match 1.2002 * Iß *« o « 17
it 'm
m ew s
heriff’s deputies arrested the chair
man of the Oregon Citizens
Alliance after a dramatic court-
rtxim appearance Feb. 20.
Lon Mahon will sit behind
bars for six months or until he agrees to par
ticipate in hearings seeking to collect more
than $ 40 ,0 0 0 owed to photojournalist
Catherine Stauffer. The settlement stems
from a 1991 assault on the lesbian during an
O C A event.
Mahon refused repeated requests to par
ticipate in the hearing, instead demanding a
signed contract guaranteeing a fair trial.
Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge
Ronald Cinniger then proceeded without
the anti-gay crusader, whose constant out
bursts fell on deaf ears.
As Mahon was handcuffed, his supporters
stormed out of the courtroom, bemoaning
the perceived miscarriage of justice. “This is
treason!” one man shouted.
Mahon was unrepentant as he was escort Lon Mahon’s bloodshot mug shot
ed away: “I fought for this country, and I
The affidavit explains the Mahons’ ongoing
fought for the constitution. I can handle jail.
dispute with the oath taken by most Oregon
Mahon’s wife, Bonnie, also was found in con
tempt of court hut was given an extra 10 days of judges. Because the words “and impartially” are
missing, the couple say courtrooms statewide are
freedom to take care of financial matters. C in
filled with impostors.
niger is fining the O C A $1,000 a day in addi
But the document goes a step further than
tion to the jail time.
past arguments, attempting to retry the origi
But during a hearing Feb. 28, Bonnie Mahon
nal case. “Samuel J. Imperati ordered the evi
finally agreed to comply with the court in order
dence o f Catherine Stauffer’s criminal tres
to avoid the slammer. A judgment debtor hear
pass suppressed, so that Scott Lively’s lawful
ing was scheduled for March 5.
affirmative defense against the common law
complaint o f ‘battery’ never reached the jury,”
n between court dates, Bonnie Mahon
the affidavit says.
made the most o f her time at O C A head
Bonnie Mahon also forwarded an e-mail to
quarters in Brooks. She e-mailed an “A ffi
supporters Feh. 21 in which a person named
davit of Fact and Truth” to supporters Feh. 22
Rick Jones (“one of the men whom the Lord
and had a flier placed in the Portland Tribune
has used to help us in our attempt to defend
that same day declaring her husband a “polit
ourselves in the court system”) levels charges
ical prisoner.”
o f an an ti-O C A
conspiracy.
He
says the “totally
bogus and co n
trived lawsuit” was
designed to “chill"
the couple’s co n
stitutionally pro
tected rights.
“Two months be
fore the alleged
‘battery’ of avowed
lesbian Catherine
Stauffer, in A.D.
1991, Lon received
a phone call from
an individual, who
only identified him
self as part of the
Bonnie Mabon seeks justice at the Multnomah County Courthouse
Go
Bonnie Mabon said no such letter was sent.
When asked about the accusation that the court
is full of accomplices to militant homosexuals,
she changed the subject.
“I think I saw the letter, but I don’t remem
ber reading that in the letter,” she said. “How
ever, you’re getting away from the main issue
here. The main issue is the oath."
Patrick also denied any knowledge of the let
ter. “Well, I’m not aware of that, but if some
body wants to send me money, then I’m more
than willing to take it.”
TO J AIL
Go directly to ¡oil.
Do not pass judgment,
do not collect
$1,000 a day.
by Jim Radosta
Portland homosexual community,” Jones writes.
“The individual told Lon, ‘We are going to
change our tactics with you; we are going to
bleed you dry with lawsuits.’ ”
The Tribune advertisement urges supporters
to express their outrage to Oregon’s governor,
state legislators and congressional delegation.
U.S. Sen. Gordon Sm ith’s Portland office
received “just a handful of calls,” press secretary
Joe Sheffo said.
ahon’s arrest received widespread cover
age in Portland publications, and the
story later was picked up by the A dvocate. But
the mainstream media failed to address a con
tinuing conundrum: How can the couple
keep attempting to amend Oregon law when
they knowingly violate Oregon law on a reg
ular basis?
“W e will do according to the law when we
find a judge that is constitutional and does
according to the law,” Bonnie Mabon said. “If
the legislators would do their job, the initia
tive process wouldn’t be necessary.”
M
U
nlike the Feb. 20 hearing, Bon
nie Mabon had legal representa
tion Feh. 28. Frank Patrick said he is
serving as her attorney in a limited
capacity.
"People are raising money to pay
for the counsel, so I’m appreciative of
that,” Bonnie Mabon said. “There
are people out there that realize that
this is a lot bigger issue than just this
judgment.”
T he money is being raised by the
C om m ittee
for C onstitutional
Courts, which sent an inflammatory
letter to supporters begging for co n
tributions to “help us free Lon and
strike a blow against the tide of evil
that is sweeping this state.” T he cor
respondence, which Just Out has
acquired, was written by Jeremy
Bowen, president of O C A Under
ground, which rallies young people
to join the cause.
“This could be a great victory for
the sodomites,” he wrote. “1 can assure
you they see it as another opportunity to mock
God.”
T he letter referred to “militant homosexu
als” as “the most powerful and dangerous
group in the state.” Apparently, they must be:
Bowen claimed that gay men and lesbians
have “accomplices in the court system” and
that “the major media is operating as a whol
ly owned subsidiary o f the rich sodomite
lobby.”
She said her failure to pay the settlement had
nothing to do with Stauffer’s sexual orientation.
“It’s because we have no money and the judg
ment was fraudulent from the beginning.”
WTien asked how it felt to be brought down
by a lesbian, Bonnie Mabon bristled at the
notion. “Are you asking us to go bankrupt.7" she
responded.
“Our fate is not is their hands," she said.
“Our fate is in the Lord’s hands." J D
W c ' k Me Uit
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