Legal Question in Personal Injury in California
I believe my ex-business partner, whom I had dated at one time is criminally harassing me with domestic violence restraining orders. Need somebody to tell me that I am right...
In 2009, I funded opening a own gold panning business (I felt sorry for my to be business partner )John and wanted to help him and it would also benefit me, he lived in a shack and made about $7000 per year), built a beautiful website (the present website although some of the content is the same not a reflection of the website that I had built) , the URL is linked with multiple hotels and motels, taught gold panning lessons. I used all of my marketing skills to get the company as the number one attraction in Jamestown on TripAdvisor by maintaining a database of our past customers and asking them to rate us.
My website attracted the Marlboro Corporation in February of 2010 to be a featured activity on their website. We had predicted that we had the strong possibility of making over $90,000 for the 2010 summer season. Not only did my website attract Marlboro, it had attracted various news agencies, CNN, NBC, et. Being number one on TripAdvisor helped as well. (The website that is up there now, in which he copied some of my work, is nowhere as great as my had been. I had been complimented many times for the ease of use, for it providing answers to their questions without them having to ask, etc.)
John got greedy and filed a ridiculous, fraudulent restraining order against me in late April of 2010 to get me out of the business and after I had emailed and complained to him about being verbally and physically abusive toward me two weeks prior. For example, in an attempt to humiliate me, and to make me appear to be complete trash, and a outright fabrication as to why I started a business with him, he first started off with stating that I got pregnant, decided to start a business with him, and then once the paperwork went through, I had an abortion.That I spent time with my male "friends" and tells me that she used to sleep with them. He stated that I was "verbally abuse" and it was getting to the point where he felt like "knocking me down". He stated that" The best case scenario is that she hits me and I send her to jail ors she keeps jabbing at me and I snap and hit her". I don't run around hitting people. I'm also a girl. John terrified me. He was the one with the filthy mouth.
I filed a lengthy and well documented response and a cross complaint that had corroborating evidence in support of my cross-complaint. Commissioner Knowles, after I had been restrained for about 3 weeks from participating in the business, asked John from the onset, "Why are we here?" meaning she believed it was ridiculous. He stated that he would drop it. She turned to me and seemed a bit irritated that my response was so long. It was over 30 pages with exhibits. I did not have an attorney. She asked me if I wanted to drop my end, and I said no, as I had felt that I had valid reasons for obtaining a restraining order. John started yelling in the court in which unfortunately Commissioner Knowles did not control. It was awful. Her reasoning at the time was that if I didn't drop mine, she would not drop his. He was swearing and told the judge that I said something that I had never said. I had everything corroborated. (All of that was just awful). I think she was trying to help me and had good intentions, but it backfired. I don't think she could have predicted how John would use this restraining order. ( When mutual restraining orders are granted, Family Law 6305 The court may not issue a mutual order enjoining the parties from specific acts of abuse described in Section 6320...(b) the court makes detailed findings of fact indicating that both parties acted primarily as aggressors and that neither party acted primarily in self-defense.) There were not any detailed findings.
John did not bring any witnesses nor did he bring any corroborating evidence. I was too embarrassed to bring anybody with me.
Commissioner Knowles then ordered mutual restraining orders, ordered us to business mediation,ordered John to disclose info pertaining to business, and we were allowed to work together. John was not happy with the results of that hearing as it was not conducive to supporting his scheming to get me out of the business.
John then attempted to tell me that the public access to Moccasin Creek was privately owned by a friend of his friend John Bonilla. John told me that I was banned from going there. I knew it was Caltrans property located on Moccasin Creek and knew this not to be true. I also can read plat maps. John Gurney's friend, acting in conjunction with him, John Bonilla, a Tuolumne County Sheriff's volunteer (yet paid) community officer, emailed me and told me that this property was owned by his personal friend, the Imlays. I knew this not to be true. (Email documentation that was submitted into the court)
A few days after his trying to dissuade me from participating in the business (by telling me that I would be trespassing and that I was not allowed there, on May 26th, 2010), I had gone down to our usual place of business to meet with pre-scheduled customers on Harvard Mine Road where I am on the conditional land use permit (I paid for most of it out of my pocket). John informed me that I was in violation of the restraining order as he had started a new business and miraculously had booked customers. This led to an embarrassing situation in which we received a terrible review on TripAdvisor. That day, John informed the police that he wanted me arrested for being in violation of the restraining order as he had started a new business and the restraining order stated that we could only be around each other in the context of business. This is documented and in a police report. I was yelled at by the Sheriff's Department if I showed up where the business usually met with customers, that I would be arrested. John used this restraining order to extort me. It was a nightmare. And yet it continued.
John would later post a mining claim sign on state property (which is illegal) and told me if I went there with customers, I would be arrested for violation of the restraining order and trespassing on a Federal Mining Claim. This is documented. I have pictures of the claim marker. John knew this not to be Federal property. He's never filed for a claim on it because he knows that you cannot post a mining claim on State Property, although he told the court in our civil case that it was a federal mining claim. (There has never been anything recorded in the county as required to do, and again it belongs to Caltrans. He did this to once again to make sure I could not do business)
From then on, John and his friend John Bonilla as a witness and a representative of the Sheriff's Department Community Services Officer in Jamestown, attempted to have me arrested on at least 8 different occasions, all deemed civil.
When I was photographing and documenting for my civil case John Gurney at the creek using the partnership equipment and of John at the storage facilities with an empty trunk ready to load up, John Bonilla would be present and yell out that I was going to jail. At one point, John Bonilla emailed me and told me that I was in violation of a non-existent new order signed by a Judge Provost and that I was going to jail after I had rightfully photographed the partnership equipment being used on Moccasin Creek. John Bonilla had claimed I had taken a picture of him, his friends, and his equipment, when it in fact was the partnership equipment. John Bonilla was paid a significant amount of cash from John for assisting him in working at the creek and teaching gold panning lessons. John Bonilla is on government assistance and it is a great way for him to make cash. (John Bonilla as well as being a paid volunteer for the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Department at the Jamestown Community Relations building, also calls himself a Reverend.
It was not until I filed a civil case and obtained an injunction and this restraining order was immediately dismissed by Judge Boscoe at our injunction hearing. Judge Boscoe said out loud, something about, why in the world are these restraining orders in place? Then he immediately dismissed them without prejudice. This relieved me from John further attempting to have me arrested for violating the restraining order. (I had never called the police on him. I asked them for advice one time. I have never been to jail in my life.)
Judge Boscoe ordered us to mediation. We settled our case on July 30, 2010. The terms of the enforceable settlement agreement were that John agreed that Lisa would have the rights to www.jamestowngoldpanning.com and all content, the TripAdvisor Ratings. I was able to get back about $5000 in equipment back which included highbankers and sluices that I had purchased.
At the end of August I had suspended the URL www.jamestowngoldpanning.com as I had a new business partner and we were going to change the account number to insure the safety of the URL as John previously had access to it. Less than a week later, John took over the URL, told me that he would bring criminal charges against me if I had attempted to get it back. Less than six weeks after settling the court case, John breached our settlement agreement and basically extorted me. I had it with John extorting me. For the prior three months, I had little sleep,was shaking, and sick to my stomach. I remained quiet. I have not had any contact with John Gurney since that date. There is no need to nor do I want to have any contact with him after his despicable actions.
After visiting Jamestown in April with plans of taking John back to court, he filed a restraining order against me stating that I was in town to introduce my new husband to him (entirely untrue) after he had heard that I had visited with Bryant Shock of Gold Prospecting Adventures on Main Street. He stated that I stood in his driveway with my husband. John lives about 200 feet behind the gold shop and his home is not visible from the driveway that starts on Main Street and is part of the parking for Gold Prospecting Adventures. He also that I had attempted to delete his website www.jamestowngoldpanning.com failing to mention that we had a settlement agreement and in fact falsely told the court that I had not abided by the terms of mediation (we settled), he stated that he reported this to the police and to the FBI. I have not yet been served. I recently filed a counter claim to the restraining order, filed a complaint for breach of contract, extortion, fraud, unfair business practices, unjust enrichment, and filed for a motion to enforce my settlement agreement.
John breached our agreement as the website in itself is very valuable. Using various search engines such as Yahoo, Bing or Google, and if you search for gold panning in california, it is on the top of the page or on the first page. The website is linked to many, many websites including various hotels / motels, other activities, and directories. I personally spent an incredible amount of time without any compensation using my skills, talking to people, my gas money...I was in sales before...I convinced many hotels to list us on their websites. This eliminates the high costs of marketing. He also did this to keep me from competing against him as I was the reason we had an incredible amount of business with all of the marketing I had done.
I have not had any legal representation and have had to put in about two hundred hours in defending myself filing these actions to enforce my rights. I recently married my childhood boyfriend and I am very glad to have his support as I was going to court by myself which was pretty darn scary considering all that had been going on. John's actions I believe are almost criminal in nature. I feel like I cannot go to the police with this, as John Bonilla has his "in" with them and after all of the reports, I'm not sure what they think of me. Thank you for your time. If you need any additional information, I will be happy to provide it for you.
I filed a cross complaint for the recent restraining order based on his filing of 3 fraudulent restraining orders.
3 Answers from Attorneys
You're never going to get this dealt with until you hire an attorney. Long rambling stories like your question are damned near impossible for judges to follow and are never properly supported with relevant admissible evidence under the Evidence Code, when presented by lay people like yourself. So the judges wind up throwing up their hands and issuing their best guess at an appropriate ruling. As long as you continue with self-help, in and out of court, without proper legal advice, this mess will just continue.
I read your entire shaggy-dog story and there isn't even a question at the end. Like Mr. McCormick said, the next judge isn't going want to wade through all this guano. So get a lawyer already.
I agree with Mr. McCormick and Mr. Stone. Let me add that filing court cases -- including requests for restraining orders -- is privileged and cannot be the basis of a restraining order against the person who filed them.
Also, where a judge found some of your ex's allegations true and you did not get those findings set aside in the same case or reversed on appeal, they are subject to a doctrine called "res judicata". That's a Latin terms that essentially means "the matter has already been decided by a court". You will not persuade the court hearing another case against your ex to contradict the previous judgement's factual findings unless you can show that you did not have a chance to litigate the issues.
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