faithful, and Ryan Dixon, a former friend of Harrison's who is studying to become a monk and is now known as Brother Gilligan. Both have been sued by Harrison because of their criticism of Harrison. The anti-SLAPP motion seeks to have Harrison's lawsuit dismissed, and it provides Harrison's critics a new platform to raise questions about the monsignor's past behavior. Furthermore, the new charges by Brady and Dixon reveal a potential dark underside to the widespread support Harrison enjoys in the community. Some supporters, the motion alleges, have taken matters into their own hands in an attempt to harass and intimidate Brady and Dixon. Among the allegations:
  * Brady claims he received a long series of rambling emails from Harrison's brother, Rick Harrison, in which he brags about hundreds of thousands of dollars raised for his brother's defense. In one email, he refers to Brady as "Satan."
 * The more troubling allegations come from Brother Gilligan, in which he provides details about the time he and Harrison were close at St. Francis. Gilligan alleges Harrison lavished him with money and gifts to buy his allegiance. Gilligan also said Harrison would "befriend older wealthier people for financial gain." A one time, Gilligan said he felt betrayed ... when he (Harrison) asked me inappropriate questions to see whether I was homosexual." One other time, Gilligan said Harrison asked him, "What kind of porn do you watch?"
 * Gilligan went on to allege he grew suspicious that Father Craig was sexually abusing kids at St. Francis and was told by another man that Harrison "would take his temperature by grabbing his testicles." Gilligan also claimed that during one trip, he shared a bed with Harrison and that the monsignor "sexually caressed" his chest for about 10 minutes.
* Gilligan also alleges that Harrison "told me directly that he wanted to tell people the sins I confessed to him so that I would be kicked out of seminary... Fr. Craig threatened to break the seal of confession because he was upset with me for threatening to tell authority figures about how he mishandles money, how he would give young guys, including myself, large amounts of cash, and particularly how he would manipulate me."
 * Since giving testimony against Harrison, Brother Gilligan said his mother had been fired from her position at St. Francis and that his mother's home had been vandalized, her tires had been slashed and that his mother woke one morning to find her yard filled with "We Support Msgr. Craig Harrison" signs. He said his mother and grandmother were living in a "constant state of fear" and were forced to move to Oklahoma.
 Harrison and his attorneys have denied all of these allegations and have indicated they are building a strong case against Brother Gilligan to refute the charges, one by one. It should also be noted that nowhere in Gilligan's statement does he or anyone allege that Father Craig personally directed or was involved (or even knew about) in any retaliatory behavior toward his critics.
 THE NEXT STEP: The judge hearing the case, Judge J. Eric Bradshaw, is weighing a request to have Harrison's personnel file made public. Harrison's attorney, Craig Edmonston, opposes the move and dismissed it as an overly broad fishing expedition. At stake: the personnel files might include past reports of inappropriate behavior as well as how the Diocese of Fresno responded to any previous allegations. (file photo of Father Craig with Ryan Dixon)

 * ... BIRTHDAY: As an aside, it should be noted that Father Craig continues to enjoy enormous popularity in Bakersfield, and that many of his followers are willingly contributing to a defense fund on his behalf. There is open talk of his attorneys suing the Catholic Church itself, and as a show of support, several hundred people (one person estimated the crowd at 600) turned out for a surprise birthday party on Father Craig's 60th birthday last week.

 * ...COURTING TEXAS: The state of Texas has wasted no time in exploiting Calfornia's troubles, erecting billboards across the state to lure businesses to move to the Lone Star state. The billboards promise a steady supply of electricity as opposed to the ongoing blackouts and power outages that have bedeviled California during the fire and high wind reason.

 * ... ADIOS OLIVIA: Olivia LaVoice, one of the better investigative TV reporters to come around in a long time, is leaving KGET for another gig at a Seattle television station. LaVoice will join KCPQ in Seattle, her hometown, after four years with KGET.

 * ... BAD CITIES: Check out this map I spotted on Facebook, which identifies Bakersfield as the "worst" city in California. Who makes these maps anyway? I can think of a hundred towns "worst" than Bakersfield ... have you ever been to Compton, or Inglewood, or Brea, or Modesto, or Riverside, just to name a few? You get my drift.

 * ... MEMORIES:A couple of historic cool old photos of our town back in the day.

The drug addicted and homeless take over our parks, In-N-Out faces a boycott after its owners donate to the GOP, and attorneys for Father Craig slap a lawsuit on a critic who follows abuse cases

Friday, August 23, 2019

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this community such a special place. Send news items to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... VAGRANTS: If you want to know how fed up, sickened and angry the general public is over this addiction and vagrant issue, just spend some time on social media. Check out this post and

accompanying pictures from 23ABC anchor Tim Calahan: "A complete failure. It’s the only way I can describe this. How have we let this become our downtown? Our place where kids play?
Less than two years ago I would take my daughter to this park quite frequently... notice the slide she would go down is now occupied by a tent, and two individuals sleeping. I’ve interviewed Kevin McCarthy here at this park. (I could almost guarantee capitol police would deem the park a security risk.) I’ve shot PSA’s there for 23ABC dozens of times. This park is no longer a park. It’s a visual display of the failures in policy and conscious, both at the state and city level. This is not acceptable. The fact that our police can do nothing about this, I just don’t accept. The fact that our city leaders are waiting for funding to deal with this, I just don’t accept. We can do better Bakersfield. Consider who is leading our city, stop them today, politely and ask if they’ll let this go on for another year or so...'until funding comes through, or until a plan can be approved.'” Meanwhile, there is scarcely a public park in town that has not been seized by the homeless, including Jastro Park downtown, Patriot's park, Qualwood park and the park in Oildale.

 * ... BURGER BOYCOTT: In-N-Out Burger, the Irvine-based burger chain so beloved by Californians, has found itself in hot water with some consumers after it donated $25,000 to the California Republican Party. And yes, you guessed it, it has led some to call for a boycott, even though the chain has donated to Republican causes before. By the way, good luck with that boycott.

 * ... FATHER CRAIG: Did you hear about the lawsuit that attorneys for Father Craig Harrison filed against a Roman Catholic organization that tracks priests accused of sexual wrongdoing? Local plaintiff's attorney Craig Edmonston, part of Father Craig's legal team, filed the lawsuit against Stephen Brady of the Roman Catholic Faithful, an organization that tracks allegations of sexual abuse against Catholic clergy. It's a curious strategy on several levels but it may speak volumes about the effort to clear Harrison's name. First, and I found this puzzling, but the lawsuit came at a time when the case had died down publicly. Its filing only serves to revive the chatter about the abuse allegations by providing lurid details about Harrison's alleged behavior, and I am not sure that serves the embattled priest. Second, there is the merit - or lack of merit - to the lawsuit.  Did Brady actually slander Harrison as the lawsuit alleges? At least to my eyes, Brady simply echoed what was already made public by the Diocese of Fresno, police agencies and numerous news outlets across the state. And the target of the lawsuit - Brady - is not exactly a big fish in this case, but rather a one-man show who likely works out of his basement. So is this simply a way to try to silence and scare off Harrison's critics by forcing them to pony up thousands of dollars to defend themselves? One thing is for sure: I am told dozens of well-heeled Bakersfield Catholics have pledged tens of thousands of dollars for a Harrison defense fund. My question: why don't they file a lawsuit against the Catholic Church, since it was the church that first raised these allegations? Stay tuned.

 * ... MORE FATHER CRAIG: Word on the street is that Harrison has told people he expects to be reinstated to the clergy by the Diocese of Fresno, but without the title of monsignor. I for one hope that is not true. If the Diocese cannot prove the allegations, then it should return Harrison to his old position as a monsignor. Anything less would be grossly unfair to a man who has endured a difficult period of his life. Meanwhile, I am also told that those close to Harrison are advising him to become a private counselor if the Diocese does not reinstate him.

 *... FISH FERTILIZER: Here's a novel way to get rid of the drug addicts and vagrants from your local business: use fish fertilizer around your building so it stinks so much even the homeless will go somewhere else. That was the solution one downtown businessperson came up with, as seen in this post on Facebook: "So far it’s been a quiet August on California and S. Had some junkies shooting up across the street this morning and that’s about it. No homeless sleeping around the funeral home since I sprayed the ally and side with fish based fertilizer.

 * ... MEMORIES: And wow, take a look at these old photos from the Kern County of Old Facebook page.

 * ... MORE MEMORIES: And lastly, check out the old Washington School that I spotted on the Kern County History Fans Facebook page.