Briefly

Davis gives Glusman nod for judge
Robert Glusman, a 51-year-old Chico family law attorney, was appointed by Gov. Gray Davis to Butte County’s new judicial district this week, gaining the nod over fellow Chico family law attorney Valerie Miller and Francisco “Pancho” Zarate, the county’s chief deputy district attorney.

Glusman said he got the call from the Governor’s Office on his cell phone while sitting in court on Aug. 12. He says the day he actually takes his judicial seat has yet to be determined, but he hopes it happens sometime next month, before his son goes off to the University of Oregon.

“I’d like for him to be there,” said the lanky barrister. “I know that’s kind of a weak reason, but it sets a good arbitrary date.”

District Attorney Mike Ramsey, who was leaning toward the appointment of Zarate, called Glusman a “good guy” who is “very fair and has the intellectual wherewithal to make for a good judge.”

Glusman, whom this paper endorsed when he ran for judge two years ago, is considered a progressive, and his appointment was welcomed by many local defense attorneys. He’s practiced law for 26 years and said he first began thinking about a judgeship five or six years ago.

“I began to realize that I was becoming a senior member of the local bar association,” he said.

Biggs vice mayor, judge’s daughter arrested on drug charges
Apparently the old adage “innocent until proven guilty” doesn’t apply in the Butte County town of Biggs.

Earlier this month Biggs Vice Mayor Timothy Bradford was arrested by Butte Interagency Narcotics Task Force officers in his home on charges of methamphetamine manufacturing and possession. Many in the community are already calling for Bradford to step down, before he’s even had a trial. This week four of the five Biggs City councilmembers voted to remove Bradford from two commissions he sits on and take away his title of vice mayor. (Bradford missed the meeting.)

City Administrator Karen Helvey explained the council’s action was not to punish Bradford, but rather to free him up so he has more time to attend to his personal troubles.

“He’s still a councilmember.” she said of Bradford, a real estate appraiser who’s been on the council since 1996.

Bradford’s arrest, according to District Attorney Mike Ramsey, came as a result of information gained in the July 23 warrant search and arrest of Greggary Taylor of Oroville on similar charges. A warrant for Taylor’s girlfriend, Tracy Patrick, daughter of Butte County Superior Court Judge William Patrick, was issued, and she turned herself in on Aug. 1.

According to Ramsey, Bradford is suspected of being the chemical supplier in the three-person operation.

Flags to fly for the month of September
Chico City Councilmember Larry Wahl said he believes the events of Sept. 11, combined with all the other activities going on in Chico next month, warrant hauling out and installing the American flags that periodically adorn The Esplanade, Mangrove Avenue and other streets in Chico.

Lining the streets with flags was originally the idea of Chico restaurateur Larry Juanarena. The City Council bought into the plan, setting aside nine holidays a year on which they would fly. At this point, it takes city workers four days to put up and then take down the flags, at a cost of $2,600.

Councilmember Coleen Jarvis opined that flying the flags for so many days in a row sort of dilutes the meaning. Wahl said he wants to mark Sept. 11 and fly the flags in tribute to the U.S. fighting forces in Afghanistan. Plus, he said, locally September includes Labor Day, the return of the college students, the A Taste of Chico restaurant promotion as well as the Chico High School Centennial. By keeping them up all month, “we get bigger bang for the buck,” he said.

In the end, only Councilmember Dan Nguyen-Tan voted against the idea, agreeing that flying the flags for so many days dilutes the meaning.