-Caveat Lector-

~Amelia~

Cc: "APFN Yahoogroups" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Sunday, June 03, 2001 4:03 PM
Subject: Breaking News: "Standoff" has ended


McGuckin Family - The REAL Story
http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495&article=2207

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: McGuckin Family - The REAL Story
Date: Sun, 3 Jun 2001 10:53:06 -0700
From: "Don Harkins" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Organization: Idaho Observer
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To all:

The bulk of this release has been composed over the last two
days. As
you will see, it is our contention that this is a land grab,
and the
the children and the international media attention got in the
way.
Well, we just moments ago learned that we were more right than
we
thought and certain members of Bonner County government are
intimately involved in the foreclosure, seizure and disposal
of the
McGuckin property to pave the way for a real estate
development.
Apparently, the McGuckins, who the media reported had no
water, are
sitting on the best source of clean water in the area and that
source
is sufficient enough supply several sites with water. We will
not
comment further on this aspect of the story until we have more
information. But, what we will be reporting soon is the real
story
here and it may be explosive enough to really damage some very
big
players in Bonner County government.
Stay tuned.

The McGuckin story - Idaho Observer
By Don Harkins
The McGuckin story, which, as I will explain, epitomizes both
the
arrogance of county government and the power of network
dominant
media. The story, which on the surface seems like a simple
state-
concern-for-the-welfare-of-children case, is incredibly
complex. I
believe that it boils down to a four (or more) year
persecution of an
unfortunate family that has a really neat, and possibly
strategic, 40-
acre piece of property with a pristine lake. This entire
travesty
would never have made more than a few lines of the local
evening news
if it had not been for one thing: The McGuckin children sicced
their
dogs on the "authorities" and made a stand.

Since the Idaho Observer keeps its office within 17 miles of
the
"standoff" and, since no other media in the area has the
editorial
license to tell the truth and, since millions of people all
over the
world are fixated on understanding the truth behind this
surreal
scenario, I will place things into proper perspective. My wife
Ingri
and I were able to gain the proper perspective by riding with
Joann
McGuckin's (former) attorney Edgar Steele while he delivered a
letter
that withdrew his representation from this case and when we
discovered that a bond reduction hearing that had been
scheduled for
4 p.m. had been postponed until Monday, June 4, 2001 amid
strange
circumstances.

Rather than turn this into a series of newsstories, this is
just
going to be Don talking. There will be a mixture of facts that
can be
verified by documentation and my own interpretation of events
based
upon my knowledge of the characters involved and other stories
that I
have covered which are connected or related. I will, however,
break
each segment down under a headline to make things easier to
explain.
To fully understand the McGuckin story, it would be best to
obtain
copies of the November and May editions of The Idaho Observer
wherein
we reported the christening of the Cutthroat (a 110 foot
unmanned
submarine that is now being used for research in Lake Pend
Oreille)
and the Parkison story wherein another Bonner county family
was
squeezed for several years until they lost their property. I
also
suggest that you obtain a copy of the September, 2000 edition
of The
Spectrum newspaper (1-877-280-2866) wherein some interesting
clues
regarding this region's importance to sophisticated technology
research are found.

It appears that the veneer of propriety on the part of the
state is
extremely thin in this case. Now that the "standoff" has
ended, it
will be a matter of simple investigation to prove that the
McGuckin's
land was stolen from them illegally and that the charges of
child
neglect alleged by Bonner County Prosecutor Phil Robinson were
fabrications that are not supported by evidence.

Breaking News: "Standoff" has ended

By the evening of June 2, 2001, the standoff ended peacefully
and the
five remaining children have been taken to Bonner General
Hospital
where they were to spend the night. Three persons, including a
family
friend and neighbor whom the children trusted, made contact
with the
children and it was that contact which ultimately led to their
decision to come out. Bonner County Sheriff Phil Jarvis claims
that
he sent word to the children that they would not be separated
if he
has anything to say about it. The three mediators also gave
the kids
a note from their mother in jail. It is reported that the note
allegedly from mom was what compelled them to go with
"authorities."
Jarvis' promise that they would not be separated may not be
his to
keep as the children are now in the custody of state child
welfare
workers who have made no such promises to the children.

By all reports the children were all in fine shape physically
and
mentally were in good spirits when they left their home.

The children were taken to the hospital where they would all
be given
physicals. It is also likely that the hospital staff was be
ordered
to administer vaccines to make them current with state
recommended
vaccination regimen. If the children are healthy now and then
begin
to experience adverse reactions to vaccines, I am concerned
that the
mother will somehow be blamed for the delayed reaction of ill
health
and that the introduction of toxic substances directly into
their
blood streams will not be considered as the cause. I am also
concerned that the "authorities" will, in their attempts to
pacify
the children's emotional needs, start feeding them a bunch of
junk
food which will exascerbate vaccine-related health
complications and
compromise their psychological equanimnity.

There is still no word on when Joann McGuckin will be released
from
jail though it appears there is no reason to continue holding
her
because her children are obviously not the victims of neglect
as
alleged in the complaint filed by Bonner County Prosecutor
Phil
Robinson May 29, 2001.

Myths and fabrications
1.  The children have no food and are eating lilly pad soup.
This is
    not true as more than one person reports that the children
have
    plenty of food.
2.  The children have no heat. This is north Idaho. They have
wood and
    a wood stove.
3.  The children have no electricity. The house has
electricity that
    is hooked up and paid for.
4.  The family has 27 vicious and hungry dogs running wild and
hunting
    in a pack. The number is probably closer to 15 dogs that
are more
    protective than they are vicious.
5.  The children are victims of neglect. Though they may not
live in a
    family like yours, these kids are not behaving like
neglected kids.
    These kids love each other, their deceased father, their
mother and
    their home.
6.  Joann McGuckin spends her money on alcohol. There is no
evidence
    of this.
7.  The children are armed. Benjamin said "go get the guns" to
start
    this standoff. Since that time nobody has seen them
brandishing any
    weapons. Benjamin, however, has allegedly admitted that
there were
    five guns in the house.
8.  Joann McGuckin has mental problems and does not trust the
    government. Joann has lost her husband, she has been
slipping into
    poverty for the last several years as her husband's health
    deteriorated and has been in full knowledge that the loss
of her home
    was imminent. Intrusive government has not attempted to
help her, it
    has been attempted to remove her from the property by a
variety of
    means. Then, charges of child neglect are fabricated, she
is tricked
    by police into being arrested, she is thrown in jail and
her kids
    decide to defend their home. How would you feel?
9.  The children must be taken into custody for their own
protection
    because there is no place else for them to go. A family
friend of ten
    years whom the children trust and like, who lives 30
minutes away on
    a 140 acre ranch has offered to take the children in but
the state
    will not allow them to because they are not "licensed."
10. Benjamin "gave himself up to authorities." Benjamin had
    apparently left the house on a recon mission two days
previously. He
    was unable to cross the police line and his coming into
police
    custody more closely resembles capture than a voluntary
surrender.
    Since he was taken into custody, nobody but "authorities"
have had
    access to him.
11. The bond reduction hearing was canceled because of a power
outage
    in the courthouse. The hearing was to take place at Bonner
County
    Jail, not at the courthouse. There was a TV setup at the
courthouse
    for media members who were going to watch the hearing from
that
    location. There had been no power outage at the courthouse
as of 4:20
    p.m. when Ingri and I left. At 3:55 p.m. we learned that
Judge Heise
    was still in the building and that Dublic Defender Bryce
Powell was
    nowhere to be found.
12. Ed Steele had his license to practice law in Idaho
suspended. Ed
    never mentioned such a thing and it does not stand to
reason that he
    would volunteer to represent McGuckin in this high profile
manner if
    he was going to be prevented from representing her in
court. Steele
    said that he has not been informed that he is not longer
licensed to
    practice law in Idaho.
13. The children are unhealthy and malnourished. There is no
evidence
    to suggest this is true. The children appear to be
healthy, vibrant
    and intelligent. Benjamin was given a physical after being
taken into
    custody and is reportedly in excellent health. Benjamin
reported that
    there is plenty of food and water in the house.
14. The children have been home schooled and taught to be
suspicious
    of the government. Both of these things might be true,
however the
    media spin is negative where I see nothing but positives.
The
    children were smart enough to not be taken into custody by
police who
    had tricked their mother into going to jail and had sold
their
    property at auction when it appears that the foreclosure,
seizure and
    sale of the property was conducted illegally. It would
appear that
    being suspicious of government is a survival skill that
all children
    should be taught. They are survivors, they are close-knit
and they
    have proven to be more capable than most children who
attend public
    school.
15. The father died of malnutrition and dehydration. This may
be
    partially true, but persons who suffer for years from the
ravages of
    degenerative disease may not feel like eating or drinking
the last
    few days or weeks of their lives. It would be absurd to
conclude that
    the last four years of his declining health was because he
decided to
    starve himself and not drink water.

Steele withdraws from McGuckin case-for now

SANDPOINT, June 1, 2001-At 2:30 p.m. today Attorney Edgar
Steele hand
delivered a letter to public defender Bryce Powell and Joann
McGuckin
that announced his withdrawal from the case. Steele, who I
must say
is a personal friend of mine, has stated to me that he would
rather
not practice law in the courts of north Idaho because it has
been his
experience that law is not the most important part of the
judicial
equation here. The fact that he decided to try to help this
woman and
her six children was, in my estimation, a purely selfless and
noble
gesture on his part.

Steele had an excellent visit with McGuckin May 31. McGuckin
thanked
Steele for representing her without charge and definitely,
according
to Steele, wanted him to represent her and the children in
matters
not related to Robinson's criminal complaint. He learned a lot
and
found that there were several areas that he could be of
service to
her because she and her family had been given a raw deal with
regard
to the loss of the property. Powell was representing her on
the
absurd criminal charges of felonious injury to children.
Steele was
up until midnight researching and studying documents
pertaining to
the case and working out a strategy. The following morning he
was
unable to talk to her; she only wanted to communicate with
Steele
through written memoranda and a couple of people friendly to
McGuckin
were suddenly noncommunicative. Steele said that he cannot
adequately
represent her under these conditions. He did tell Ingri and I
that he
left the door open for her, though, and that if she was able
to get
her thoughts together when things calm down, he would be glad
to
reconsider.

Based upon what we can infer from the characters involved, the
fact
that Powell is a young attorney trying to make a living in a
tightly
controlled small town legal environment, that he is very
likely in
way over his head in this case and that he must listen to the
local
power clique to have a future practicing law in Bonner county,
it
would appear that Powell convinced McGuckin to dissuade
Steele, an
extremely competant attorney who cannot be controlled by the
local
power clique, from digging into the injustices that have been
done to
the McGuckins.

After delivering the letter to McGuckin through her jailers,
Steele
was stopped by the news media to give on camera interviews. In
anticipation of the bond reduction hearing scheduled to begin
at 4
p.m. (it was at this time 3 p.m.) there were several local and
national news teams and two satelite trucks waiting around in
the
Bonner County Sheriff's Department parking lot. Steele very
eloquently and accurately said several things to the news
media that
would have made all concerned Americans very proud. When asked
what
he thought would be the best resolution of this matter, Steele
said
that McGuckin should be let out of jail immediately so she can
go
home to her kids and the police should go home to their
families. He
also indicated that it was his belief that Bonner County
Prosecutor
Phil Robinson's charges of child abuse were unfounded and
demonstrably false.

Bond reduction hearing delayed

SANDPOINT, June 1, 2001-A bond reduction hearing for Joann
McGuckin
that had been scheduled to take place at the Bonner County
Jail at 4
p.m. here today in the court of Magistrate Judge Heise has
been
postponed until Monday, June 4 because public defender Bryce
Powell
was nowhere to be found. McGuckin, 45, was arrested through
deception
by the Bonner County Sheriff's Department Tuesday after Bonner
County
Prosecutor Phil Robinson filed a complaint against McGuckin
for
felonious injury to children. McGuckin is being held on
$100,000 bond
though most of the charges Robinson alleged against McGuckin
have
been demonstrated to be false.

Bond is a mechanism that is used to protect the community from
the
accused if they are at risk for fleeing prosecution or pose a
danger
to the community. McGuckin is not a danger to the community
and the
likelihood that she would flee the area and leave her children
behind
is so remote as to be absurd to contemplate. Therefore it
would
appear that $100,000 bond is excessive and put in place to
keep her
in jail so that she does not have the opportunity to speak to
the
press, have unmonitored access to legal counsel or have
contact with
her children.

Local and national media with satelite uplinks were positioned
at the
jail and Court room 2 at the Bonner County Courthouse in
anticipation
of the hearing. Ingri and I were with several other reporters
in the
courthouse at 3:30 p.m. when it was learned that Judge Heise
was
still on site because Powell was nowhere to be found though he
was
well aware of the hearing time, date and location. It was
learned
later that he had been out attempting to talk the children
into
giving themselves up. I believe that he was there doing that,
but
that it was an excuse to not be present at the bond reduction
hearing
at the jail. I believe that his controllers, the county that
appointed him to represent McGuckin in this case, arranged his
not
being present for the hearing so that they could continue the
hearing
to Monday. I think they wanted a couple days to think, hoping
that
something magical would bring the standoff to an end before
Monday.
The more conspiratorial side of me is concerned that she will
be
psychologically manipulated into saying things that will
compromise
public perception of her in a negative way.

The kids
Kathryn, 16, Banjamin, 14, Mary, 13, James, 11, Fred, 9 and
Jane, 8
I have heard several people say that the kids, though
sometimes a
little dirty, are nice, a little shy, but polite, intelligent
and
well spoken. It sounds like these children should be used as
poster
children for the benefits of home schooling rather than being
labeled
as outcasts unfit to function in polite society. I for one, am
proud
of the McGuckin children and hope to meet them some day and
tell them
so.

Conclusions to date

This is a land grab case not a child abuse case. The kids are
fine
except that their father is dead and the police tricked their
mom
into being arrested on charges of felonious injury to children
that
are either bold faced lies or baseless accusations. In either
event
there is no evidence to support the charges against Joann
McGuckin,
there is no reason for her to be in jail and there is no
justification of $100,000 bond as she is not s flight risk or
a
danger to society.

The McGuckin property, which has a homestead exemption and is
worth
nearly $500,000, was seized for $5,000 in back taxes and sold
at
auction for $50,000. It appears that the McGuckins have been
under
attack for at least four years and the intent was to steal
their
property. I personally believe the attack was subtle, and
conducted
with the use of sophisticated technologies that to most people
are
the stuff of science fiction. They became increasingly
reclusive, I
think, because nobody would believe them if they told them
what was
going on and they were afraid that people would think they
were
crazy.

So, the two components of this surrealistic scene is the
provably
illegal seizure and disposal of their property and the
provably
fabricated charges of child abuse and neglect. The veneer is
so thin
that when this thing begins to unravel, the corruption and
arrogance
behind this property theft will become obvious.

I was a disappointed that though there are millions of people
talking
about this, the public was not represented at the jail or the
courthouse. The only people on hand were media types. I guess
people
wish to be angered by the events by understanding the issue
through
the eyes of the dominant media.

Copies of the complaint of child neglect filed by Bonner
County
Prosecutor Phil Robinson (CR-01-01116) can be obtained by
calling the
Bonner County Courthouse at: (208) 265-1432. The Idaho
Observer will
FAX a copy. Call (208) 255-2307.

Don Harkins is the editor of The Idaho Observer, a monthy
tabloid-
sized, 24-page newspaper that seeks to report the truth of
events
that are shaping the socio/political, spiritual and economic
demise
of our our once free nation. For back issues or subscription
information, contact The Idaho Observer at: (208) 255-2307 or
by
visiting the website at:
{ HYPERLINK "http://www.proliberty.com/observer"; }
http://www.proliberty.com/observer


The Idaho Observer
PO Box 457
Spirit Lake, Idaho 83869
(208) 255-2307
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
www.proliberty.com/observer

----- Original Message -----
From: "American Patriot Friends Network" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "APFN Yahoogroups"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Friday, June 01, 2001 7:34 PM
Subject: Re: Sandpoint, Id: A modern American tragedy in
>
> Re: Sandpoint, Id: A modern American tragedy in
> http://disc.server.com/discussion.cgi?id=149495&article=2149

--------------------------------------------------------------
--------------

APFN
  Neopets!

  acbcomp
  Re: Sandpoint, Id: A modern American tragedy in
  Fri Jun 1 21:20:13 2001

  In this case things are moving so fast, it is hard to keep
up... Included
  you will find the hand out by the atty. who was representing
the kids. But
  today, a switch took place, I am told, that the mother
deneighed that
  Steele was representing them, refused to see him, and as he
was working on
  this at no charge, without a client, he was out of it, then
hardly before I
  could digest that, a report came that the county had cut of
all
  communication to Steele, and right after that the "powers"
in Bonner
  County had contacted the Idaho State Bar, and Steele had
been suspended
  from practicing law. No part of this I got first had, and
the later second
  hand, so I hailed down a Spokane TV news team and asked them
if they were
  aware that Steele was shut down, and they said yes they were
aware. Folks
  we know that if we dug into the internal politics for the
"powers" of about
  any community these days in comparison, a sewer would smell
sweet, but
  something is going on here. I have never seen a county so
concerned about
  the children, unless maybe the fed at Waco. Emotions are
running high on
  both sides here. An ABC poll from Spokane was 47% to 40%
against the county
  in public sentiment. But if the things above are actually
true, then
  something addressed in the following news release from
Attorney Steele has
  this county government enraged.
  The following is a handout by the Attorney for the children
under siege by
  the prosecuting attorney and Sheriff's Department of Bonner
County
  (Sandpoint, Idaho area)

  EDGAR J. STEELE

  Attorney at Law

  102 South Fourth Avenue, Suite C

  Sandpoint, Idaho 83864

  Facsimile: (208) 265-5329

  Telephone: (208) 265-4153

  Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]

  Admitted in Idaho, Oregon, Washington & California

  PRESS RELEASE-IMMEDIATE

  May 31, 2001, 4:00 p.m., Sagle, Idaho

  Contact: Edgar J. Steele, attorney for JoAnn McGuckin and
her children

  Sandpoint, Idaho. A modern American tragedy in the making.
That's what the
  Sagle, Idaho, McGuckin family "standoff" represents.

  The McGuckin family home and the 40 acres upon which it
stands were recently
  sold for a pittance by the county government for past-due
taxes. It brought
  only $50,000, while the property is in prime territory, with
fully half of
  Beaver Lake on its eastern edge.


  Dad died recently after a long and valiant struggle with
multiple sclerosis,
  not of "malnutrition and dehydration," which has wildly and
falsely been
  reported as the cause of death. Just a couple of days this
tight-knit family
  buried Dad, county government lured her out with a promise
of money and free
  groceries, then arrested her, leaving them only to have to
deal with the
  kids. That was a mistake, of course, but not their first.

  Rather than allow this tightly-knit family a decent period
to grieve the
  loss of their beloved husband and father, the county
government instead is
  doing its best to make the family's worst nightmare come
true.

  For years, Mrs. McGuckin has been fearful of the government
taking her
  property and her kids. Today, that fear is realized, with
the issuance of an
  order through Child Protection Service, making the six
children its wards.
  Of course, the Sheriff can't get near the house to make good
on that order.

  She has been jailed on a charge of felony child
endangerment, allegedly for
  not providing a proper home for the children, including
food, hygiene and
  education.

  Well, admittedly they running water is off temporarily,
because the well
  pump broke and, what with Dad's severe condition as his days
drew to a
  close, they just didn't have the time or the money to deal
with it properly.
  So, they drew water from the crystal-clear lake on their
property for
  washing and to flush their toilets with. And, yes, the
laundry did pile up,
  but what family doesn't have a few domestic backlogs when it
loses it
  patriarch?

  And the children are home schooled, fact, which makes them
politically
  incorrect, even by North Idaho standards.

  But, they do have food, contrary to reports, and the power
was hooked up and
  paid for when Mrs. McGuckin was arrested.

  Are they armed? Who knows? Nobody has seen any weapons and
no gunshots have
  been fired. Sheriff Jarvis has shown great prudence in
executing the orders
  he is lawfully obligated to follow. He did not cut off any
essential
  services, as has been reported. He has vowed to keep his men
well away from
  the house and allow us time to effect a peaceful resolution
to this crisis.

  That resolution must begin with the release from custody of
JoAnn McGuckin
  and the rescission of the order giving custody of her
children over to the
  government. Friends and family stand ready to accept
responsibility for the
  children while Mrs. McGuckin puts her life in order and
proves the
  outrageous charges against herself to be false. However, the
demand by the
  county Prosecuting Attorney that the bail, initially set for
$10,000, be
  elevated to $100,000, effectively guarantees that Mrs.
McGuckin will not be
  given that opportunity.

  We are now asking the court for a reduction in the bond
requirement and will
  then seek a modification to the CPS order, whereby the
children are given
  over, as a single unit, to the custody of a trusted family
friend. Then, we
  will take on these outlandish charges and give them the
ignominious end that
  they deserve. We are also investigating this highly
questionable attempted
  seizure of the McGuckin family home.

  Donations to the family can be made to:
  McGuckin Family Trust
  P.O. Box 1255
  Sagle, ID 83860
==============================================================
=========
Children, Dogs Hold Off Idaho Sheriff
http://www.apfn.org/apfn/IDAHO.HTM

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