Bird gets shot down

Don Bird (pictured), the Tehama County gadfly who refuses to paper over the fact that Assemblyman Jim Nielsen doesn’t live in District 2, was unsuccessful in his bid to collect enough signatures to recall local Superior Court Judge Edward King. He needed 901 signatures but submitted only 707, all of which he personally collected.

Bird’s recall effort was a result of his disappointment at King’s denial of a jury trial in his lawsuit seeking to force Attorney General Jerry Brown’s and Secretary of State Debra Bowen’s offices to enforce the election code regarding Nielsen’s residency.

Speaking by phone, Bird said he intends to keep gathering signatures in his recall effort against District Attorney Gregg Cohen, whom he charges with failing to enforce the law by prosecuting Nielsen for lying about his domicile. And he’s told County Clerk Bev Ross that he’ll launch a recall campaign against her if she accepts Nielsen’s application to run for re-election without verifying his residence.