In the beginning...
On this warm and roasty September afternoon, that tested the patience and deodorant of everyone in Ojai, our President Mike Malone rang the bell signifying the start of another action packed meeting. Fred Coleman led us in the flag salute. Allan Jacobs invocation evoked thoughts of relief for those in Texas and Louisiana who need our prayers and well wishes.
After lunch was served, Prez Mike got the meeting off to a round of thanks. To Bill Prather, for stepping in for Robert Roddick as Sergeant of Arms. Allan for invocation, and Fred for flag salute. Our two greeters, Bill Gilbreth and Pradeep Kapadia. To Don Reed at desk duty. Wendy Barker for roving mic. And Lisa Malone as Reminder Editor. And especially Ginger Case, for providing lunch, and making such lovely flower arrangements on the table.
Visiting Rotarians and Guests
Next introductions. First, visiting Rotarians: Ron Bamieh, our presenter and a member of Downtown Ventura. George Tabata, and Ross Atkinson of the Ojai West chapter. Other special guests were: Karen Banfield and Christine Golden, guests of Betsy Watson. Allan brought his wife and "love of his life" Janet Jacobs.
Upcoming programs:
Dave Brubaker brought us up to date on the next weeks programs.
September 8th--Ojai Storytelling Festival
September 15th--Richard Murad--Bringing a Baseball Academy to the Back Country of Ojai
September 22nd--Caryn Bosson--Ojai Youth Foundation (OYF)
September 29th--Fifth Friday at President Mike's House
Announcements: Prez Mike reminded us of the upcoming joint Beach Party on Sept. 17th at Dennis & Larry's house. He also asked to please sign up so the party committee can start purchasing supplies.
Rotary International Convention – Toronto, Canada. June 23 – 27th, 2018. Signups have started, so please check out the program and think about going.
District 5240 Conference – Ventura Marriott, October 6-8th. Registration is closing soon, so please make arrangements now.
Pradeep Kapadia had a booth at the Atlanta Convention in June. He had great results,
and hopes to sponsor 50 students by the end of the year, thanks to the commitments and connections made during the convention. Pradeep will be leaving again soon, visiting 10 countries, to speak to the students.
5th Friday, Sept. 29th will be held at Mike Malone’s house. Deirdre asked for helpers the day of, please see her to volunteer. Deirdre also passed out Save the Date postcards for Taste of Ojai. It should be another wonderful event, with some changes this year. Don Reed is starting to sell tickets for those who are interested.
Fining and Confessions
At 12:45, Bret Bradigan swooped in and started confessions and fining time! Confessions from Dr. Marty Pops, for his 60th wedding anniversary. Amani has her 28th wedding anniversary and 7th year in Rotary. Fining, Bret presented us with a vintage photo of our Prez Mike Malone for a “Get to know your President” session. Several people did not know the young man on the screen was Mike in the 4th grade. A quantity of questions around Mike’s varied background went unanswered, except for Dave Brubaker and Bill Hatch, who must have been paying attention.
The Program: Ron Bamieh--The Reality of the Jane Laut Trial
The Reality of the Jane Laut Trial. Attorney Ron S. Bamieh was introduced by Dave Brubaker. Ron graduated from USC and Loyola Univ. of Chicago. After working at the US Dept of Justice, he went to work with the Ventura County D.A. in 1993. He is now in private practice in Ventura. Many people ask him about this case that he defended in 2014, because was such a well documented case of domestic abuse. It was also made into an episode of “Dateline”, and covered by national media.
On August 28th, 2009, Jane Laut shot and killed her husband of more than 30 years. She shot him 5 times during a fight in the back yard. Neighbors and their son, heard them arguing, and heard him yell abuses and threaten to kill her. The trial lasted 13 week, had 78 witnesses. It took 2 days for closing arguments. The prosecuting attorney was caught lying 4 times during the trial, and fined $500. Ron swore once, and was fined $500. Ron was able to prove a 32 year period of verbal, physical and sexual abuse by Janes husband. Originally, Jane was charged with 2nd degree murder which carried at least 15 years to life. After several diminishing offers by the prosecution, they finally offered her involuntary manslaughter, and dropped the gun charge. She probably would not have served more than 3 years in prison. Jane rejected all the offers, because she felt she needed to stand up for all victims of domestic violence. She is now serving 50 yrs to life in prison on 1st degree murder. Ron is working on her appeal with the State Supreme Court.
Final Thoughts
In honor of the upcoming Labor Day weekend, he quoted Martin Luther King, Jr. :
“All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence”.
Editor Note: Many thanks to Lisa Malone, our Guest Editor for this issue of The Rotary Reminder.
