 | Voters to decide Gallegos' fate today [Times-Standard] |
By James Tressler, The Times-Standard
March 02, 2004
EUREKA -- A historic chapter in Humboldt County politics finally closes today, when voters head to the polls to decide whether District Attorney Paul Gallegos should be recalled.
Monday provided a fitting end to the yearlong campaign. Gallegos hit the streets during his lunch hour, strolling through Old Town and shaking hands.
"I feel very positive, I'm looking forward to (the election)," Gallegos said. "Now I'm just trying to get people out to vote."
While he was doing that, at least three large trucks owned by Steve Wills Trucking Co., a Pacific Lumber Co. contractor, circled the county courthouse sending out deafening horn blasts. "Recall Paul! Recall Paul!" said one driver, speaking through a megaphone.
Gallegos took office last January, after beating 20-year incumbent Terry Farmer in March 2002. One of Gallegos' first actions was to sue Palco, alleging the company lied to state regulators during the 1999 Headwaters Forest deal. The recall movement started not long after the lawsuit was filed. Palco and its Houston owner, Maxxam Corp,. have put roughly a quarter-million dollars into the recall.
Gallegos has also fallen under fire by law enforcement unions, which accuse him of being soft on crime and mishandling several cases. The district attorney has stood on his record, maintaining that in his first year, criminal filings have increased, as well as the number of people sent to jail.
On Monday, Humboldt County Supervisor John Woolley, Eureka Mayor Peter La Vallee, Trinidad Mayor Dean Heyenga and former Arcata Mayor Victor Schaub demonstrated their support for Gallegos.
La Vallee urged voters to support Gallegos and to question Palco's motives.
"Either way this election goes, there will be a lot of healing to do," the mayor said. "People are tired of the rhetoric going on in this election."
Their press conference was crashed by a recall supporter, retired Sheriff's Department Deputy Pete Ciarabellini, who stood carrying a "Yes on Recall" sign while the local officials defended the district attorney.
"I'm not a politician, I'm not a bigwig, I could care less about Pacific Lumber Co.," Ciarabellini said. "It's time to support our law enforcement. We can't stand by idly while the people get second-rate service from this DA."
The campaign promises to continue today well up until the polls close at 8 p.m. Gallegos said he plans to work, but will join his supporters later both in door-to-door campaigning and for a party at the Lost Coast Brewery.
The three candidates vying to replace Gallegos should he be ousted also are campaigning to the very end. Gallegos' campaign and the recall campaign together have raised and spent more than $500,000, much of that on ads, as well as telephone polling.
Candidate Worth Dikeman, a senior prosecutor who says he's against the recall but has grabbed endorsements from most of the county's law enforcement unions, plans to rally supporters at the Carter House tonight. Gloria Albin Sheets, an ex-prosecutor, spent the past few days of the campaign stepping up her attacks on Gallegos' record. Sheets could not be reached Monday to find out her plans for today.
Steven Schectman, an Arcata attorney and Gallegos champion, has run a highly spirited campaign in which he has criticized Palco's bankrolling of the recall, questioned Dikeman's motives and jousted with Albin Sheets over Gallegos' record. Schectman also could not be reached for comment.
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