We were talking with folks Saturday night about a local story regarding Officer Patrick Feaster’s shooting of an unarmed man as he tried to get out of his overturned vehicle. Our District Attorney, Mike Ramsey has refused to charge the officer stating that what happened wasn’t criminal. The man who was shot died a couple weeks later, but since no crime was committed, according to DA Ramsey, no charges will be filed.
The Canteena Bar from which the killed gentleman left with a blood alcohol level of 0.15, has closed. This really sucks as it was one of just a handful of bars here. It was the only “sports bar” in town. It closed after filing for bankruptcy. Talking with folks about it Saturday night (we were talking with a bartender at a restaurant) we learned that the main reason the Canteena filed for bankruptcy is due to the families of both people who died from that incident are suing everyone they can which includes the bar and that bartender working there that night.
Officer Feaster, we were told, is scramming to Montana. The reason, of course, is to bail outta here and start over in law enforcement up there. I don’t know all the union rules of the Fraternal Order of Police Officers, but was told that what he did in Paradise won’t follow him up to Montana because it doesn’t have to be disclosed. This tactic is how things work. You’ll typically have police officers that did something bad simply move to a new area and start over.
Another thing that makes this interesting, is Patrick Feaster is the nephew of Jane Dolan who was on the Butte County Supervisor from 1979-2011 (thanks for the correction exlrrp). She’s a liberal Democrat. After losing her seat to a Tea Party conservative type, the Chico City Council became dominated by conservatives where before that it had been dominated by liberals. Jane Dolan’s husband is a Democratic Party state operative who controls everything the Democrats do locally. His name is Bob Mulholland. Locally he’s seen as an asset for the Democrats by some while others (a lot of others including me) see him as a real problem. He has a bombastic personality and lacks tact. In the last two election cycles, he’s really done a remarkably terrible job promoting Democrats. I think he’s become a liability.
After Jane Dolan lost her seat, she was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown to the Central Valley Flood Protection Board which causes her to drive to Sacramento once each month. She gets paid $40,700 a year. This board deals with flooding in California and many consider it a kush job as Jane makes $547 per hour for the amount of time she does her job. Jane Dolan was instrumental in getting DA Mike Ramsey appointed to his position. He’s now the longest serving District Attorney in California.
Jane Dolan and her husband are heavyweights in the Democratic Party. Since her nephew will not face any charges for the shooting, and the political connections between Jane, our DA and Governor of California, most folks feel this will simply be another example of how laws just don’t apply to Officers of the Law. The only avenue the families of the dead have now is civil lawsuits. Since there was no crime committed, according to DA Mike Ramsey, the town of Paradise is off the hook for any civil suit or any payments.