Tres amigos: CEO Mauk; the priapic Bustamante; Supervisor Campbell.
Well, events have clearly overtaken my carefully prepared report on the brewing and seamy Carlos Bustamante scandal, and I look forward to hearing more gruesome details of the following charges against the priapic councilman tomorrow morning at the DA’s office (which I hope T-Rack acts out as he did the Kelly Thomas murder – this would be a lot more entertaining) :
- Six felony counts of false imprisonment
- Three felony counts of assault with the intent to commit a sexual offense
- One felony count of stalking
- One felony count of attempted sexual battery by restraint
- One felony count of grand theft by false pretense
- One misdemeanor count of battery
- One misdemeanor count of assault
- One misdemeanor count of sexual battery
- One misdemeanor count of attempted sexual battery
- with a sentencing enhancement allegation for committing the offenses as a result of sexual compulsion and for the purpose of sexual gratification!
So I suppose this is a good time to pass on what I’ve been hearing for weeks from county insiders, but haven’t managed to quite verify: Namely, that Carlos’ behavior was well-known and documented as long ago as the Spring of 2011, in a outside investigator’s report which CEO Tom Mauk HID IN A SAFE in the County Hall of Administration, until Internal Auditor Peter Hughes discovered it.
This secret report, they say, found that Carlos had likely committed “harassment and possibly criminal assault” and should be further investigated; but NO other investigation ever took place until Mr. Hughes was spurred into action months later by anonymous letters. So, it is alleged, Carlos was allowed to continue harassing his victims for at least 6-8 months due to inaction and protection from Mauk.
Remember, Carlos was at one time the great rising star of the Orange County GOP, with his arguable charms and good looks complementing the anomaly of an actual young Latino Republican. From the beginning his patron and protector was Supervisor Bill Campbell, who – lest you forget – was tapped to run Carlos’ ill-fated supervisorial campaign by the local party guys.
And just as Mauk protected and sheltered Bustamante for so long, Campbell has been the protector of Mauk on the Board of Supervisors, wielding his avuncular magic over clueless Supes Janet Nguyen and Pat Bates for a safe, anti-reform majority, no matter HOW many fuckups the hapless, barely ambulatory CEO racks up. (See our catalogue A Complete Maukery.)
Observers perceive a tight-knit Catholic clique in that large corner of the OC GOP universe – a self-protecting Catholic clique centered around lobbyist/consultant John Lewis, disgraced ex-blogger Matt Cunningham and his wife Laura who’s Campbell’s Chief of Staff, and including Campbell, Mauk and Bustamante – all Catholics, mostly graduated from Mater Dei or Servite. And all upstanding, self-righteous “protectors” of “traditional marriage.” *cough* *puke*
Most concede that this is gonna be the end, finally, for CEO Mauk, and before you feel sorry for him consider how he let his dear Carlos go, when it was no longer tenable to keep him: he was allowed to resign, with THREE MONTHS PAY, in exchange for a promise not to sue the County. (Wait. CARLOS SUE THE COUNTY!?!?)
This whole debacle is bound to cost us millions (yet again!!!) as the victims of Bustamante and Mauk, true and phony, come out of the woodworks. One of my correspondents, after reading my “Complete Maukery,” concludes:
…THIS action is the most serious and morally corrupt one in terms of its possible criminality and its consequences and impact on innocent people. In the absence of any meaningful action by the Orange County Board, the DA should also open an inquiry into the CEO’s reasons and role in the burying this report. The original investigator’s report should be made public with names redacted. Its contents could clarify whether Mr. Mauk’s decision was somehow legitimate or simply a cover up. There can be no denying that his actions resulted in allowing the continuation of improper conduct and delayed the exposure of Mr. Bustamante’s activities for many more months. Such an inquiry might give some hope to the women who were subjected to his intimidation and abuse that justice is also being pursued against those at the top who tried to protect him as well.
Perhaps after all this, we citizens could then apologize to those who have been victimized due to the actions of Bustamante and Mauk.
I’ve heard a lot more, but that’s enough for now, just wanted you to hear all this here first!
I think that this significantly lowers his chances of re-election, dontcha think?
Sorry — this is stunning stuff and all I have at hand is deadpan understatement. Incredible.
You’re talking about Bustamante. I’m gunning for Mauk and Campbell. Never been a “kick the guy who’s already down” guy.
FACTUAL REPORTING BEATS THE SCOOP(especially inside scoops) EVERYTIME VERN.
Good Reporting. Looking forward to more perspective from OJB and looking less forward to fewer facts from the “tradional media”.
Todays events beg the question why now, and why so aggressive. Scooter Libby comes to mind. But, I somehow think Carlos lacks that fortitude.
Keep it coming.
Oh hi pal! I was just over at the black site harassing our friend “bonehead.”
The CEO hides deep, dark secrets in safe for months! The County conducts a secrect internal audit review! So are the Days of Our Lives! This truly will cost millions and millions. County Executives might have to give up their tax payer funded 401K retirement plans to pay for the large payouts to follow to the victims – and oh there will be many more!
Did you say the Catholic Church is somehow involved! It seems this County has been run like a Maufia for way too long. Great story Vern!
“Did you say the Catholic Church is somehow involved!”
More baseless Catholic bashing.
skallywag … people are gonna figure out who you are, bro, if they haven’t already.
Lead story on KTLA!
No mention of partisanship.
Not a flattering intro for the early to bed crowd that I am ususally part of!
How was the council meeting……….AKWARD!
Was tonite Santa Ana CC night?
Empty chair, I suppose. An arrest on the dais would be much too beautiful for us mortals to behold.
arrest before council meeting or the next morning?
With les than 4 members able to vote, the hated PBID lives on
Great. “No mention of partisanship.”
How many listeners do you imagine heard a hispanic name, and “Santa Ana councilman,” and muttered to their travelling companion, “Another filthy Democrat.”
Hey guys, I think the Orange juice was the initial Media outlet that first seemed to go into Bustamante’s issues.
I remember reading these long account by a commenter who seemed scorn by Carlos.
There’s another Santa Ana elected official who works for the County as well who helped cover up a number of things for his pal Bustamante. That would be none other than Rob Richardson, Asst. CEO to Mauk and current SAUSD Trustee. Richardson has his own with issues his Asian women fetish that took him back and forth to Thailand many times a year and that in itself is another salacious story… Both he and Bustamante took turns with a Vietnamese woman who worked in county counsel’s office (she has since been transferred elsewhere in the county). One of Bustamante’s turns with this secretary was in the elevator and the make out scene was recorded. Upon discovery of the recording, Bustamante and the woman had Richardson use his position to secure the tape and make it “disappear”. However, that did not happen until a number of other county employees were able to see the steamy scene and I believe a copy or two of the tape still exists… If you dig around enough you may get someone to provide you a copy.
Richardson is Mauk’s right-hand guy and is just as slimy and dirty as Mauk behind his schoolboy looks. The county executive management team needs a thorough shake down and cleaning before any trust and confidence can be restored to leadership. I wish I could divulge more and put my name to it but I can’t take that chance at this point. Your story is real close to the mark and I encourage you to keep digging away at this one as it will lead you to a massive cover up by Mauk and his underlings. Shame on the BOS for allowing this to go on for so long. Trust me, they’re not as “outraged” as you think. Campbell, Bates and Nguyen are the most guilty but Moorlach was informed of these things a few years ago but chose to keep quiet. Nelson is new to the Board but he too is aware of Mauk and Company’s behavior. To Nelson’s credit, he has been the most vocal behind the scenes and wanted Mauk relieved months ago. Lastly, not all the women were “victims”, they simply used their bodies to try to jump line in front of others for pay and promotion. Some of them need to go as well.
Please, please, PLEASE keep this story going for the sake of the good county employees who want nothing more than ethical leadership from county executives and a fair, written, strictly adhered to policy of how to qualify and be promoted by actually earning it without sexual favors counted as extra credit.
If this shocking accusation is true, and this happened on County property (elevator), then Mauk, Richardson, and anyone else who helped cover it up, including IT people who deleted the video, need to be fired and prosecuted! I have a feeling that the lid is about to be blown off the corruption can and heads will roll – including some elected officials!
DITTTO!!!!! Please keep digging. You will find more.
Well, it helps when some of youall contact me, so I know who you are, and can doublecheck your stories. You oughtta know by now you can trust me. 714 235 VERN, chezvern@aol.com
“Observers perceive a tight-knit Catholic clique in that large corner of the OC GOP universe – a self-protecting Catholic clique … all Catholics, mostly graduated from Mater Dei or Servite.”
Substitute “Jews” for “Catholics” and you have discrimination – right Diamond? So what’s the difference?
mmm… not really. This group does make a big deal about their religion; they’ve been involved in defending abusive priests; there are dozens of other Catholics in local politics who are NOT part of this particular clique; and nobody is discriminating against ’em let alone throwing ’em in ovens.
Thanks for playing!
I’m late to the game here, but discrimination implies the power to discriminate. If you’re complaining about Vern’s statement, he doesn’t have the power to do so (regardless of whether you substitute “Jews” for “Catholics.”) You can accuse him of bigotry or prejudice if you want, but the sad fact is that people do sometimes form cliques based on ethnicity, religion, etc., and do sometimes use their collective efforts to do bad things. Jews, Catholics, Blacks, Latinos, WASPs, men, women, GLBTs, Kenyan socialists — no group is immune to generating a tight-knit clique that can favor and sometimes improperly protect its own members.
If the charges made here are gratuitous, then you have a valid point. I’d suggest analyzing them on their merits. If you think that Vern is being anti-Catholic, you’d want better evidence than just this.
Good write up with two minor errors. First Bustamante, while a creature of Campbell is not part of the OC Catholic Political Mafia. If he were, Jerb would never have helped out him on the water bra joke.
Second, Nguyen is not clueless at all. She and Mauk have a symbiotic relationship; he used her to keep his job and she got all of her foolish and selfish little projects rammed through the bureaucracy.
With Bates on the other hand, it really is hard to tell if the problem is cowardice, stupidity, or early stage of dementia. The Word is she wants to run for State Senate, believing (as incredible as it may seem) that she has something to offer the electorate. The Bustamante thing has been a torpedo headed right at her waterline for months and she hasn’t even bothered to change course.
BTW, my sources tell me that Campbell was apprised of that independent report by Mauk last September – but the other Board members didn’t find out about it until the Internal Auditor stumbled over it by accident.
P.S. Ya gotta love Campbell’s self-serving quotation in the Rag: “a great career, yadda, yadda.”
Bustamante was just a no-talent hack who held a series of unrelated jobs in his decade with the County. He kept failing to the top courtesy of the republican establishment but his gig started unraveling with the Performance Audit of HR last year where it became clear that he and Mauk had jimmied a nice little unmerited promotion to County Executive level for Carlitos.
“.. OC Catholic Political Mafia ..”
Nice job of Catholic bashing Bushala. Catholics are represented well in many areas because (1) there are many of us as we tend to not be aborted as much as the general population – and (2) because many of us receive a better than public school education.
Campbell, Ruane, Cunningham, Fuentes, Ackerman etc., etc, etc. Yes, Feathering their nests at the taxpayers expense.
I forgot Mauk.
Yeah, late last night I called up Rose Espinosa (whom you like to think of as a “turnip”) just to confirm Mauk’s religion. Remember, she knew him back when he was a pretty decent La Habra City Manager. Yes, she said, in fact he is a Catholic. I don’t know what the significance is, except that seems to be a bonding thing in this particular group of OC Republicans.
Tony thinks everyone is Jubal!
Yeah, it’s funny stuff.
Dan and Chris think everyone on Tony’s blog is Tony. They also see Sean Mill everywhere.
Tardif (under his various well-known names) thinks anyone who doesn’t like him is Kenlaysnotdead.
Kenlaysnotdead and Guy Fawkes used to always think Dan C was over here attacking them under various names.
What’s with everyone theorizing that the Lib OC’s Joe Hill is Chris Prevatt? They don’t sound alike at all.
Over at the OC Weekly, Gustaavo and Moxley think they see their same enemies behind every anonymous comment. They actually think Dana Rohrabacher himself goes on under fake names to cuss them out and defend himself. I know they’re crazy because when me and Diamond were fighting with them, they thought all the anonymous comments agreeing with us were us!
Let’s see, I’m always suspecting Sean or Art of being the nasty anonymous people who attack me, but maybe I’m crazy too – maybe MORE than two people hate me!
Someone at FFFF has just started using my name as a pseudonym, so it will no longer be clear what can be attributed to me. If I were running FFFF, they would be gone, gone, gone.
I think that the “Sean Mill” attacking me is actually Dan C. pretending to be Sean Mill and that everyone else who agrees with him is actually Sean Mill.
And now your bought and paid for city council will feather your nest Tony.
Come to think of it, I believe you ARE The Jerb.
No, the Jerb don’t come around here no more. Although skally did once pronounce himself and the Jerb “brothers from another mother.”
Maybe it’s time people start striking back at those that prey upon children, those that protect them under the color of authority.
I don’t know who should be sentenced to hell first: Fr. Harris or Tom Fuentes; Coach Andrate or Matt Cunningham; Carlos Bustamonte or Bill Campbell and Rob Richardson.
The cover-up is always worse than the crime.
HERE’s Some social justice for Mike:
http://news.yahoo.com/william-lynch-found-not-guilty-beating-priest-said-202746328–abc-news-topstories.html
@ Tony B:
you say, “BTW, my sources tell me that Campbell was apprised of that independent report by Mauk [ LAST SEPTEMBER ] – but the other Board members didn’t find out about it until the Internal Auditor stumbled over it by accident.”
My comment,
1) Carlos Bustamante was placed on paid administrative leave on September 12.
2) I attended the Board of Supervisors meeting of AUGUST 23, 2011 when Orange County redistricting BOS district lines were being considered ITEM #61.
Carlos Bustamante was making a presentation.
To me Supervisor Bill Campbell comes across as gentleman, and yet what struck me that day, was the “dressing down” and “harsher tone” that then Chairman Bill Campbell adopted towards Carlos Bustamante.
Chairman Campbell appeared to be “talking” down to Carlos, and to me he seemed irritated at not just Carlos’ lack of preparation but at something that was not obvious to me.
So given the short time later when Carlos Bustamante was placed on administrative leave (SEPTEMBER 12th); and the AUGUST 23, 2011 incident, It seems that it is possible that there was already knowledge of Bustamante’s alleged misdeeds.
It would be interesting to go back and obtain video of that meeting.
Paco Barragan
As I understand it a second anonymous letter in mid-August prompted an independent report from a law firm that came out at the end of September, and that Mauk withheld from the Board – except Chairman Bill Campbell.
Of course by that time Busty had been groping women all summer long – after the original complaint from March 2011 that was ignored by Mauk & Co.
ooo — and groping is especially irritating in the summer when yer all hot n sweaty…
And I believe you’re an ass Tony. 420 times bigger than anyone else in OC
http://ocgov.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=4
This should be the link to the video of your meeting in question. Not sure which agenda item you are referring too.
@ Fred Johnson:
thank you for the link to the video.
I refer to item #28:
http://ocgov.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=4&clip_id=909
Carlos Bustamante’s presentation starts around 1:29:45,
and then Chairman Campbell tells Carlos around 1:34:35:
“You are not answering my question”….
and further says, “It’s not clear to me that [STAFF] understands what they are doing here.” [staff – meaning Carlos Bustamante].
Then, although possibly not directly relevant or just coincidence, comment is made to move discussion to September 13th, but Chairman Campbell suggests earlier i.e. September 6th [Bustamante was placed on Admin leave on September 12th.]
The camera does not catch the full tone, or all of the body language while Bustamante speaks.
Again, I was surprised that then Chairman Campbell was:
a) Talking down to Bustamante;
b) especially if they are both fellow Republicans, and they are both elected officials (one at County level & the other at City level); and if he is supposed to be Bustamante’s mentor.
Paco Barragan
Under the 2011 tab, August 23, item #28, contract for a public service announcement. Fast forward to it under the index. Supervisor Nelson pulled the item from consent.
http://ocgov.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=4&clip_id=909 should link.
*Can’t anyone ever just go to trial and have a jury of their peers convict or exonerate?
So, what do you think? Carlos was really a pal of Jerry Sandusky’s? How about he secretly banged into Linday Lohan’s car on 5th Street in downtown Santa Ana! Or maybe Carlos had dinner at Michael Jackson’s before ……..
Good reporting dictates……that hard facts are presented. That is why we have a District Attorney who is actually prosecuting this case. Please give him some time
to place the facts out on the table…before 15 Robespierres light up the guillotines for 4th of July! Perhaps we might actually hear something from the victims first?
Finally, the stairwell video is being discussed. It exists. Everyone knew what was going on,,,,, and Carlos got a pass.
and you forgot our favorite attorney, who represented bustamante when it was just an “internal affair”
??? I forget? Is Phil Greer our favorite?
Phil is now representing a couple of my friends, so now I have to try not to call him….
ETHICALLYCHALLENGEDETHICALLYCHALLENGEDETHICALLYCHALLENGEDETHICALLYCHALLENGEDETHICALLYCHALLENGED
greer is representing friends of yours. that seems totally inconsistent with your analysis of greer and completely at odds with what you allege are his past indiscretions
Really? He does a good job for whoever pays him. My marijuana friends down in Costa Mesa got referred to him by Dana R’s people. He told them he’d do a great job for them as long as they got me to stop calling him ETHICALLY CHALLENGED. Then he laughed and got to work.
You think that it was Vern who hired Greer for his friends? That sort of thing is not his choice. He could terminate those friendships over it, I suppose, but that would seem to be an overreaction.
everytime he is on the fifth floor (which is a lot) he is very friendly. he says hello to everybody, from the secretary to the senior staff and is always smiling
Nice story Nelson. Since Pedroza seems obsessed with you can I ask Pedroza a question here? He deleted this question on his blog. The question is: “did the Walt Disney Company know they hired an admitted NAMBA and gay porn promoter to work at the Disneyland Resort?” Because he didn’t work at Disney very long
HMMM. Interesting question, Art. Why DID the Rat spew you forth so quickly?
I’m at the press conference, may as well liveblog here…
Amazing stuff! his charges are over 7 Jane Does whose statute of limitations has NOT run out; 12 others for whom it’s too late. Remember Carlos worked for the County 12 years, and T-Rack says this was his MO basically the whole time…
They may make an exception if the employees were afraid until now to come forward in fear of retaliation. Once Bustamonte was removed from office, the clock should start ticking from that point!
No, the clock only begins to tick at that point on the retaliation claim — although if they have reason to fear retaliation from others still in the county government then they could still have a case there too. This sounds like it’s going to be absolute carnage.
TR says his office was “fighting against the clock” due to all the statutes of limitations.
Carlos had a “type” – they were almost all young hispanic, all his subordinates, all “emotiaionally vulnerable” —
They all said that they thought it would be “career suicide” to report anything. Carlos was “untouchable,” they believed. He had had Arnold Schwarzenegger in his home! He said he was in “law enforcement” and liked to show off his baton!
Also masturbated in front of them if he couldn’t get their pants off. Yummy!
The “false imprisonment” seems to be keeping women subordinates in his office, telling them they had to be there, telling some of them the door was locked and only he could open it; letting it be thought the room was soundproofed.
The “grand theft?” Well that’s a whole other story. This is some educational trip he took to the Northeast and failed to compensate the County for. SHoulda paid up 3 grand, paid a tiny fraction of that; got away with that till recently by a “paper shell game.”
T-Rack on that – “3000 might not sound like a lot, but most County Employees only make about that much each month; Carlos made (?) 100,000-200,000 a year – and it’s inexcusable he’d stiff the county for a mere 3000.” (My paraphrase)
I got in a few questions; TR SAYS he’s at this point unaware of a previous, hidden report. He won’t confirm or deny that the investigation is spreading out to superiors who may have covered this up.
You go Vern!
Vern,
GREAT REPORTING!!!
paco
From one of my pajaritas:
Some thoughts:
One of your commenters spoke about Richardson’s role. He was right on, but RR has been around long enough to keep his actions undocumented. Another of Mauk’s duputies, Alisa Drakadaidis is also involved. She is not a careful as RR and will fold under pressure if it comes down to her skin or ratting on Mauk. She is so mistrusted that almost no one in the Hall of Administration will work with her and she is now aware that she could be the scapegoat since Carbajal will probably not be enough. She reportedly had access to or a copy of the investigator’s report and was Mauk’s go-between with Carlos.
Another of your commentator’s wrote about Bates:
“With Bates on the other hand, it really is hard to tell if the problem is cowardice, stupidity, or early stage of dementia. The Word is she wants to run for State Senate, believing (as incredible as it may seem) that she has something to offer the electorate. The Bustamante thing has been a torpedo headed right at her waterline for months and she hasn’t even bothered to change course.”
Bates’ motives are mostly about money – still paying off major campaign debt. Since she’s a lame duck, her fundraisers are not well subscribed these days. Running for office again is her best way to get the money train rolling, plus her husband’s business benefits from her political activities. This is why she won’t cross Campbell – she can’t have him opposing her with the Party guys. It’s also why she sits on her hands when it comes to Mauk ,when everyone who has any sense of decency has told her she needs to support change.
This is an accurate relation of the cash nexus. But I really believe the old bird is a little feeble-minded.
What a shame that this issue did not come to light before the June election when county supervisors were elected! Coincidence? Doubt it!
check out the recent lawsuit filed by the orange county waste and recycling manager of human resources against the director of that county department – more of the same
Anyone who is aware of this situation knows that the previous HR manager was unethical, a manipulator, and a liar – one might say she has sociopathic tendencies. Her charges against the OCWR director are fictitious and do not bear up under scrutiny. But the article and your post proves that if you print something in the paper, many people (not all) tend to believe the printed word although no proof has been provided. I think the “insider” is may be the previous HR manager. Am I right?
Just notice to all — I don’t know who’s right in making these sorts of assertions about others who are not here to defend themselves, so I’m willing to take down posts upon objection — but to be fair to all that will involve deleting an entire subthread.
I haven’t conferred with Vern about this, but I don’t want this to become a place where people can slam people anonymously to this degree without any vetting of their assertions; this is not the place to resolve such conflicts.
Simply suggested that anyone who is interested might want to check out the recent lawsuit and read the write up in the Register. It is information and people can make up their own minds. No need to post a rude and defensive response. A copy of the suit has already been copied by OCWR staff and passed around. As for the former HR manager – there has been no comment that I can find.
OK — I’m just saying that if I get asked to take one of these down because people have a legitimate argument that it’s defamatory, I’m inclined to delete the subthread starting with the top comment. I haven’t talked about it to Vern and he may disagree. As you’re not asking for the takedown (despite remarks made about you by the commenter who responded to you), we may not face that problem.
Thanks – I believe in free speech. I also feel that information is power and people can make up their own minds based on their review of the available information. The taxpayers should be aware of all the issues facing the county surrounding alleged executive misconduct. I don’t give any credit or notice to people who attempt to supress people by name calling and allegations of mental illness. It is a petty tactic that only shows insecurity, As I become aware of pending suits against the county, I will point it out so the public can become aware of and learn about allegations against the county – so they can become more informed and come to their own conclusions. I do agree to use the terms that the poster used to describe a person who cannot respond is unfair – but if that poster is a county executive it would be a good example of the approach used to keep staff afraid and quiet.
The county needs to change. Why after all these years could this bellowed to go on and without this lone anonymous complaint could have continued.
Someone needs to look into our County official at the OC clerks Recorder too. It does appear that latinas and asians are the targets and that there is some sort of intent to harass or worse too or more behind close doors or away from the office.
Stop these deviant perverts and start respecting all.
P.S. “The priapic Bustamante” for the win!
I ripped this comment off from the LibOC – I think it makes a lot of sense. Please respond.
Santa Ana Citizen on July 3, 2012 at 8:21 am
This is no defense to Carlos Bustamante, but my strong suspicion is that this is a political prosecution. Simply put, Sexual harassment in the work place NEVER results in criminal prosecution. I defy readers to find another example of sexual harassment in the workplace being pursued by a DA, especially this DA.
This matter was referred to the DA by the Board of Supervisors, pertaining to a County employee, following a “botched” handling of the matter internally.
Another thing to note is the nature of the charges. All the “sex” charges are what are referred to as “intent crimes.” Think of an 18 year old and a 16 year old making out on the couch, Mom and Dad pop in and find clothes slightly disheveled. Dad, a religious zealot, calls the police claiming the 18 year old boyfriend “intended” to have intercourse with his 16 year daughter. Think the DA would prosecute the 18 year old on “attempted statutory rape”? The intent crime allows overzealous prosecutors to interpret conduct very broadly to prosecute. The problem is that DAs rarely exercise reasonable prosecutorial discretion, because they are POLITICIANS or WANNABE POLITICIANS/JUDGES. That is fine when there are plans for blowing up a building, or killing somebody, or robbing a bank. But as you slide down the scale to interpret human interactions, especially ones that are clumsy and can be easily misinterpreted, it is a dangerous prosecutorial tool, especially since a DA in the OC can indict a Ham Sandwich.
Another consideration is that this is political cover for the GOP, as the entire county scandal is GOP electeds and GOP favoritism. Carlos Bustamante, Tom Mauk, Jess Carbajal, Shaun Nelson, Pat Bates. John Moorlach – Embarrasment that the matter was never addressed, and that Carlos got a severance package. Referral to the DA for political cover.
Moreover, the publicly released info was that he was allegedly having an affair(s) that were consensual, and that there were a number of people disgruntled about the promotions of those with which he was having affairs. The anonymous “letters” also seemed to be broadly discredited – not to say that Carlos was not engaged in civil wrongdoing, but criminal should be an entirely different calculus.
Again, this is a tragedy. This is not a defense to Carlos, but the question is whether this should be done, let alone celebrated.
Carlos may be a slimey philanderer, but a criminal? Seriously? There will be a lot political celebration, but it is uncalled for, and distracts from the real questions that should be asked.
The short version of my response is: nah. If it turns out to all have been consensual, that will certainly be a defense (although it may open the law to suits by other employees who couldn’t get ahead by titillating Carlos’s libido; as I recall, “paramour lawsuits” as disfavored but there may be some different twist here), but it doesn’t look like the allegations are of everything being consensual. Sexual assault is not in of itself rape, but it’s also not an inchoate crime (such as attempt.)
I think that it’s fine to raise the question and I don’t look down on your doing so here, but there’s enough smoke here that I don’t think that one can easily argue that he’s being held to a higher standard because of his political position. The notion that this is being used to snuff out further blame against Supervisors, etc., may make more sense, but that’s why we have journalists (professional and amateurs) on the scene.
In between “philanderer” and “criminal” lies “predator.” The charges seem to be that Busta was a sexual predator — and that often involves criminal acts.
Seriously, that comment makes sense to you, Skally? A “lot” of sense? I haven’t been to the Liberal OC, but are you sure this guy wasn’t joking?
A “political prosecution,” this person posits. A political prosecution of a rising Republican star, by Tony Rackauckas? Do you know what it takes to get T-Rack to go after a Republican politician? It has to be literally impossible for him not to, before he will.
And the Board goes after this Republican because they’re Republicans and it’s “political cover?”
Why, to believe something like that would be as twisted as believing that Obama sent guns to Mexico so that there would be more gun violence in Mexico so that Americans would be so upset they’d let him take away their guns.
Oh.
Right.
You do believe that.
Orange County has a long history of criminals in government and politicians.
If I recall well in friends for fullerton’s future blog many comments left by readers and employees of the clerk-recorder department insinuating tha Tom Daly is just as much a freak as Bustamante, I wonder if the County will look into this?
Vern said: “.. he IS a Catholic ..” (emphasis added) – but that is what Vern intended I am pretty certain.
Isn’t that what the Nazi’s said – “he IS a jew” – ?
Didn’t you attend CATHOLIC school Vern? Should you be suspect as well? Are you now, or have you ever been, a Catholic Vern?
I’m not aware of being part of a powerful, political, all-Catholic clique of people who shield each other from criticism and trouble while defending the behavior of the worst clergy and working to deny equal rights to others in the name of my Catholic theology and family values, while secretly trying my best to fornicate with anything that moves … but maybe I’m missing something.
I’ll have to look back at my week.
Do you deny that you you attended Mater Dei? Carlos attended Mater Dei. How do you figure into the Catholic cabal?
Ah, Mater Dei … good memories and bad ones .. like any highschool probably.
What are you trying to say? All hundreds of millions of Catholics are in the little Campbell-Lewis-Cunningham-Mauk-Bustamante cabal of OC GOP Catholics, or else it doesn’t exist? I don’t know what you’re trying to say. This is getting dull.
How many Catholics are on the SCOTUS? Better check that out too Vern.
How many Catholics are in Congress?
How many Catholics are in the KKK?
How many popes on the head of a pin, what I wanna know.
*So, what do you call Jerry Sandusky’s Catholic beliefs…….”Pope on a rope”…of course! And what do you call Carlos Bustamante’s government business plan?
“Show and Tell?” Face it, It’s hard to get these things right …for certain people!
I call J. Sandusky a sick bastard who does not deserve to breath air. And you call him a Catholic, which is sick as well.
skally, I’m sensitive to concerns about grouping people together and asserting common purposes based on race, religion, gender/orientation, etc. — but of course it does happen and the fact that group membership is implicated cannot be used as an absolute shield against criticism. Regarding Sandusky, his being a football coach (and male) seems much more pertinent to his being protected despite his actions than his being a Catholic — so without more (and I haven’t been following recent details of the case) invoking his religion seems improper and inflammatory.
In this case, it may or may not be true that the Republicans that Vern mentions were brought together (or remained so) due to their religion; I don’t know. Where their actions seem to be related to their religion — defending pedophile priests, as Vern suggests — I think that it’s fair game. (I feel the same way about Jews, Muslims, Protestants, atheists, etc., by the way.) I think it’s absolutely appropriate for their religion to be invoked gratuitously — but that begs the question of whether it is being invoked gratuitously. I’m not yet convinced that that’s so. I think that that requires more than your mere assertion that it’s necessarily bigoted.
The religion of J. Sandusky, Joe Pa and many was/is Penn State football.
“Observers perceive a tight-knit Catholic clique in that large corner of the OC GOP universe – a self-protecting Catholic clique centered around lobbyist/consultant John Lewis, disgraced ex-blogger Matt Cunningham and his wife Laura who’s Campbell’s Chief of Staff, and including Campbell, Mauk and Bustamante – all Catholics, mostly graduated from Mater Dei or Servite.”
That is fuckin’ wierd sick shit.
Only if you got a chip on your shoulder about being Catholic, and the weird exaggerated sense of victimization and paranoia that so many right-wingers AND Christians seem to have these days.
(NB – note that I did NOT say all. Just many. And you.)
this coming from the man who felt that the BILLION dollar Catholic church had more right to Eddie West field for Mater Dei football than the citizentry who preferred Futbol.
“Get Off Of My Lawn”
Skally, people aren’t always what they appear.
Just because you stand in a church doesn’t make you religious, just like me standing in a garage doesn’t make me a car.
*Skallywag – Lighten up dude….it’s the 4th of July……it was intended as a sick joke..as you astutely discerned! Have a burger and a beer and celebrate with the rest of us!
AB 1825 requires employers with 50 or more employess to take a 2 hour sexual harrassment training class every 2 years.
I don’t think Bustamante being Catholic had anything to do with harassing women, but I think he is a textbook case predator. He probably thought he was untouchable because of his political position. Too bad so many women had to suffer his advances before the anonymous letters were taken seriously. I wish women had the courage to stand up to creeps like him and not live in fear of losing their job. Its amazing to me that we still have sexual harassment in the workforce, at the same time I am amused about this news considering how this group (city council and mayor) pray before their meetings.
If it is true that Bill Campbell knew almost a year ago (or so) and did NOTHING, I hope he gets his butt handed to him. Likewise with Bates. Nelson should know better. Where the hell was county counsel in all this? Given this is a personnel issue, they had to have met on the issue and county counsel would have been among them.
I have no respect for Campbell given what I have been told from insiders. I will be glad to be rid of him. The OC GOP is a frippin mess.
The Supes pretty much know everything. The sad part is they will plead ignorance then fire one of the deputy CEO’s and blame it all on him/her (sounds like Rob Richardson should get the axe, but he is politically tied and had favor with the BOS when they only cut his 37% pay increase in six months by 17%). I also agree with a commenter above as to what the hell County Counsel has been doing. This idiot should have been fired long ago after the $5,000,000.00 verdict against the Social Services Department doubled to over $10,000,000.00 in interest. Most of the money the County is losing is in lawsuits. Ignorant CoCo attorney’s recommend to the BOS to appeal appeal appeal – maybe they will give up or die! Five years later the County pays through the nose.
I guess what i find so appalling (well, the whole thing is appalling, actually) is that Campbell NEVER forced action. For heaven’s sake, he knew for almost a year.
Watching Campbell over many years, it appears that he NEVER takes action against wrong particularly if he has a dog in the game (Bustamante), it involves his religion (his hiring of Cunningham and his sponsorship of Urell to the Human Rights Committee), etc.
it was reported to me years when first taking office as Sup that Campbell was asking job applicants their position on abortion; something clearly illegal. Whether he was ever reported or not I do not know.
As a result, I long ago came to the conclusion that Campbell does have his allegiances they are not, however, to the public in general.
I have watched county counsel’s office blatantly lie to both the Planning Commission and the Board. The lies advantaged a Board position so none of the Board ever had the occasion to challenge counsel.
What is troubling is that Spitzer, at his open house in April, said he wanted to be just like Bill Campbell. I winced.
*Inge- “I am amused about this news considering how this group (city council and mayor) pray before their meetings.”
They are praying alright…..that they are not going to be caught!
Special board meeting tomorrow at 3:00 pm. It appears Mauk will be fired.
Special. Board of Supervisor’s meeting July 6 at 3:00 pm. It appears Tom Mauk will be fired
Where was Carlos Bustamantes immediate supervisor (Jess Carbajal) during all of this?
*From the news room……..Carlos is required to stay away from any of the victims….and turn in all his firearms……..within 72 hours. What? He is out on bail? How much?
In rebuttal to the Catholic bashing rhetoric fomented in the comments and body of this article, referencing a “Catholic cabal” – I would submit that even though I am Catholic, I supported Pedroza in his 2008 run for SA council against Busty. Pedroza even referred to me as his campaign manager. Busty, I knew, was Catholic (and Republican) — I don’t know if AP has a religion other than narcissism.
Um … okay. So I need to make no more efforts to conceal who Skallywag is! Gentlemen, I give you … the Sheet Metal Man of Santa Ana!
You don’t need to broadcast it dipwad.
The Smarmy Bustamante always left me feeling slimed! I blame religion for a lot of woes. Belief in the invisible cloud being requires a suspension of disbelief that leaves adherents susceptible to any old snake oil pitch. @Skally. Dipwad! ha ha
Oh? And what percentage of sexual predators claim to be “religious” and what percentage don’t?
Or are you just normally in the habit of over-generalized religion bashing?
Those who adhere to a religion often fall prey to self-righteousness. I’m finding that those who claim no religion are equally susceptible to the malady.
Carlos Bustamante’s arrest and the Orange County District Attorney’s press conference are tragic developments that should have never happened.
It’s incompetence and very disappointed that our county government does not have ability to quickly identify and take swift action against all those who didn’t do their job. There is absolutely no accountability!
The lying, the stalling, and the selective memory all seem to point to the need for massive terminations. The alternative is in essence sending a message that there is absolutely no accountability for those who cover-up wrongdoing, especially if it involves sexual harassment or sexual misconduct.
It is a tragedy that many in our county government choose not to listen or turned a blind eye, possibly thinking an investigation would be too embarrassing, too financially costly or as seemingly apparent, a way to protect one of their own or themselves from retaliation.
Regardless of the now seriousness of these criminal charges, the County of Orange failed to protect women when Carlos flirted and prowled the workplace in his early days, failed to consider if the raises and promotions that he pushed for many of his victims were justified, failed to stop the abuse when it was allegedly video recorded and they failed to stop him when it was reported in March 2011.
But, before the Orange County Register published a series of letters that detailed Mr. Bustamante’s office practices in Aug./Sept. of 2011, Orange County first and oldest community and political blog, the Orange Juice Blog (in 2010) http://newsantaana.com/2012/07/03/bustamante-suspended-by-the-county-of-orange-due-to-sexual-allegations/, had numerous comments towards of allegedly inappropriate work relationships with Carlos.
The information was out there, yet those who were in the position to guard against the allegations/charges choose not to act.
Orange County Supervisor John Moorlach, Orange County Supervisor Shawn Nelson, Orange County Internal Auditor Peter Hughes and District Attorney Tony Rackauckas are to be commended for being unquestionably persistent in seeking the truth, sending a clear message that the abuses of ones position, abuse of ones authority and the abuse of women will not be tolerated.
Former Human Resources Carl Crown, County Counsel and his staff member and Supervisor Campbell failed.
Attached is a recent story in the OC Politics Blog, that details some possible similar inappropriate misconduct and/or relations going on at the County of Orange Offices of the Clerk/Recorder. That’s right, there seems to be more of them out there.
These comments/allegations were reportedly submitted to different community blogs from allegedly County of Orange employees but compiled into one story. Here is one particular story that included some of the comments: http://ocpoliticsblog.com/69th-a-d-candidate-tom-daly-denigrates-women-voters-with-sexist-oven-pad/
We need the County to be more accountable and to stop protecting their friends or peers when they are in the wrong. Unfortunately, nobody stopped Carlos when he started prowling and now there is this mess that is tragic, harmful, and costly.
Toni – I believe this started long bedore Mr. Carbajal was appointed to the job by CEO Mauk. In fact, it was apparently (per news reports) a pattern of his behavior before he came to work for the County at all. What I think you have here is a Republican power structure, some of which sit on the Board of Supervisors, that were enamored at the thought of a handsome, well educated Hispanic that could be elevated to higher office over time and attract Hispanic voters to the Republican Party. In other words, another Gaddi Vasquez, 20 years later. In short, it is politics – and the end result is disaster and perhaps criminal conspiracy (including cover up of sexual exploitation) by powerful people both within and without County government. Politics, politics, politics.
Carlos Bustamate twin brother is being sued. See two articles below:
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Alfonso Bustamante, Psychologist Brother of Santa Ana Pervert Councilman Carlos, Facing Ethics Lawsuit For Alleged Affair with Female Patient.
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http://blogs.ocweekly.com/navelgazing/2012/07/alfonso_bustamante_psychology.php
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http://newsantaana.com/2012/07/21/carlos-bustamantes-twin-brother-sued-for-alleged-affair-with-client/