Mike Carona, Sheriff of Orange County, California, was indicted last Wednesday on numerous charges of corruption, along with his wife and mistress both. Five years ago, the ever-sycophantic Larry King had lauded Mike Carona as "America's Sheriff" - a mini-Giuliani in the making - not for his heroic TV personality during a major national crisi, but just for his great TV appearances in the disappearance of Samantha Runyon (sp?), a run-of-the-mill kidnapping situation that CNN loves to blow out of proportion. He touted his evangelical credentials and was held up as a future statewide Republican politican. All in smithereens now.
I mention this because I saw him today. I was at the OC County federal court where he was being arraigned. He was in the cafeteria with a retinue of just two young women, and nobody else. I thought that was astoundingly odd. Where were all the hangers-on? I was there with another lawyer. Nobody else was in the cafeteria exception of two lawyers who appeared to be prosecutors. In fact, we got our coffee, then discovered that there was nobody to take our money. I wondered if Mike Carona was just going to walk out, or whether he would pay. I didn't get to see, because I sat down. A couple minutes later, he walked past me with my cup of coffee and smirked over in their direction. If looks can betray guilt, he is guilty as hell.
A host of TV vans were outside, awaiting a statment of some kind. I saw them from the tenth floor forming a perfect circle of notepads and cameras. After lunch, they hurried over to Dodger stadium for Joe Torre's press conference.
I saw Joe Torre at a craps table with Don Zimmer and Pat Riley three or four years ago. Joe and Don looked like thugs. I could see why Pedro Martinez felt he had to defend himself against Zimmer by punching him out. The man is threatening.
Somehow it seemed related to the insipid Larry King trying to make the OC Sheriff into a mini-Giuliani. Another New York leftover for us, perchance? Or are all of them just smalltime crooks?
Writers are on strike. Do we still pretend the news shows don't have writers? Is even the news in re-runs? Another day in Los Angeles.
Monday, November 05, 2007
A Los Angeles Moment
Posted by The Law Talking Guy at 9:39 PM
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1 comment:
The kidnapping and murder of Samantha Runnion was really anything but run-of-the-mill.
Despite the endless public fascination with crimes against cute white children, there are only about 100 stranger abductions per year in the United States. Of all the bad things to happen to a kid, you'd be better off worrying about her being struck by lightning or killed in a car wreck.
Nearly all children who are abducted or reported missing are taken by a non-custodial parent or other family member, and the balance are mostly runaway teenagers.
The Runnion case was a boon to Carona and his entourage - endless publicity mined from the death of some poor little kid.
-Seventh Sister
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