Saturday a supporter of the “Gang of 3” assaulted a woman who was seeking signatures for the recall outside Stater Brothers in Lake Forest. According to multiple eye-witnesses, the assault was unprovoked, and the woman was “cold-cocked”, knocked to the ground, where the assault continued until another signature gatherer intervened to save the woman from more harm.
The perpetrator argued with the woman on the way into and out of the store, put away groceries into their car, and then returned to continue the argument, and at some point, launching an unprovoked attack and hit the woman strongly on the right side of her head.
The victim was dazed and in pain. She refused medical attention, but was driven home.
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As a result of the attack, and from other threatening activities from the Gang of 3 supporters, more people are volunteering to collect signatures. One new recruit said “This is my moral duty. If I allow the violence to go unanswered I am condoning it.”
Recall leader Leah Basile issued guidelines to all the volunteers.
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1) NEVER WORK ALONE! Your safety is the MOST important thing, more important than anything else. If you show up to an event and your partner can't make it, contact Josh or myself, and we will arrange to have someone meet you, or we will redirect you to a new location.
2) WORK WITH AN EXPERIENCED PERSON.
3) HAVE YOUR CELL PHONE FULLY CHARGED & READY. We want to make sure we can video and make phone calls in an emergency. Darkness flees when your light shines, and shine that video light on these guys!!
4) PROTECT YOURSELF. I always carry a taser or pepper spray whenever I'm out collecting signatures; I carry it on my jeans in an easy-to-reach spot. You can buy a small container of pepper spray for a few dollars at a sporting goods store or at Amazon. The committee will gladly reimburse you for this expense. Just send me your receipt.
5) IF SOMEONE SEEMS THREATENING, PACK UP AND LEAVE! None of us speak crazy, so talking to crazy people doesn't help. Pack your stuff up and go! Report it to the Police ASAP.
“We knew from past experience that the sleazy people running this campaign would try to do something at the last minute to derail the recall movement. We never expected it to be so ugly, but we will not be discouraged, and will draw even greater resolve to rid the City of these three Councilmen.”
One recall supporter blamed the culture of violence being supported by the actions of the Gang of 3. “They send out racist hateful literature. In the Council chambers, they aggressively act by trying to discipline the citizens, declaring time-outs and abruptly ending meetings. They continually threaten residents. People who have the courage to speak are ridiculed, and cut off in mid-sentence. City officials do nothing. By allowing this culture of violence to grow, it has now escalated to the point of people being physically assaulted.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Jim Gardner is on the City Council for Lake Forest. You can check him out onLinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook. His comments are not meant to reflect official City Policy.
Dr. Gardner has office hours every Tuesday from 3 pm to 5 pm at the City Hall. In addition, he holds a mini town meeting every month. The next meeting will be on April 2 at 2 pm at the Foothill Ranch Public Library.
