[Editor’s notes: This transcript was prepared by Heather Shannon. The editors gratefully acknowledge her invaluable assistance.)
[The transcripts of these affidavits retain their original spelling throughout, corrected only where the meaning is unclear. In addition, the misspellings of names have been corrected.]
FF-4-A-18
[Editor’s note: A longer version of this affidavit appears below at FF-4-A-72.]
Jonestown,Port Kaituma
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Lillie Victor
I, Lillie Victor, being duly sworn, declare:
I stayed with the Mertles in the summer of 1975 on Tomki Rd. in Redwood Valley,Ca. Lashay Mertle (thier adopted son) was 11 yrs. old lived there also. He had a bladder infection and problemsthat lasted a while–but they still beat him. One night he wet the bed and they forced him to standwith one leg up in the air all night in the living room. They had people stay up and watch him all night to make sure he didn’t sit down or move. He was throwing up and passing out during that night but he was still forced to stay there. They treated him brutally,
/s/ Lillie Victor
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnessess:
[blank signature line]
[Notary signature and Guyana Revenue stamp]
—–
FF-4-A-19
Jonestown,Port Kaituma
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Janet Tupper
I, Janet Tupper, being duly sworn, declare:
I used to live with Rick and Barbara Cordell. In the summer of ’75 I had hurt my leg and I was on crutches. I had to have my leg rubbed several times a day with ointment, and Barbara Cordell would do it for me. One night, about 2a.m. in the morning, Rick Cordell came in and woke me, and I thought it was time for my medication. He brought no to his bedroom and Barbara wasn,t there. He started rubbing my leg and asked me if I wanted him to go higher. I told him no, but he kept feeling and grabbing on me. I kept telling him to get away from me and he wouldn’t. I kept trying to push him away, but I couldn’t walk because he had my crutches on the other sideof the room. He wouldn’t let me go, he kept on molesting me.
/s/ Janet Tupper
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Notary signature and Guyana Revenue stamp]
—–
FF-4-A-20
Jonestown,Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Wanda Swinney
I, Wanda Swinney, being duly sworn, declare:
When John Bidolph [Bidulph] worked at Wilsons Furniture Store in Ukiah, as manager, he employed me as a bookkeeper-assistant to him. He embezzled a large amount of money and merchandise from the store. I had great difficulty balancing the records and he would claim that there was some mistake that the merchandise was never delivered, or had made a book-keeping error, but this was not true. I personally saw him take sofas, pillows, tape recorders, records and a stereo from the saying he was loaning them to people he even bragged about furnishing his home from the store free of charge.
The furniture was never returned. He was also a very violent person. In the warehouse at Wilsons, hewould claim to be joking while hitting Phillip Blakey,slapping him in the face and hitting him in the body, just provoking a fight. I believe he caused Phillip a lot of mental anguish over the violent actions directed at him.
/s/ Wanda S. Swinney
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Guyana Revenue stamp and notary signature]
—–
FF-4-A-21
Jonestown,Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Russell Moton
I, Russell S. Moton, being duly sworn, declare:
One Sunday evening at the Los Angeles Peoples Temple, Paul Flowers in a fit of rage picked up a letter opener, held it to my throat–stuck it against my throat and threatened to kill me. He said it wasn’t the first time he had killed someone and he’d do it again. He also threatened the life of Maxine Betts one day mid-week shortly after because he thought she had said something about him he didn’t like.
/s/ Russell S. Moton
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnessess:
[blank signature line]
[Guyana Revenue stamp and notary signature]
—–
FF-4-A-22
Port Kaituma )
North West Region )
Republic of Guyana ) ss.
South America )
Affidavit s/ Dorothy Lee Worley
I, Dorothy Lee Worley, being duly sworn, declare:
My ex-husband beeing Ward Worley while living with me as my husband between the years of 1966 and 1973 repeatedly shoplifted from a number of stores in Ukiah, California. He was employed as a janitor for P.G. & E. for a couple of yars. He brought cleaning supplies, paper towels, toilet tissue, mops, and brooms home. My former stepdaughter, Faith Kice, stole supplies from the Ukiah General Hospital while working there in the capacity of a LVN in 1973. She also stole dental supplies from a dentist she worked for on Dora Avenue in Ukiah California.
/s/ Dorothy Lee Worley
Dated: 1st August 1977
Witnessed:
[blank signature line]
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for
the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
[Guyana Revenue stamp and notary signature]
—–
FF-4-A-23
Port Kaituma, )
North West Region, ) ss.
Republic of Guyana, )
South America. )
Affidavit s/ Ava Brown Jones
I, Ava Brown Jones, being duly sworn, hereby declare:
My brother James Cobb Jr. has always been a lier and a thief, and a violent person
On different occassions I remember my brother stealing from my grandmother, who owned a confectioner’s store. Who was also crippled in her hands, legs, and back. He used the money to buy himself personal items, which he did not need. He constantly lied about taking the money even after he was caught several times.
I remember another incident where my mother was seven months pregnant, and he knocked her down with a broom. I can not understand how he and my sister Teresa are so close because they have always competed in there lying, stealing and fighting one another. They both are sick, and disturbed human beings who cannot be trusted or respected.
/s/ Ava Brown Jones
Dated: 1st. August, 1977
Witnessed by:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a commissioner of oaths for the
Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
[Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-24
Port Kaituma, )
Northwest Region, ) ss.
Republic of Guyana, )
South America. )
Affidavit s/ Ava Brown Jones
I, Ava Brown Jones, being duly sworn, hereby declare:
My sister Teresa Ann Cobb has always killed smaller animals. remember her taking a larger brick and smashing a baby kitten in half. She also choked baby chickens. She has always been a very disturbed and violent person.
She has also threatened human beings on different occasions. I do not trust her with children or any living thing.
/s/ Ava Brown Jones
Dated: August 1st. 1977
Witnessed by:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
[Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-25
I Ava Brown Jones duly sworn declare:
[unreadable writing; appears to summarize the letters on FF-4-A-23 and FF-4-A-24, along with more details]
Dated: 1st. August 1977
Witnessed by:</p?
Subscribed to and sworn before me
Republic of Guyana [unreadable text]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and multiple signatures]
—–
FF-4-A-26
Port Kaituma, )
North West Region, ) s.s.
Republic of Guyana, )
South America. )
Affidavit s/ Diane Lundquist
I, Diane Lundquist, being duly sworn, hereby declare:
I saw Gary [Garry] Lambrev come out of the bathroom laughing about a mouse that had been caught by the leg and was dragging the trap.
He asked me to come see the mouse, he could hardly talk because he was so hysterical.
I told him that he was sick the way he was getting such pleasure from the suffering of the mouse.
/s/ Diane Lundquist
Dated: July 29, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-27
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Barbara Cordell
I, Barbara Cordell, Being duly sworn, declare:
I saw Rick Cordell mistreat his children. He would touch his daughters in a sexual way. He never wanted to spend time with his children. He never wanted to take the children anywhere not unless I was along. Rick walked out in the middle of the night without saying a word to me or his children about where or why he was leaving or when he would be back. My first child was not his baby, and when he (Mark) was a baby he would mistreat him and push him around. Rick was also unfaithful to me sexually. He was involve with women quite a few times, and one particular time was right after I had gave birth to his first child. He was never a good father image. He was a reactionary parent. Rick was very resentful of babies and children that I took care of in our home even his own. He wanted the time spent on him. Rick would take his hostility out on the children. Rick also purchase things for Peoples Temple, and quite often he kept the things for himself.
/s/ Barbara Cordell
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-28
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Jim Arthur Jones
I, Jim Arthur Jones, duly sworn, declare:
Joyce Shaw beat me 150 times on the rear end with a thorn bush and then made me eat soap and roaches as my punishment for misbehaving while I was staying with her in 1976.
/s/ Jim Arthur Jones
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-29
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Stanley Gieg
I, Stanley Gieg, being duly sworn, declare:
Walter Jones stole hundreds of dollars worth of tools bought and paid for by Peoples Temple bus garage. He had his transmission overhauled and a new engine put in his pick-up truck at the expense of the Temple also. He took the truck with him when he left the membership of the Temple. He also took with him socket sets, screwdrivers, and other mechanic tools valued in the 100’s of dollars which had been purchased with the Temple non-profit funds.
/s/ Stanley Gieg
Dated: 11 August 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-30
Jonestown, Port Kaituma
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Mary Tupper
I, Mary Tupper, being duly sworn, declare:
I assisted Deanna Mertle in running a concession stand owned by Peoples Temple. The money would always come up short but Deanna would always have an excuse. I saw her take money, from the cash box and she would never put any money back. Although neither Deanna or her husband had a job, they always had plenty of money.
/s/ Mary Tupper
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-31
Jonestown, Port Kaituma
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Jeff Carey
I, Jeffrey J. Carey, being duly sworn, declare:
When Mickie Touchette Was working at the Motel 6 in Santa Rosa as a desk clerk, she often stole money from the cash register after work hours, on a regular basis. She would have me wait out in the car down the street while she went inside. She was fired from the job, I don’t know if it was because she was caught stealing the money.
/s/ Jeffrey J. Carey
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-32
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Stanley Gieg
I, Stanley Gieg, being duly sworn, declare:
Almost a year ago my mom, Rose Gieg, left myself and my brother Clifford in the care of Peoples Temple . She has paid absolutely no support at all for our clothing, food or other expenses since she has been gone.
/s/ Stanley Gieg
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-33
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit Wanda Swinney
I, Wanda S. Swinney, being duly sworn, declare:
I was present many times when Wayne Pietla [Pietila] recommended violent acts to the Peoples Temple Youth Group. He suggested things such as robbing banks, killing people and blowing up bridges. He was trying to gain the support of teenagers and children to do these acts. He stole guns from his dad and other people he knew when he left home.
/s/ Wanda S. Swinney
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-34
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit Mark Cordell
I, Mark Cordell, being duly sworn, declare:
Rick, (my dad), has beaten me with belts until I had black and blue marks on my rear end. He also threatened to kill me, and would hit me in the arms. One time when I was living in Redwood Valley, I was on crutches then, he threatened to “kick my ass”, and he pulled my crutches from under me. He kept on hitting me until my mother, Barbara stopped him. I saw Rick steal things from Radio Shack. About a year ago on the 4th of July, I knocked on his bedroom door and he wouldn’t answered me, so I busted the door down. He’d taken an overdose of pills, trying to committ suicide. All of his children saw him, and they were all terrified.
/s/ Mark Cordell
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-35
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Mark Cordell
I, Mark Cordell, witnessed Jackie Swinney physically hit the patients in her care, while I was staying one time in her home. She would beat them with her hands for no reason at all. She mistreated them often and called them obscene names.
/s/ Mark Cordell
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-36
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Curtis Smith
I, Kirtos Smith, being duly sworn, declare:
Joyce Shaw Houston beat me once about 50 times with a switch and forced me to eat soap and roaches in it as discipline for misbehaving. I have serious back problems and have had many operations on my back but she didn’t seem to care when she was beating me with the switch.
/s/ Kirtos Smith
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-38
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Stanley Gieg</>
I, Stanley Gieg, being duly sworn, declare:
I know for a fact that Jack Arnold Beam stole various parts from junk yards and part houses such as Redwood Auto and Reliable Mill in Ukiah. He took socket sets, screwdrivers, wrenches, hammers, welding sets, and special parts for deisel engine repair. He also told me to steal parts and tools for him. He always bought the best of parts and tools, in worth of 100’s of dollars for his electrical musical equipment (especially his guitar) with funds from the church treasury–Peoples Temple– and when he left the membership he took the tools and instruments (amplifiers also) with him.
/s/ Stanley Gieg
Dated: August 17, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-39
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Chris Rozynko
I, Christian Rozynko, being duly sworn, declare:
Vincent Lopez and Dwayne Scott these were two boys from his child care home. One particular time Walter Jones, (also known as Smithy) lost his temper. It was as If he had gone insane. He struck out at Dwayne Scott, and started to beat him up. Several of us that were standing around jumped In between Walter and Dwayne to stop him. If It had not been stopped, Dwayne would have been seriously injured. Walters’ actions were not those of a responsible adult.
/s/ Chris Rozynko
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnesses:
[blank signature line]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-40
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Julie Cordell
I, Julie Cordell, being duly sworn, declare:
Rick Cordell molested me, kissed me, tried to do sexual things to me- feeling all over me. He always made us massage his back after an easy days work. He beat all of us children, taking out his anger on us. He would always try to scare us by throwing glasses of milk on the floor0– or at the walls. He even did that once or twice to a little 3 yr. old baby girl who was living with us. For a while he cmae home from work every day and for no reason would beat on us all with sticks–trying to make us cry. One time he beat me for a long time trying to make me cry but I wouldn’t so he kept beating me over and over until he just gave up.
/s/ Julie Cordell
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnessess:
[illegible signature]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-41
Jonestown, Port Kaituma
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Braunshaunski Darnes
I, Braun Darnes, being duly sworn, declare:
I lived with the Mertle Family in Redwood Valley in the summer of 1975. There was a young fellow about 11yrs. old living there also whose name was Lashey. The Mertles (Mert and Deanna) would give him what they called “spankings” but what they did was beat him–they bent him over the couch and kept on hitting him–they wouldn’t stop for a long time. They made him stand up all night in a corner. He had a bladder problem and every time he wet the bed they would pick him up and throw him in the cold shower. Once they made him stand on one foot all night just because he wet the bed. The older kids in the family would stay up and watch him all night. Another time he accidentally broke a glass and all of the older Mertle girls( Linda, Sandy Rozynko lianne ) they started pushing him over the couch and knocking him around, picking him up and throwing him–slamming him dowm.
/s/ Braun Darnes
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnessess:
[illegible signature]
[Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-42
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Rita Cordell
I, Rita Cordell, being duly sworn, declare:
August of last year while driving to a church service in Los Angeles Rick Cordell (my dad) kept putting his hand between my legs while I was sitting next to him and whenever I’d say anything to him about it he would get angry. He was also putting his arm around me so that his hand was resting on my breast. A. few days later we spent thenight over at a friends house and he refused to let me sleep anywhere but in the double bed with him. He told me he had sexual attractions ato me and my sister Julie. When he left our family he didn’t say a word–just picked up and left. He never spent any time with his children. He was always asking me to hug and kiss older men.
/s/ Rita Cordell
Dated: August 18, 1977
Witnessess:
[illegible signature]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-43
Port Kaituma )
North West Region ) ss
Republic of Guyana )
South America )
AFFIDAVIT OF JEFFREY CAREY
I, Jeffrey Carey, being duly sworn, declare:
I was personally present when David Wise cashed fraudulently obtained welfare checks, which he was receiving with his wife, Mary L. Wise, in Ukiah, California in 1971.
/s/ Jeffrey J Carey
Dated: August 2_, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
F-4-A-44
Port Kaituma )
North West Region ) ss.
Republic of Guyana )
South America )
Affidavit s/ Charles E. Touchette
I, Charles E. Touchette, being duly sworn declare:
Mickey Jean Touchette my oldest daughter, tried to suffocate my youngest daughter Michelle Elaine Touchette. Mickey held a pillow over Michelle’s face to the extent that Michelle has lost conciousness before she was stopped. On another occassion Mickey shoved her younger brother from a cabinet top to the floor causing a severe wound to her brother’s head.
/s/ Charles E. Touchette
Dated 1st August, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
F-4-A-45
Port Kaituma )
North West Region, ) ss.
Republic of Guyana, )
South America. )
Affidavit s/ Ronald B. Sines
I, Ronald B. Sines, being duly sworn, declare:
Rick Shroeder [Schroeder] during the year of 1975 regularly burglarized railroad cars stopping over in Ukiah, California. The items taken consisted from construction supplies such as plywood, 2 x 4 Douglas Fir Studs, cases of paper tissue, large rolls of paper table cloth covers.
/s/ Ronald B. Sines
Dated: 1st August, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Cooperative Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
F-4-A-46
Port Kaituma )
North West Region ) ss.
Republic of Guyana )
South America )
Affidavit s/ Stephen M. Addison
I, Stephen M. Addison, being duly sworn declare:
In 1976, David Wise illegaly wire-tapped several telephones in San Francisco’s (California) Peoples Temple. David Wise was seen and caught at the main switch board on the 2nd floor of the church building wiretapping the telephones.
/s/ Stephen M. Addison
Dated: 1st August, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-47
Jonestown, Port Kaituma ss
North West District, Guyana
Affidavit of Cynthia Davis
I, Cynthia Davis, Being duly sworn, declare:
Linda Mertle stated that many times between the years of 1973-1975, the items she stole from large department stores, such as the Emporium, I. Magnim, and Montgomery Wards. She stole continiously for 3 years. In 1976 she told me about her sex relations with Kay Henderson (an adult). She said that Kay offered to go to bed with her, and they did many times. Linda would explain in detail the sex act between them. She also told me about a young girl – age 14 who she (Linda) forced into a sexual act against her will. She wanted to hurt somebody black.
/s/ Cynthia Davis
Dated: August 18, 1977
[illegible signature]
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-48
Jonestown, Port Kaituma )
Northwest District )
Cooperative Republic of Guyana )
Affidavit s/ ____________
I, Danny K. Kutulas, being duly sworn, declare:
In the month of December of 1975 J.R. Purifoy, his wife Betty Purifoy and son Jimmy purifoy and his wife Gale Purifoy removed materials, tools, and machinery from a Peoples Temple church appartment buidling under repairs at the time at 1345 Alvarado Terrace, Los Angeles, California that did not belong to them.
Jimmy and Gale Purifoy said to me the evening they were loading the truck, that they were going to do a job in Fresno California for the Peoples Temple church and that it would take about two or three days and will be back for Christmas dinner. We never saw them again.
The materials stolen belonged to Peoples Temple church.
/s/ Danny K. Kutulas
Dated August 5, 1977
Witnessed:
Subscribed to and sworn before me,
a Commissioner of Oaths for the
Republic of Guyana.
[Handwriting: Guyana Revenue stamp and signature]
—–
FF-4-A-50
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-120. It also appears at B-5-c(11) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Sandra L. Bradshaw
I, Sandra L. Bradshaw, being duly sworn, declare:
I live at 2544 Sutter Street, San Francisco, California.
I have been a member of Peoples Temple for nearly 8 years. I have worked as a Deputy Probation Officer for the County of Mendocino in Northern California for over 7 years. Through my association with Peoples Temple, I Know Linda Swaney (Dunn), Faith Kice, Janet Phillips and Danny Phillips. While these people were in our group, they were the source of much contention and negativity. They were frequently involved in alcohol and drug abuse. Faith Kice and Janet Phillips worked at a local hospital and stole assorted drugs and pills. They were always on some type of “medication.”
Linda Swaney (Dunn) worked at the Masonite plant in Redwood Valley and had a terrible reputation as a drunk and an “easy” mark. She flagrantly exhibited her lifestyle in front of other church members and her three children (2 of them were young teenage girls who looked to her example, and 1 was a young son). As a result of Linda Swaney’s decadent lifestyle, her oldest daughter Denise ended up in the local Juvenile Hall for drugs and lewd conduct. Mrs. Swaney’s latest boyfriend had also misused Denise and faced investigation by the local welfare department. Denise was ultimately placed in a foster home, but she still continued her anti-social behavior.
Danny Phillips was one of the sickest personalities that I have ever known. He was purposefully cruel and inhumane to others. His whole manner was one of racist insensitivity. None of the previously mentioned people are black, nor are they married to black, nor have they adopted a black child. They are openly elitists and believe themselves to be superior to others.
—–
In 1973, when Bishop Jones was discussing the possibility of starting an agricultural project in Guyana, South America, all these people sought to discourage it from the beginning. They felt that South America was too vastly underdeveloped to ever merit investing in. Danny Phillips and the others felt that the government of Guyana was totally CIA involved and financed. They felt that people who had for so many years under the paternalistic overseeing of Great Britian were incapable of ever achieving self-determination.
Danny Phillips was in the first group that went to Georgetown, Guyana. He disliked the country and people so much that he left the second day he was there. All these people are obviously capitalistic in their orientation, and have a vested interest in seeking to discredit anyone working towards socialist objectives.
Dated this 15th day of August, 1977.
/s/ Sandra L. Bradshaw
Sandra L. Bradshaw</P
Subscribed and sworn to before me,
a Notary Public in
and for the State of California
/s/ James R Randolph
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-51
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-138. It also appears at B-5-c(3) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF SHARON AMOS
I, Sharon Amos, being duly sworn, declare:
Linda Dunn Swaney was a person that I always thought was a very superficial person. She was very clothes-conscious and like to have a lot of fancy clothes, a brand new model car, and she did not relate in the slightest to politics or Third World struggle. She had no understanding of the capitalistic system and the evils of exploitation. She simply wanted the “finest” things in life and came to the church because her husband and his relatives were members.
She did not give any concern to her children, and the only understanding they found was with the Pastor of the church, Rev. Jones, and the members of the Peoples Temple who gave them love and attention. I distinctly heard her say, as she was finally planning to leave the church, that she didn’t want to put up with this “Socialist mess” any more and wanted to pursue her own interests. She said she didn’t give a “damn” about her children.
We got reports after she left from people in the community that she went into a completely hedonistic life. She was sexually promiscuous, got drunk every night, and she would have sex with anyone who would ask her. On one occasion she was so drunk she drove her car into a tree and had to be hospitalized. This is a documented fact in Mendocino County, where a personal friend of mine was her nurse in the hospital.
Linda has stated in the newspapers that she had left the church because Jim Jones had made advances to her. I know that this was a lie and that the truth is exactly the contrary. It was she who badgered our Pastor to have sex with her, and when she did not get her way, she became the vengeful woman she is today. Her behavior after she left our fellowship certainly does not show her to be a modest, proper woman who was offended by sexual advances.
She later married a man who was openly racist. Her daughter, then 14, was so disturbed by her mother’s outrageous behavior and racist affiliations, that she left home and had to be housed in the local juvenile hall. Denise refused to go home to her mother even after being detained in juvenile jail for rebellious youth. Her daughter has since patterned her life after the mother, and is equally promiscuous, even though in her early teens.
A son of Linda’s who was a very happy and socaible child, has withdrawn and is not at all like his old self. Linda refused to let him play with or see his old friends, and he was completely traumatized. He has also now started on a life of crime, drugs,
—–
and mental stress.
Dated this 12th day of August, 1977.
/s/ Sharon Amos
Sharon Amos
Subscribed and sworn to before me,
a Notary Public in and for the
State of California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Note: Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-52
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-137. It also appears at B-5-c(64) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF ROBIN TSCHETTER
I, Robin Tschetter, being duly sworn, declare:
That when I was under age and still in high school, Jim Cobb made advances towards me and even had me to come over to his house and he would try to get me to go to bed with him. He would pressure me by saying that I must be a racist if I didn’t want to go to bed with him and then one day, he forced my clothes off of me and pushed me into the bedroom. He told me if I would scream he’d hurt me and then he made me do horrible acts with him. It has affected my ability to relate to other men now and I hate him for that. He had me bend down and lick his buttocks, then made me take his penis in my mouth and suck it and swallow whatever he didin my mouth. He laughed when I cried and said that I deserved it since I was a honkie. I was young and very impressionable. I believed that he would hurt me and get me in deep trouble with my extremely strick parents. He tried to get me to take drugs and told me that if I ever told anyone he would get even with me.
When I was only 16, he had me take some barbituates that made me very drowsy and drunk.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Robin Tschetter
Robin Tschetter
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-53
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-139. It also appears at B-5-c(56) on this page.)
State of California ) ss:
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF CAROL STAHL
I,
That Terry Cobb Pietila said Guyana was the most racist place in South America. She said the government in power had tried to cause race riots between East Indians and blacks there. She said the black government was educated and “rules” over the Chinese East Indians, and native people there. She said there was no national unity in Guyana, just domination by blacks, and that there was discrimination in the highest and lowest places. She told me there were still riots going on, and that particularly the sugar workers, who were East Indian, lived in terrible poverty. The reason that the government in power had kept this racial animosity up was that the only way they could rule was through “divide and conquer” tactics. She said they were complicit with the CIA in this.
Dated this 15th day of August 1977.
/s/ Carol Stahl
Carol Stahl
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-54
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-140. It also appears at B-5-c(55) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF ANDY SILVER
I, Andy Silver, being duly sworn, declare:
That I was a student in the Peoples Temple college student program with Jim Cobb, Wayne Pietilla [Pietila], Terri Cobb Pietilla, and Micki Touchette. Many of the young people, some recently out of the drug world, were confused about themselves, their identity (sexual and ethnic) and their personal goals, and looked in particular to Jim Cobb for direction and inspiration. Using reverse racism, he required the white students to prove they weren’t racist by showing him respect as a Black man. He would stand on a table in front of them at house meetings, spouting political rhetoric, advocating terrorist activities and denouncing various political heroes as “Tom’s” including Malcolm X for his later integrationist views. He would then order the women who were white to come forward, sometimes to kiss his feet, and other times to touch his privates. He established a paramilitiary organization among the students, and established a library on how to make bombs, blow up municipal institutions, and made many contacts for the acquisition of guns.
While he was still a student, the church began developing plans to begin an agricultural mission field in Guyana. He tried to divide the congregation from the church leadership over whether the Temple philosophy was consistent with the philosophy of the Guyanese government, and whether the socialist ideals of the Guyanese government were sincere or diversionary.
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Another example of his using the church was in his asking various church people to recommend him to a dental school scholarship committee; he was shortly thereafter awarded an eleven thousand dollar scholarship. He then quit the church.
Dated this 10th day of August 1977.
/s/ Andy Silver
Andy Silver
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-55
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-122. It also appears at B-5-c(54) on this page.)
State of California ) ss:
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF
ANDREW SILVERS
I,
That Jeanette Kerns Hommen [Hooman] was a person that I knew and went to college with. She was very much apart of the bourgoise life and often talked about finding herself a wealthy man and living in luxury. While she was a member of the Peoples Temple she used the church to finance her education. She was not a serious student, as became evident half way through her college education. She was seen attending and associating with members of the right wing, conservative political party on campus and she had affiliations with fundamentalist, evangelists who preached a reactionary doctrine on various campuses and they were commonly known amongst the socialist groups to be backed and financed by the CIA. The Temple youth became suspicious of her activities and associations and questioned her motives as being a member of a progressive church. Her response was cold and soon after, left the area.
After not seeing her for several months, she returned to the Temple with her newly acquired husband, the son of a government official of Iran. He was very supportive of the brutal facist regime of the Shah of Iran. Mr. Hummone was in the United States being educated at the expense of the Lockheed International Corporation in an arrangement made by his father, who represented the Shah, in arm sales negotiations. He defended the imprisonment of the poltical dissidents, and the torturing of anyone who
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questioned the policies of the government. Jeannette, agreeing with him fully, she stated that she was soon to move there and settle down. She expressed that she didn’t care about the suffering of the poor of Iran but was interested in the wealth that she would receive when she got there.
We mentioned to her that her mother and sister were going to Guyana to visit and possibly live. Both she and her husband objected, saying that only niggers lived in the little jungle and that they wouldn’t have it and would do everything in their power to hinder such a move. Jeanette said that Guyana “has gone Communist” and she wouldn’t allow her family to go there.
Dated this 10th day of August 1977.
/s/ Andrew M. Silver
Andy Silvers [“s” is struck]
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-56
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-121. It also appears at B-5-c(13) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Sandra L. Bradshaw
I, Sandra L. Bradshaw, being duly sworn, declare:
I live at 2544 Sutter Street, San Francisco, California. I have been a member of Peoples Temple for nearly 8 years. I have worked for the County of Mendocino, California as a Deputy Probation Officer for over 7 years. Through my association with Peoples Temple, I knew Wayne Pietila, Micki Touchette, Terri Cobb and Jim Cobb. On various occasions I was involved in attending a small group session with Wayne as leader, in which very violent terrorist acts were discussed in detail. Bishop Jones had suspected these people of being involved in such things, so he had sent me and others to this meeting to keep a check on Wayne’s activities. I have personal knowledge that on more than one occasion, Wayne initiated discussions advocating violence.
At one such meeting, that took place on the acreage of the children’s ranch run by the church, I saw Wayne Pietila participate in this meeting, and he reported that he had personally gone to a number of different armories to check them out to plan various maneuvers in anticipation of carrying off an armed attempt to “liberate” the guns and weapons stored inside.
Wayne also spoke of explosives and where to get them and how to use them. He used as a guide a terrorist book called the “Anarchist Cookbook”. He discussed putting poison in the water supply of major cities during an armed “take-over.”
Wayne Pletila went Into detail talking about killing Pres. Nixon, Governor Reagan, Governor Rockfeller, Billy Graham, Rev. Ike, and other religious leaders as well as political. Wayne Pietila also spoke freely about putting bombs under peoples cars and of various ways of getting terrorist supplies. Wayne had maps, gas tanks, military books, etc. He talked about his being the only person who was ‘dedicated’ to the ‘revolution’ and saw himself as an “heroic guerrilla fighter”. Wayne and Jim Cobb especially were always talking about guns and of doing things like destroying radio stations and other lines of communications. Wayne Pietila, Micki Touchette, Terri Cobb and Jim Cobb were consistently and actively involved in trying to get the church members to participate in violent terrorist activities. They left the church when their efforts were in vain and the church was following a course too moderate for their tastes.
In 1973, when Bishop Jones was discussing the possibility of starting an agricultural project in Guyana, So. America, these same people spoke out actively against doing so. They did not want us to expand our work to an under-developed country. Their main objection was that the leaders of Guyana had no revolutionary consciousness and there would be no significant contribution made to Guyana in the struggle for liberation. They also stressed
—–
CIA involvement and stated that the Guyanese leadership was not astute enough to realize just how infiltrated with agents they. were. These people openly professed and advocated the use of violent terrorist tactics and were dissatisfied not only with the peaceful, rational course the Temple was taking, but critIcized this same approach that the country of Guyana advocated.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Sandra L. Bradshaw
Sandra L. Bradshaw
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-57
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-119. It also appears at B-5-c(26) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF LAURIE EFREIN
I, Laurie Efrein, being duly sworn, declare:
Walter Jones was sent by the Temple Board as a consultant to the Guyana Mission. He was thought to have sufficient experience in mechanics and building to be able to assess the best outlay of the agricultural mission, particularly the building sites, well, and a potential hydro-electric plant. Rev. Jones had expressed extreme reservations about his selection as the person to do this job. He was new to the church and his loyalities and basis in socialist principle were completely unknown.
When he returned, he proved to the church membership that Rev. Jones’ reservations were justified. “Smitty” was threatened because he was under pressure of trying to hide a sexual affair he was having with the wife of one of our members. To build himself up in the eyes of this woman and to divide her from the church, he began to bad mouth everything the church was trying to do in Guyana. At first he attacked only the project, saying we would never make it function, and that we had made a stupid blunder in investing so much money there. Eventually, he attacked the people and government leaders.
He picked out very inconsequential things and harped on them to exaggerate a point. He said there were human feces left to lie around in food factories and people dumped raw
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-2-
sewage into canals through the city streets. He accused the government of talking big in their papers about new factories and improvements, such as a big new hydro-electric plant, but said the “stupid little country” would never produce a thing. He said there was gold and oil there that they were too stupid to recognize and develop. He said all mining operations had come to a standstill when the British were kicked out; that the country was committing economic suicide by nationalizing the only money-making industries left. As evidence of this, he said the bauxite industry was failing and the papers were lying to the people that they had actually made more profits since nationalization.
I was not surprised when he left the church and began to continue to degrade the Socialist Republic of Guyana and Peoples Temple, as he is now is doing in the press.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Laurie Efrein
Laurie Efrein
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-58
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-118. It also appears at B-5-c(62) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF HARRIET TROPP
I, Harriet Tropp, being duly sworn, declare:
That I was one of the college students in the dormitory at the same time as Jim Cobb, Terry and Wayne Pietilla [Pietila], Micki Touchette. When discussions would come up about the possibility of building an agricultural mission, all the above-named parties were very much against it. They called Guyana a Banana Republic, accused President Burnham of being a CIA plant and circulated literature stemming from an opposition movement within Guyana whose publication I believe was called “Dayclean”.
They furthermore believed that socialism would never be achieved in the manner of hard work and cooperation, but were solely interested in what they called “glorious revolution” — violent overthrow of capitalist systems. They said Guyana was a “hole” and backward and had no intentions of helping the church build a cooperative farm.
It seemed to me at all times that these were people who had no consistent commitment to socialist principle but were rather interested only in recruiting supporters for their anarchistic, self-aggrandizing goals, which allowed them to “play
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-2-
revolution” without the rigors of self-discipline. From the time the Temple started to consider building a socialist alternative in Guyana, these people worked actively against it.
Dated this 5th day of August 1977.
/s/ Harriet Tropp
Harriet Tropp
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-60
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-135. It also appears at B-5-c(9) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF DON BECK
I, Don Beck, being duly sworn, declare:
That I was in the traveling party from Peoples Temple the first time the church members and Rev. Jones went on a fact-finding trip to Guyana. This was the nation we had selected as a potential site for the development of an agricultural mission when we were interested in starting.
Danny Phillips was among the travelers to Guyana as well. As the trip progressed, he became more and more agitated. He joined us when we talked to officials, when we traveled to Matthews Ridge and were entertained at the Guyana house there, and went on a tour of the university. Every evening when we would return from our visits with the officials, we would join in discussion to try to determine the merits of our decision to locate in Guyana. Everyone in the group was extremely positive, but Danny was outright condemning. Nothing suited him. This took place in December of 1973. One night during our stay there was a demonstration of the PPP, and Danny went out to see what it was about. He did not return until many hours later. The next morning he told us he had been talking to members of the PPP which he was against the government. He accused the party in power, the PNC, of being racist and discriminatory against East Indians. He said they condenned homosexuals to to jail, and that in several cases homosexual males had been flogged. Danny was an acting homosexual.
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-2-
That night we visited with a man from Israel. Relations between Guyana and Israel were deteriorating at that time, and Danny evidently preyed on that man’s hesitancy about the PNC. That night Danny was extremely agitated and pressed Bishop Jones into hours and hours of discussion. Bishop Jones tried to assure him that his insecurities and fears were unfounded, but he refused to come to reason. He began yelling at all of us, told us we were crazy for coming to this “God forsaken place,” and ran out of the house in Kingston, Georgetown, where we were staying. His parting words were something to the effect that the best thing that could happen to Guyana would be for Venezuela to annex 2/3 of it, and Brazil the remainder. Evidently, he returned during the night and stole enough funds to set himself up for his return to the States.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Don Beck
Don Beck
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ Lisa P. Layton
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Two notary public seals]
—–
FF-4-A-61
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-134. It also appears at B-5-c(31) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF PHYLLIS HOUSTON
I, Phyllis Houston, being duly sworn, declare:
Was present when Birdie Marable drove her car up onto the sidewalk in an attempted murder of a 16 year old girl, Pam Bradshaw. She tried to run the girl down with her car because the teenager had made a suggestion the day before about how Mrs. Marable could better care for the seniors entrusted to her care. Mrs. Marable did not seem to care how these seniors were cared for. She would be serving time in the penitentiary at this moment had the girl not hopped a fence and run down an alley to ellude Mrs. Marable’s car.
Choosing to take out her demented hostility on children and seniors, Mrs. Marable was also guilty of leaving the seniors in her home without the care they required for days and weeks at a time. She took the money that was designated for their board, keep, and medical treatment to Reno and Las Vegas where she gambled regularly. She never returned the money to the elderly people. One woman in her care was fleeced for a new car, her life savings, and was neglected to the point her health completely deteriorated. This woman, left with nothing, is now bed-ridden. Mrs. Marable, meantime, has pursued partying and liquor and has complaints monthly for thousands of dollars of unpaid liquor bills. I personally called on patients in her home and found her in a stupor in the corner. Also, I have been there when she was absent for three and once four days standing, leaving the people without food or protection. She is currently in the position of losing her license to care for people in her home and is under investigation by the welfare agencies.
When the Church Board told her that she was no longer to consider herself a member of our congregation, pursuant to her delinquent behavior, she vowed in anger that she would get back at Rev. Jones and the entire membership. She practiced witchcraft and tried to bring curses, in her demented way, upon the church members. She tried to run down Pam Bradshaw with her car. She has bad-mouthed the church at every opportunity, though noone pays her any attention.
After our mission in Guyana had received some publicity, a series of very positive articles in the local press, Mrs. Marable wrote a letter to the editor in which she said that the glowing reports were all fabricated and that she would certainly not want to go to an under-developed, bug and snake-infested place like Guyana. The first-hand accounts of the church members who had visited the mission and had returned put to rest any doubts Mrs. Marable’s trouble-making could have caused. People in the community know her for a very troublesome, vindictive person and that she will soon lose her license for housing the elderly.
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I, personally, am glad that my children and loved ones are in Guyana, away from the likes of this demented woman, and other such unsavory people as have tried to cause harm to our work for the most vindictive, hateful reasons.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Phyllis Houston
Phyllis Houston
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ Lisa P. Layton
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-63
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-133. It also appears at B-5-c(57) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Carol A. Stahl
I, Carol A. Stahl, being duly sworn, declare:
I have known Jim Jones for the past 12 years.
I met Walter Jones, “Smitty”, when he first came to Peoples Temple, about four years ago. He avoided having anything to do with any of our black members if he could possibly do it. He made the comment that the only reason he even came was to please his wife.
He knew nothing about socialism and made no effort to learn. Whenever Jim Jones talked about Guyana and the beautiful Socialist government there, Walter would find something to do so as not to have to listen.
During the spring of 1976, Walter Jones went to Guyana for a visit. When he came back, he had nothing but derogatory remarks to make. He said things like, “… the country is generally 50 years behind the U.S.” Several times he said that the Guyanese didn’t even know how to wire their houses or cities. He said they were unable to keep the voltage consistent and that they didn’t even know any better than to have 50 cycle current. Then he would laugh in his superior way. He constantly put down the people there, saying that they were not equipped to handle routine work with machines and tools. I remember one remark he made about how you couldn’t trust the “darkies” to do it there any more than you could at home… that you’d have to do it for them. Walter said that he had been up to Matthews Ridge to see what there was in terms of facilities and materials. He said that all that was there was what the Union Carbide Co. had left. He said that since the Guyanese couldn’t repair anything so complicated, that it was all run down. He said that if Burnham had any savvy, he would welcome the company back again to get the place built back up.
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Walter said that he had read that Burnham worked for the CIA before and was probably still doing so. He called cooperative living a farce because people were too lazy to work for themselves, let alone for their neighbor. He said that at least the British knew this and kept things running.
In regards to the young man, Vincent Lopez, who is now living in Jonestown, Walter had nothing but disparaging remarks to make about him. Walter said Vincent was rather limited in his abilities and that he was incorrigible. Once on a summer trip we made back east just after Vincent left for Guyana, Walter said that Vincent wouldn’t be able to learn much from the “darkie” Guyanese schools. He went on, saying but then what could Vincent do anyway, since he was partly “dark” too. He remarked that the poor dumb little “wetback” wouldn’t even know if he were happy or not.
Dated this 17th day of August, 1977.
/s/ Carol A. Stahl
Carol A. Stahl
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R,. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-64
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-131. It also appears at B-5-c(17) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF JEAN F. BROWN
I, Jean F. Brown, being duly sworn, declare:
Wayne Pietilla [Pietila] was an agent provocateur within the ranks of Peoples Temple. He conspired with Terry Cobb Pietilla, Jim Cobb, and Micki Jean Touchette to tear down the socialist structure set up by Rev. Jones. They called meetings of Temple youth and preached violence. They purchased guns and tried to get young members into shooting practice. In one meeting I was present in, Wayne Pietilla told the group how to make bombs and laid plans to attack a National Guard Armory at the intersection of Highway 101 and Steele Lane in Santa Rosa. They planned to do this without the knowledge of Rev. Jones and Temple leadership and swore everyone in the meeting (which they held outside by the bank of a river in Redwood Valley) to secrecy. Wayne said that this was the way the group would force the Temple to take violent action. They planned to sieze the weapons in the armory and stand off the police, forcing Peoples Temple into defense of their actions.
The young people were persuaded that this was the right thing; that it would give Jim a platform to speak to the nation about racial equality and social justice for all Americans.
Their real intentions, however, were to divide the movement and bring it to its end. To this day, I believe they are paid informants, and their recent lies on Peoples Temple and Rev. Jones in the media bear this out. When they were unable to bring about
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-2-
the crisis they sought to because Rev. Jones discovered their plans and they were told to get rid of their guns, they left the church and have been conspiring to attack the Temple from without. Wayne approached me last year when he returned for a short time and told me if I would renounce Jim and the Temple and the socialist movement, that he and the others would make a comfortable life for me, that all I had to be ready to do was turn States evidence against my allegiances. He said Prime Minister Burnham of Guyana was a “Tom” and the CIA had beat Rev. Jones to the country. He said everything the church members were putting into the mission would be taken away when the work was done. The CIA had bargained with Burnham and guaranteed him that the country would get everything that belonged to the Temple if the government there would cooperate. I did not believe any of his lies because every since Pietilla and others named above have been associated with Peoples Temple, they have tried to sow this kind of division.
Dated this 2nd day of August 1977.
/s/ Jean F. Brown
Jean F. Brown
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R,. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-65
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-129 – A-130. It also appears at B-5-c(5) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF SHARON AMOS
I, Sharon Amos, being duly sworn, declare:
That Gary [Garry] Lambrev was one of the first people I met when I joined the Temple ten years ago. He was at that time, in my mind, very enthusiastic about socialism and very knowledgeable about the goals of socialism. Gary is very intellectual and so at first I was impressed by what he had to say.
Shortly after I joined the Temple, Gary came to my home and told me he was leaving the church because he didn’t believe that socialism considered the individual interests of people and he was afraid it led to communism. I told him that was not true because Jim Jones was always compassionate to people and that socialism was the only way that people got jobs and equality and justice. But he left the church and we heard no more of him for several months.
Later, he came back to Peoples Temple. I was surprised by this as he had been so adamant and in fact, denounced the whole socialist way of life and stated that he didn’t approve of the socialistic teachings of the church. He told me that he had used rationalization when he said he was afraid of socialism. He said that he was a homosexual and that he had gone out because he wanted to pursue his sexual interests in an orgiastic way and that this was the reason he had left.
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He said he had made a terrible mistake and that he wanted to prove himself and that the life he had led was superficial and meaningless and that he had done nothing for social causes since he had been gone from the church.
Gary stayed in the Temple this time for several months and than he told me he was leaving. This time he made no mention of disagreeing with the socialistic views. He, himself, along with one of our other members, Edith Roller, had been conducting classes on socialism and he had taken very strong stands in the class. He said that he likes a life style of the hippy people and that he missed taking drugs and that he likes to involve himself in sado-masochistic sexual activities with many men at one time. He said that he knew his activities were often depraved and involved young boys and beating them but that he did not want to give up this type of life style. This was a shock to us because though we knew Gary was homosexual, we didn’t realize the extent of his activities.
We saw him once as our buses were passing along the highway laying in a field. He looked like he was stoned on drugs and could barely orient himself. In a recent article, he complained that the church was organizing against Senate Bill 1 which is recognized by all people interested in Civil Rights as being very oppressive to the rights of people especially minority people who want to organize to better their situation.
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-3-
I feel that any person who is as dual as Gary Lambreth [Lambrev] and as fickle in his politics could easily be an agent provocateur who exploits his contacts with liberal groups to be paid. His dependence on drugs would make him very receptive to this kind of income. He has worked gainfully very little in his life and the last time he was out of the church, he took welfare money and said he was incapable of working so therefore he is dependent on agencies for his source of income.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Sharon Amos
Sharon Amos
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R,. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
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FF-4-A-66
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-128. The first page was duplicated at A-49. It also appears at B-5-c(25) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF JUNE CRYM
I, June Crym, being duly sworn, declare:
That I have known Marvin and Jackie Swinney since 1971 when I joined Peoples Temple. I remember noticing from the very start how Marvin and Jackie would ridicule their teenage son, Don Swinney, because he was slow and mentally retarded. Marvin was ashamed that the had brought a child into the world that was not “normal” and he never missed a chance to make fun of Don, to make him appear a fool. I saw Jackie and Marvin both physically beat Don many times – the child grew up constantly battered by his dad’s belt or his mother’s slaps. Don gradually became violent himself, following in his dad’s image. He bullied little children and threatened them constantly. When Don went to our Agricultural Mission in Guyana, to live with his uncle Tim and where he was later joined by his grandparents, his move came as the result of his having stolen a knife and threatened to cut some children at school with it. (Bishop) Jones wanted to save Don from certain imprisonment behind bars and so made a place for him in the Mission.
Marvin and Jackie Swinney remained behind in Redwood Valley, California, U.S. A., a very racist small town. The church of Bishop Jones was centered in Los Angeles and San Francisco and its membership was predominantly black. Jackie and Marvin stayed away and did not come to church services and told neighbors they didn’t want to be “niggers” anymore.
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About that time the church made known publically its advocacy of socialist philosophy as the natural humane way of life, and this declaration along with our obvious interracial commitment became too much for Marvin and Jackie.
They had a care home for teenage girls, and the girls complained of their beatings and physical abuse. Jackie and Marvin left the care home and moved away. They spent a lot of money on personal items, a boat, and cars and Marvin’s truck. They were very selfish and finally demanded that we send Don Swinney back to them from the mission. We asked them why, and Jackie said they wanted to be able to collect State money for Don because he was mentally retarded. They did not care about their son – it was only the money that they wanted.
Dated this 17 day of August 1977.
/s/ June Crym
June Crym
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R,. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
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FF-4-A-67
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-127. It also appears at B-5-c(14) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF JEAN F. BROWN
I, Jean F. Brown, being duly sworn, declare:
That Linda Mertle, daughter of Elmer and Deanna Mertle, was a racist and white supremacist. For a while, she appeared to take on a positive attitude to the Temple and integration, as taught by Rev. Jones. She became involved sexually with a black woman ten years her senior and used this woman as a slave.
She reacted violently when the woman broke off her relationship and became a vicious race-hater. She left the Temple membership and joined her parents. She harassed our black members in their homes and on the streets. She drove by as many as five times a day yelling racial obscenities out her car window at our black members, especially children and youth.
She accused the Temple of forcing her to relate to the other woman, and when she couldn’t get a reaction from the woman, she began pulling other Temple members aside telling them negative things about Guyana. She circulated copies of New Yorker and Ebony magazines which contained articles critical of the Prime Minister of Guyana. On three separate occasions. I know of, she spoke to young members of the Temple and tried to discredit Mr. Burnham and the Temple’s move in that direction. She said black people were ignorant and could
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never rule their own country or their own affairs. She said Burnham took money from Cuba and Russia and spent it on himself and his wife, showing the Ebony article to validate her charges. She made copies of the article and circulated it anonymously among members of the Temple she knew had given money to the Guyana Mission.
Dated this 2nd day of August 1977.
/s/ Jean F. Brown
Jean F. Brown
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R,. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
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FF-4-A-68
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-126. It also appears at B-5-c(15) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF JEAN F. BROWN
I, Jean F. Brown, being duly sworn, declare:
Deanna and Elmer Mertle spoke against the socialist ideals of Peoples Temple and Reverend Jones, against socialism as a philosophy or way of life, and especially against the government of L.F.S. Burham, Prime Minister of Guyana. believe that they were and still are agents of conservative, right-wing interests who are trying to discredit the work of the Temple and the character of Jim Jones.
Both the Mertles were known to members of the Temple to have been active in the John Birch Society before asking for church membership. The John Birch Society is the organized political arm of the far right forces in the United States. Both Deanna and Elmer used every opportunity to try to influence Temple members against socialism. I personally remember one morning at the Publications Center owned and operated by the church they would come where workers would gather and would read from Mao’s Red Book and ridicule the socialist teachings of that leader. They berated the teachings of Rev. Jones, saying that socialism gives power to “blacks and embicils” and lived apart from the communal structure at Peoples Temple taking every thing they could from the people.
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When they learned we were planning to develop an agricultural station in Guyana, they did what they called “independent research” on the nation and accused Mr. Burnham of being a CIA plant and that everything we put into that country would be taken away from us. They spread around among Temple membership literature that was hostile and negative about Burnham. They tried to poison the minds of Temple members whose relatives went among the first groups to the country. They tried to divide the people from the church saying to ones such as Tim Swinney’s family that there were race wars going on in Guyana and that Burnham was responsible for them. Elmer told the wife of Phillip Blakey that intermarriage was forbidden in that country and that whites were in virtual slavery there since the independence. He said to Debbie that Phillip had been, in effect, sold into slavery in Black Communist Guyana. He told her that the black leaders in Guyana were plotting to torture and banish to starvation in the jungle the white people in Guyana who were trying to run missions there and were part of the American and British churches in the country.
I swear these things are true and can be validated by the people whose names are mentioned as victims and witnesses to these white racists and anti-socialists.
Dated this 2nd day of August 1977.
/s/ Jean F. Brown
Jean F. Brown
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R. Randolph
NOTARY PUBLIC
[Notary public seal]
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FF-4-A-69
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-125. It also appears at B-5-c(24) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of June B. Crym
I, June B. Crym, being duly sworn, declare:
In 1973 I lived on North Dora Street in Ukiah, California, a block away from Birdie Marable’s rest home where she had several elderly patients living there. I witnessed Birdie drunk on liquor several times, when she was supposed to be taking care of her patients. I visited the care home from time to time and every time I was there she was sitting around drinking and would not pay attention when an elderly patient might ask for her help.
I also saw her at church at Peoples Temple, but I noticed that she didn’t attend regularly and when she did, she was very often hostile and rough with people, especially the elderly. She never participated when Bishop Jones asked for help for people in prison or to give food and clothing to a poor family. Birdie Marable was very selfish and greedy, and I heard her say she resented the church voting to give money or supplies to needy families. Instead she would come to church services wearing fancy silk dresses and big hats and show off, insensitive to those around her who couldn’t afford such things.
When Bishop Jones spoke about building an agricultural mission in Guyana, Birdie Marable disagreed and spoke out against it. She said the people in South America “are backward and primitive” and she didn’t want to give up her liquor and fancy clothes to build a mission in Socialist Guyana. For years Bishop Jones had explained in services the practicality and humane way of life in socialist countries, and we were all excited because we had a chance to start an agricultural station in Guyana. But Birdie Marable said that our mission would fail, that the Guyanese government would never succeed and instead the whole country would end up in poverty, and she did not want to be involved in anything like that. She did not want to give up her home or share any of her rooms with anyone, and she did not like the socialist idea of restructuring the economic wealth in the ownership of the people. She liked the capitalist way of
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life because of the personal advantages she had gained for herself and she did not care that others had less than she had. When she finally stopped coming to the Temple services, it was because she did not agree with our commitment to the agricultural station and working with the Guyanese people.
Dated this 17 day of August 1977.
/s/ June B. Crym
June B. Crym
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R. Randolph
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-70
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-124. It also appears at B-5-c(28) on this page.)
State of California )
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Laurie Efrein
I, Laurie Efrein, being duly sworn, declare:
Neva Sly lived in Redwood Valley for several years, and during part of that time I lived in the same house with her. She made no pretense about hiding a sexual relationship she had with Reggie Upshaw who at that time was still a minor. She talked openly about the sex they had, and would often make physical contact with him such as kissing and petting in front of children.
She deserted her own husband and son. Her son Mark has had several difficulties adjusting to people, and especially with young women. He exhibits hostilities toward women and especially is outspoken about his contempt for his mother. During a time when he (an adopted son) was in early adolescence and needed her emotional strength, she left him and rejected him. She humiliated him in front of other youths by relating to another young man, just a few years older than her son.
Further, Neva Sly left the Redwood Valley area and her husband and son, and relocated in Los Angeles. She got herself an apartment and a job, at which she earned a great deal of money. She provided nothing for her son by way of financial assistance and spent exorbitant amounts on herself. She ceased to contribute anything to the church ana tried to manipulate her son’s affections by arranging for him to stay with her in her apartment. She tried to buy back his affections with the purchase of material things. When the young man chose to stay with his father, who was still an active member of Peoples Temple and was participating stateside in mechanical work for equipment for the: agricultural mission, she began talking badly about the Temple and Bishop Jones. Her motives are, simply, jealousy.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Laurie Efrein
Laurie Efrein
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R. Randolph
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-71
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-123. It also appears at B-5-c(21) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF TIMOTHY CLANCEY
I, Timothy Clancey, being duly sworn, declare:
Deanna and Elmer Mertle are two of the most vicious, racist and classist people that I have ever known. They pretended to be interested in this church when they first attended. Mrs. Mertle came from a very conservative religious background and was also conservative politically. She belonged to the John Birch Society which is one of the most conservative rightwing organizations in the United States. Mr. Mertle is a man with a great deal of repressed hostility and has a tremendous desire to get revenge on the church.
Both of the Mertles are very judgmental people. They present themselves as very good people and put down other people, especially blacks whom they say can’t manage their lives at all. They had a young black teenager living with them, Lilly Victor, and they worked her from early morning to late at night, while they and their children enjoyed themselves. She had to work scrubbing on her hands and knees while the white teenagers had a good time. Their own children had not even a chore to do in the home. They said no man would want to marry Lilly, and especially no “white man. ”
Though the Mertles were in an atmosphere of cooperation and sharing of the workload, they never would do their part. Mrs. Mertle claims conditions were very bad for her but then in the same breath states she lived in a $90, 000 dollar house which the church paid for some of the payments on it so the Mertles would not lose their place of residence. The church supported this family for many months, but this was not sufficient for them, they now claim that they were exploited.
They also make claim that children in the church were mistreated. However, one of the little mixed race children that they took care of was sexually molested by Mrs. Mertle. Mr. Mertle was not to be undone in this kind of bizarre behavior of young children. He had sex with a teenage girl put in his care by a psychologist and this was reported by children who lived in the Mertle home and observed this.
Mr. Mertle had the nerve to say that Jonestown was a sterile place where nothing would grow and that the bananas in one of our pictures of Guyana’ for him to lie like this to have it printed in the press is a calculated attempt to were photographed at another site, and not in Guyana. He has been to Guyana and destroy socialism and discredit the work in Guyana.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977.
/s/ Timothy Clancey
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California
/s/ James R. Randolph
[Notary public seal]
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FF-4-A-72
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-82 and A-94. It also appears at B-5-d(38) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Lillie Mae Victor
I, LILLIE MAE VICTOR, being duly sworn, declare:
In 1975 Deanna and Elmer Mertle asked me to move in with them. I was 17 years old. We lived in Berkeley in their rest home, with 8 rooms on each of the 2 floors. Deanna kept me out of high school to use me as a house slave. She made me. clean every room, change every sheet on each bed and wash them, mop every room on each floor (16 rooms) plus the hallways and 4 bathrooms. I had to clean the bowel movement out of the toilet bowls. I worked from 8 am to 5 pri. Then I had to do the dishes after all the meals. Deanna constantly made racist remarks to me and about me. She said “sometimes I think you require a slave master to beat you, if that’s what you require, then I will beat you.” she told me to lie down, she saià she would put me in a trance and see why I was so hostile. Once when I had a cold I was really congested and had bad pain on one side of my head, in my back and arms. I asked Deanna to take me to the doctor. She refused and gave me somebody else’s medicine.
Sandy Rozynko, 16 years old, and Diane Mertle, age 15, their teenage daughter, would sleep in the bed and I had to sleep on the foor. Many mornings around 4 am Elmer Mertle would come into our bedroom, sit on the bed, and play sexually with Sandy Rozynko. I woke up to see him sneaking around our room several times; he’d be in there about five minutes.
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In 1975 Deanna and Elmer Mertle bought a big old house in Oakland, on Telegraph Avenue, that they were fixing up to sell. All of its windows were broken out. They told me to stay there and watch the house, all alone, 3 or 4 times. They left me in the daytime there and didn’t come back for me til the next day. There was no heat, no blankets. I slept on the couch in the front room covered with my coat. They also had an old house in Redwood Valley they had put up for sale. I had to mop and wax it with a rag on my knees all day and practically all night.
I had the flu and was left here in San Francisco at the church. Deanna said I was rebellious and didn’t like doing what I was told, that I can’t follow through on coming home. “Sometimes I don’t know whether you are crazy of retarded,” Deanna said to me. She said that a white person in that church would not let their white son marry a black girl like me. She said I was nothing but shit.
I saw Deanna and Elmer Mertle steal money from a church project. I saw them take it out of the box. They would spend it at K-Mart, the Gap, MacDonalds, pizza parlors. They were stealing the money that the high school students in the church were saving for their education.
There was a patient in their rest home who had bowel movement all over her body. Deanna made me clean up the mess and the patient. I had to give all the patients baths while Deanna laid in bed and slept. While Sandy Rozynko and Diane Mertle were in school, I had to stay there and work. Deanna told me she was a racist, that she hated black people even before she came to the church. She said if Jim Jones ever
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gave me anything to do, I couldn’t follow through with it. She said Jim only praises weak people. She asked me once when she was bringing me home why I cared about Jim.
Elmer and Deanna kept a rifle in their house in Redwood Valley. Deanna told me I could not look at TV until all my work was finished. She said, “I am not going to criticize you for a week; I am going to see how good you can work without a slave master.”
Deanna was always yelling and screaming at me about working. She said I had no character at all. When I cleaned up the bowel movement from a patient who had died, she said that showed growth on my part and that I have a little bit of character. They always talked about me behind my back, and when I walked in they would turn around and start smiling.
Sometimes I would fall asleep mopping the floor from being. so overworked. The chores I had to do each day were washing and cleaning dishes and kitchen after each meal; mop 16 rooms and wax them; fix each bed, 2 beds in each room, wash the clothes; give patients baths; clean 4 bathrooms; vacuum the living room; dust furniture; clean windows; sweep all the stairs; water the grass; do other odd jobs Deanna could find. Sandy Rozynko and Diane Mertle did not work.
Deanna would try and buy your friendship and keep you like a slave. She would tear down all confidence in yourself so
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she can be held up high. She makes you paranoid and makes you feel like you owe her a debt.
Dated: July 23, 1977.
/s/ Lillie Mae Victor
Lillie Mae Victor
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
for the State of California
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FF-4-A-73
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-83, A-98, A-104, and A-148. It also appears at B-2-d-12 on this page.)
AFFIDAVIT OF JANE MUTSCHMANN
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
I, Jane Mutschmann, being duly sworn, declare:
In September 1975 I was called on the phone early one morning, about 7:30 a.m., by Janet Shular. She said something had happened at her home and she wanted me to call Leona Collier, Bay Area secretary of our church, for her advice. She said to tell her that the same thing had “happened to Curtis Buckley that had happened to Margaret Bass” recently. (Margaret had passed.) I called Leona on her job at Sledge Lock. I told her what Janet had said. Leona said she could not take off work and asked if I would go over to Janet’s home immediately.
I caught the Muni bus to Janet’s as my car was not working at the time.
On arriving there, Janet looked distraught. She said Curtis Buckley had died in the night. She said she found out right before she called me. Janet said Curtis had gone to the movies the night before. When Curtis got home he was “groggy” as if on drugs. Janet said she assumed that some other youth had given Curtis drugs while at the movie.
She said she had Glenn Hennington walk Curtis for a long time to get him out of the “drug state.” It was late, she said, when she asked his friend and roommate, Glenn Hennington, to take him to his room downstairs. She said at that point Curtis fell down some stairs and hit his head. She said Glenn knew this but didn’t tell her until in the morning. Janet said she thought a good night’s sleep would bring Curtis out of it.
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I went downstairs to see Curtis. He was lying on his back in bed. I touched his face and slapped it lightly. He was cold, no breathing, and a bubbly substance, like soap bubbles but brownish, was coming out of his mouth continually.
I called Leona back and verified what had happened. Janet said she would take the body to the hospital, Mt. Zion Emergency, and explain what had happened. She didn’t want to call an ambulance, she said. I rode with Janet in the car to the hospital. I stayed in the car with the body, and Janet went in the hospital to explain the situation. I did not go in.
Dated: July 22, 1977.
/s/ Jane Mutschmann
JANE MUTSCHMANN
Subscribed and sworn
to before me, a Notary
Public for the State of California.
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FF-4-A-75
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-86 – A-87, A-96, A-107, and A-147. It also appears at B-2-d-14 on this page.)
AFFIDAVIT OF LEONA COLLIER
State of California ) ss
City and County of San Francisco )
I, LEONA COLLIER, being duly sworn, declare:
The following is what Janet Shular told me on a Thursday in September 1975. We were walking in a Safeway store. She told me that Curtis Buckley went out and got some dope. I asked her if she had taken him to a doctor. She said “no, I douldn’t do that.” I said, “well, is he all right?” She said, “yes, he’ll be fine.” I asked her what happened. She said he went out and got this dope Wednesday night. He wasn’t home when she got home later.
She said, “you know, I gave him a good whipping about this. I got tired and I walked him around and I turned him over to David. David really whipped his ass good and put him in cold water, alternating between whipping him and cold water, walking him up and down the hallway.” Later on that night she said she turned him over to Glenn Hennington, and Glenn whipped him and walked him around. She said Glenn admitted giving him Vivarins to wake him up.
On Friday on my job she called me and told me that Curtis was dead. I told her I couldn’t leave my job. I called
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Jane Mutschmann because I was scared Janet would go into hysterics. Janet and Glenn Hennington wrapped Curtis in a sheet and took him to Mt. Zion Hospital.
Dated: July 23, 1977
/s/ Leona Collier
LEONA COLLIER
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
for the State of California.
[blank signature line]
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FF-4-A-76
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-88, A-97, A-106, and A-146. It also appears at B-2-d-11 on this page.)
AFFIDAVIT
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
The undersigned, being duly sworn, deposes and says:
Jim Cobb, Wayne Pietila, Mickey Touchette, and I were members of the Peoples Temple Christian Church during 1972 and parts of 1973. During that time, we spent a great deal of time together because the Peoples Temple subsidized our college education and we lived in church sponsored dormitories. I continued in close contact with them until September 1973, when they, along with others, left. In December of that year, Wayne rejoined the church and left again about six months later. In January and February of 1974 Jim Cobb visited me several times.
During the above years, Jim Cobb and Wayne Pietila spent a great deal of time studying guerrilla warfare, weaponry, and explosives. They advocated change by violence, and said to me personally, that they were accumulating weapons. I often saw them with guns. After I left the church dormitories and went on to law school, they frequently held catharses, in which I heard of several participating church members in the college dorms beaten or being ordered beaten up by Jim Cobb and Wayne.
Wayne and Jim Cobb approached me on several occasions with requests to buy weapons. If the accusations about people being threatened with death are true, they are so only because Jim and Wayne made them. When Wayne returned in December 1973, he explained to me in a private conversation that he, Jim Cobb and Mickey Touchette and the ethers who went with them had left not because they were disillusioned with Jim’s leadership, his methodology, or goals, but because the church was not radical enough. According to Wayne, they hoped to
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form a revolutionary cadre for purposes of violent militant guerilla activity. He further stated that he and the others were armed to the teeth as they drove out of state on their way from the church, and that had any law enforcement officers pulled them over, Wayne and the others were prepared to shoot and kill them.
I was shocked and disappointed when Jim Cobb deserted his lovely wife, Sharon, and ran off with Mickey Touchette and the other so-called revolutionaries. In January and February 1974, Jim Cobb paid several visits to me in San Francisco. He confirmed Wayne’s statement that their reason for leaving was to commit revolutionary actions, and they left because Jim Jones was unwilling to do so, or involve the church.
Further, I was chief of the group who counted offerings during the period when Mickey Touchette was a member of the offering crew: I was responsible for tallying the offering count. She never knew the amounts of offerings. I attended all the services and never once heard Jim Jones misrepresent to the congregation the amount of the collections.
Dated this 21st day of July 1977.
/s/ Michael Bryce Cartmell
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for said County and State.
(Seal)
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FF-4-A-77
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-89, A-99, A-108, and A-149. It also appears at B-5-d(21) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Don Jackson
I, Don Jackson, being duly sworn, declare:
One Sunday morning, in October 1975, about 11:30 a.m., I saw Birdie Marable in a heated argument, cursing, using profanities, and acting like a wild beast. I walked over to the stairway at the back of our church to see what was going on. She was cursing loudly and began hitting Ronnie James in the face and threatening to kill him if he did not get out of her way. She was extremely drunk. She tried to tear Ronnie’s head off. This occurred at the back stairway of Peoples Temple Church, 1859 Geary Street, San Francisco, California.
Dated this 23 day of July, 1977.
/s/ Donald Jackson
DON JACKSON
Subscribed to and sworn before
me, a Notary Public in and for
the state of California.
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FF-4-A-78
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-90, A-100, A-109, and A-143. It also appears at B-5-d(34) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Kathy Tropp
I, Kathy Tropp, being duly sworn, declare:
Curtis Buckley had been living with Dick and I for about one year when he came down with tonsillitis. He had a susceptibility to tonsil inflammation, and infections. He was taking erythomycin for it. He got sick on or around Thanksgiving, 1972. He withdrew more over the next two days, finally getting extremely moody, refused to take his medicine, and seemed very angry. The next day his behavior was trancelike, and disoriented. I had to go to work, and so did my husband, Dick, so I started arranging people for him to stay with. Rene Jackson kept him at her house; and told me after I got back (she had him for a weekend) that he was crying at night, saying he was afraid of “little men” and wouldn’t go into the bedroom. She insisted he go to bed and told him there was nothing to worry about. He also got violent with. her the next day, she said. When Curtis came home, he had the same spacey manner; for the next two months he never lost it. Events after that were that he was counseled by our pastor, Jim Jones. Curtis’ behavior toward Dick and me was more dependent, childish. He continued to complain about seeing little men. Mark Boutte was living with us at the time.
At one point I asked the Mertles to keep him for a day or two. I may have asked them to keep him for a longer time, I do remember that after one night, Elmer Mertle called me up and told me to come and get Curtis. I don’t remember exactly what he did to alarm them, but when I came over to get Curtis, both Elmer Mertle and Deanna Mertle were sitting there looking
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very scared. I don’t know what he did. Dick and I took Curtis to San Francisco to see a doctor.. We stayed over at Janet Shular’s house. I think we took him down there to stay with her. She agreed to take him. We talked about schools for him and therapy. At some point, Curtis seemed better, started talking. He said he had used a slingshot and shot and killed a bird, on his last day at school before he got sick. The child who gave him the slingshot also gave him some pills, he said. This seemed to explain his weird behavior. We figured he had taken drugs. I don’t know if this admission on his part came now or later. I was at work when Janet Shular called me, about three weeks after he had gone down there to stay with her. Curtis had very suddenly “snapped out” of his state and was talking and crying and acting very normal.. It may have been then that he told Janet about the slingshot, killing the bird, and the boy giving him drugs.
Curtis came home to stay with us again. We seemed to have more of a rapport after that. That spring we moved to a house in Calpella. Curtis asked me if he could move to San Francisco. I didn’t think it was a very good idea and I told him so. At that time the church work was centered in Redwood Valley, and I saw his going to the city as a move away from it. Curtis had a relapse around April of that year. He started acting spacey again. Curtis went back to Janet’s and started acting like himself after a couple of days, at which time it was agreed he should stay with her.
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He fell back into the spacey thing several times after he moved to San Francisco. Janet told me about it. It seemed to coincide with times that his tonsils were inflammed, and Janet eventually started avoiding antibiotics with him, since he seemed to have this reaction to them.
Dated this _____ day of July, 1977.
[blank signature line]
KATHY TROPP
Subscribed to and sworn
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of
California.
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FF-4-A-79
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-91, A-101, A-110, and A-142. It also appears at B-5-d(16) on this page.)
State of California ) ss
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Pauline Groot
I, Pauline Groot, being duly sworn, declare:
Birdie Marable had a care home with four seniors. She wanted somebody to be there at night so she could be somewhere else. She offered me room and board in return for me living there, and always being home at night. I agreed.
There were several things funny about this deal from the beginning. One was that my room was separate from the rest of the house, a “guest room” in a separate building from the rest. While I was legally on the property, if there had been any emergency with the old people such as a fire or a heart attack, I wouldn’t even have known about it.
Another problem was that, when I moved in, she promised to put a bed and a heater in the room. She did put the bed in but as for the heater, I had to borrow it from the house, and it had no thermostat, so the room was always cold when I came home at night and always cold when I got up in the morning. She even tried to prevent me from borrowing the heater from the house.
I would have been quite willing to live in the house with the seniors. There was a very comfortable couch in the living room, and it was much warmer there. Birdie frequently kept an open hearth fire in the living room. I could have slept on the couch in confort, and kept an eye on the fire, and kept my ears open for trouble. I could have stored my clothes and stuff in the guest room. I actually did this one or two nights.
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But Birdie wanted me in the guest room out of the house. She said I was a nuisance and didn’t look tidy on her good couch. So she made me stay in the guest room, and leave the seniors unprotected at night.
This worried me. I talked to Penny Kerns about it before moving in. Penny advised me not to move in at all, or at the very least, not to move in until after Birdie put in a bed and a good heater, in that room, and to get some money for being there. So I did try to do as Penny advised.
The next thing I heard was that Birdie had threatened to cut up Penny Kerns with a knife. I did not personally witness the threat, but I believed it. It sounded like something Birdie would do. I didn’t want any more trouble so I moved in. I even did some chores for Birdie, after she’d promised me I woulán’t have to. I stayed in my guest house mostly, and stayed out of Birdie’s way as much as possible. I heard her say that she had already put her husband in the hospital in a fight, and so I stayed out of her way even more.
One of the seniors was a big capable woman, who did most of the cooking and chores. I don’t know how Birdie was able to get money for caring for her, she was quite able to care for herself and others. Another senior, a little-wispy woman, begged me to write a letter and keep it secret from the others. She said her mail was opened and her person was threatened. I wrote the letter. A few weeks later she had moved to Los Angeles. She said she was relieved to get away.
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After about two months of this I saw a chance to get out. I moved myself and all my goods and gear at night, without letting Birdie know where I was going. she never aid find me. I heard she wanted to kill me too, but she never got the chance.
Dated this __ day of July, 1977.
[blank signature line]
Pauline Groot
Subscribed to and sworn
before me, a Notary Public,
for the state of California.
—–
FF-4-A-80
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-92, A-102, A-111, and A-145. It also appears at B-5-d(11) on this page.)
State of California ) ss
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Jackie B. Colbert
I, Jackie B. Colbert, being duly sworn, declare:
I lived with Myra Wilson until I was 13 years of age. I moved to 698 N. Oak Street, Ukiah in July of 1973. Birdie Marable lived across the street. She used to come to our house and visit every day unless we were gone on the weekend. She used to sit down and talk with my foster mom. At this time they only visited and didn’t drink. Birdie would swear a lot when she talked. When she moved to Washington Court on Washington Street in Ukiah, she would come to the rest home days. She sometimes left the patients unattended.
One day I couldn’t find my mom and I walked to Washington Court to see if she was at Birdie’s. She was there and this. was the first I had seen my mom with beer and Birdie had beer. And my little brother Harold was drinking beer too. He had his own can of beer. He is mentally retarded and was 13 then and a foster child.
This was around 10 pm at night. My foster mom offered me a beer in front of Birdie. I said, “no, that’s o.k.” Birdie was living alone at this time.
Birdie would say things like “I’ll kick some asses in that church,” referring to Peoples Temple.
She was always making threatening comments like this about Peoples Temple.
At different times I could smell liquor on her.
——
Myra told me that when she died everything was willed to Harold and I. But when she died, Birdie went and got her furniture. All of Myra’s furniture was in Birdie’s garage. I saw it with my own eyes.
The next time I saw Birdie and Myra drinking, I came home from school and Myra wasn’t home. I went over to Birdie’s house again. This was the same week. They were drinking again and Birdie was smoking. And this time I reported it to Jack Beam.
The third time I saw them drinking, it was night time several weeks later just a few days before Myra died. Birdie and Myra left Harold and me unattended alone and Myra came home around midnight and had been drinking. (The house was always dirty and beer cans were all over.) I was sick and trying to find her. She said she had been with Birdie. After she started drinking with Birdie, she developed problems with edema of the legs and phlebitis, and she had to take water pills. She had had an enlarged heart.
A day or so later I found my mom dead in the laundry room. I was 13. Don and Thelma Jackson with Peoples Temple got me legally.
Dated this ___ day of July, 1977.
[blank signature line]
Jackie B. Colbert
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public,
for the state of California.
—–
FF-4-A-81
(Editor’s note: This affidavit was duplicated on this section at FF-4-A-93, A-103, A-112, and A-144. It also appears at B-5-d(22) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Michael Klingman
I, Michael Klingman, being duly sworn, declare:
I am now a member of the Peoples Temple Christian Church and I reside at 2451 Road K, Redwood Valley, California. I first attended the Peoples Temple in February, 1971. At that meeting, held in Redwood Valley, Jim Cobb was confronted by Pastor Jim Jones and the congregation for engaging in rifle practice. Cobb admitted that he was doing this secretly and clearly without the permission or support of the pastor and congregation. Pastor Jones stated that such endeavors were completely contrary to the principles of the church and demanded that such activity cease immediately and permanently. Cobb responded that he had always thought of himself as dying violently in a revolution and that he did not plan to live past age 30.
Dated: July ___, 1977.
[blank signature line]
MICHAEL KLINGMAN
Subscribed to and sworn
before me, a Notary Public,
for the state of California.
—–
FF-4-A-114
(Editor’s note: This affidavit also appears at B-5-d(26) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF JIM RANDOLPH
I, Jim Randolph, being duly sworn, declare:
That Elmer and Deanna Mertle’s keen interest in the Guyana Program was connected with making money. At the time it didn’t seen so; we all thought Elmer Mertle was just interested in making the go of cooperative living succeed. We were both taking pictures that Christmas in 1974 when a group of us went over. I was overwhelmed with the beauty I saw in the people and the country; but all his comments were directed at posing pictures to appeal to people back home. He seemed overly concerned about it. He mentioned several times all the money these photographs could bring in. He looked for pictures to show poverty and underdevelopment. He spoke of Guyana as a backward country that would arouse people’s sympathy.
Elmer Mertle never really seemed to grasp the idea that the agricultural program was real. We learned of this more and more as he became very much against large investments into the program –not so much with people as monies.
Elmer Mertle’s pattern in the states, we found out later, involved various money raising schemes that he and his wife handled themselves using the name of the church. His interest in raising money off Guyana pictures was not so much for the program as for himself.
—–
-2-
Elmer Mertle seemed very much interested in a group that we sort of bumped into in the NWR that Christmas. They were from Texas and had a fancy private plane. He had expressed interest in contacting them and as far as I know, had done so. But I never recall any feedback from him. It was after that that he became more interested in the project as a means to export goods from the leasehold. Exporting lumbers, foods, plants, fruits, etc. to the United States and other countries were mentioned. All these ideas were turned down by our Pastor and the Board. He was greatly opposed to selling our produce and other products at cost; he saw no reason to be nonprofit. He spoke a great deal about looking for gold and diamonds. It was shortly after this time that some of his and his wife’s money-making schemes came to light. Not long after, they separated themselves from the church.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977
/s/ Jim Randolph
Jim Randolph
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the state of
California.
/s/ Lisa P. Layton
NOTARY PUBLIC
—–
FF-4-A-116
(Editor’s note: This affidavit also appears at B-5-d(19) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
AFFIDAVIT OF LEE INGRAM
I, Lee Ingram, being duly sworn, do declare:
I was present the night that Anita Petit came to Bishop Jones and asked for help out of a jam she was in. She said she had been involved in forging and passing checks with another person and was afraid for her life. She was wanted by the police for a felony offense and by her former companion who had gotten her involved in crime. Bishop told her he would help her out of trouble and would see that she got legal assistance free of any charge. The church legal staff provided legal counsel, testified on her behalf, and church members wrote letters attesting to her desire to begin a new life. The church, Bishop Jones in particular, accepted responsibility for Anita and acted as her sponsor for the ensuing probationary period. Her children were to be taken away from her but again the church was able to intercede on her behalf and members were authorized by the court to take her children into their homes. When she was through the probation and had shown interest in learning a trade, the Temple-paid for her training as a dental assistant.
But Anita, as soon as she was in the clear, reverted to her previous ways. She left her children, whom she had again received custody of, with people and left for days at a time. It was commonly known that she was prostituting again, as she had been before coming to the Temple. Eventually she disappeared altogether, and left her children behind.
When she did re-appear in the midst of the congregation, several members, myself included, noted that she kept company with a man who is known in the community as a police informer. She was regarded with suspicion and not trusted from that point on, although for the sake of her children was admitted into church services.
Dated this 11th day of August, 1977,
and subscribed and sworn to before me,
a Notary Public for the State of California
/s/ James R Randolph NOTARY
[blank signature line]
Lee Ingram
[Notary public seal]
—–
FF-4-A-117
(Editor’s note: This affidavit also appears at B-5-c(12) on this page.)
State of California ) ss.
City and County of San Francisco )
Affidavit of Sandra L. Bradshaw
I, Sandra L. Bradshaw being duly sworn, do declare:
I live at 2544 Sutter Street, San Francisco, California.
I have been a member of Peoples Temple for nearly 8 years. I have served the county of Mendocino as a Deputy Probation Officer for over 7 years. Through my association with Peoples Temple, I know Elmer and Deanna Mertle, Linda Mertle and Sandy Rozynko. Elmer and Deanna Mertle helped run the churches’ publications department. What I should say, to be more accurate, is that they were listed among a large group of people who worked in publications. To say that the Mertles “worked” there would be an insult to the others. Deanna and Elmer never kept regular hours and constantly clustered in a small family group, often taking off to go to the lake etc. while others were left in the shop working. The Mertles also felt no qualms about constantly taking special favors for themselves. Their office was elaborately furnished with a television, stereo system and fine office furniture all which was paid for with unauthorized church funds. They placed these special orders for themselves without requesting appropriate approval. It was obvious from the beginning that the mertles felt they were better than other people –they had a racist, elitist point of view.
I first met the Mertle family on a church outing of a Temple financed boat cruise around the San Francisco Bay on one of the ferryboats. I can still remember telling Deanna that I was married to a Black man and she called her husband, Elmer over to the rail where we were standing and started asking me very racist questions, like “what is it like with a Black man?” and more personal questions about my life with my husband. My first impression of this very conservative “white” family has not changed much with what I have seen over the years. They are right-wing die-hard capitalists with no
—–
moral ethics.
I heard Deanna Mertle stand up in a meeting and admit that the only time that she reached sexual climax was when she heard a child crying in pain. Her husband was there at the time and he verified her statement.
I also know from first hand information and from Deannas’ own admission, that she was sexually attracted to Sandy Rozynko, who was underage at the time. Sandy Rozynko had been a youngster with leadership potential before associating and living with the Mertle family. Linda Mertle was an overt lesbian by her own admission and was very active in trying to recruit other young and innocent girls into that type of life style. This was confirmed by her many various partners.
Deanna and Elmer Mertle admitted that they had engaged in various group sex acts with both Sandy Rozynko, Linda Mertle and various other people. It is my opinion and observation that these are people of very. low moral apptitude and I even question if they were perhaps agent provocateurs from the beginning. In looking back on their reactionary orientations and efforts to block the progress of this organization, I can not help but think that this is the truth. Their purpose was to infiltrate and cause dissention.
Dated this 17th day of August 1977
/s/ Sandra L. Bradshaw
Sandra L. Bradshaw
Subscribed and sworn to
before me, a Notary Public
in and for the State of California.
/s/ James Randolph
[Notary public seal]