Supervisor Geist wants apology from Salzman
by Diane M. Batley, 9/4/2005
By using a false name and another person’s identity while writing letters to local newspapers, political figure Richard Salzman made it appear as if his own opinions were shared by others.
“He’s been trying to create this image of an army,” said Humboldt County Supervisor Jill Geist. “You can say there is an army and it’s an army of one.”
It is known that Salzman used the names R. Trent Williams and Dick Wyatt to write letters to the editor of local newspapers.
Fortuna resident Dick Wyatt said he gave Salzman permission to sign his name to letters to the editor.
Salzman read Wyatt one of the letters to the editor that he signed Wyatt’s name to. That letter was printed in The Independent, Wyatt said.
Before he sent it in, Salzman never read Wyatt the letter to the editor that ran in the Times-Standard that he signed Wyatt’s name to that had comments about Fortuna City Councilwoman Debi August in it, Wyatt said.
“I would have not authorized any letter with anything derogatory about Debi August in it.” Wyatt said.
Some think that Salzman needs to apologize for his actions.
Salzman should make a public apology for his “reprehensible” actions, Geist said.
“I feel like he owes a public apology to those he deemed as enemies of (Humboldt County District Attorney) Paul (Gallegos),” Geist said.
Geist said he owes a letter of apology to Humboldt County grand jury Forewoman Darlene Marlow, August, former Humboldt County grand jury forewoman Judith Schmidt, former deputy district attorney Allison Jackson and Rose Welsh, who was a political adviser to Geist, former deputy district attorney Gloria Albin Sheets and deputy district attorney Worth Dikeman, for casting shadows over their names and attacking them in letters while pretending to be someone else.
“I can tell you I have been growing intensely tired of reading the rantings of Salzman under the guise of R. Trent Williams, Dick Wyatt and other (potential) identities,” Jackson said. “… He ought to be apologizing to this entire community.”
“I think he owes the entire community an apology, but most specifically, he should apologize to the grand jury whose work and integrity he attacked (in other letters) — and Judith Schmidt, who he damned most severely,” Welsh stated in an e-mail. “I put myself out there with several letters critical of Paul (Gallegos) and (Tim) Stoen, so hitting me was one thing — but to attack those good people, who dedicated a year or more out of their (lives) to volunteer for the grand jury. What he said about them was harmful and vicious.”
Salzman worked as an adviser for the campaigns of Humboldt County District Attorney Paul Gallegos, Geist and Eureka City Councilman Chris Kerrigan.
“Clearly what he did … was wrong,” Kerrigan said. “There’s no defending that type of action – especially for someone involved in campaigns.”
Salzman phoned Kerrigan to apologize for the incident, Kerrigan said.
It is a violation of California law to sign a letter to a newspaper with the name of a person other than who wrote the letter and with the intention to lead the newspaper to believe that the letter was written by the person whose name is signed to it.
Charges could be filed against Salzman and others who have used false names when writing letters to the editors of local newspapers.
“I think Richard, in his mind, (wanted) to be a power broker,” Geist said. “He wanted to make things happen when he dropped that phone call.”
Salzman was trying to exert influence over Geist and control her, she said.
“I’m not a puppet,” she said. “People in the Fifth District did not elect a puppet to this office.”
Salzman has not returned phone calls or e-mails from The Eureka Reporter.
(Diane M. Batley can be reached at diane@eurekareporter.com.)
Copyright (C) 2005, The Eureka Reporter. All rights reserved.
Related:
the North Coast Journal - Web of Lies - Richard Salzman and other email phonies
From the Publisher: An apology
Rhonda Meehan's letter
http://www.northcoastjournal.com/090105/cover0901.html#Rhonda
Letters from "R. Trent Williams" printed by the Journal
Glossary of terms
Another Salzman alias?
Salzman exposed: Local newspapers reveal real names of letter writers
Supervisor Geist wants apology from Salzman
