LL-3-d
[Handwriting: two stars in left margin]
Phone call Mr. Ramirez, DA’s office
213-974-3667
July 24, 1978, 11:00 AM
I spoke with Ramirez who indicated he wanted to talk with Mr. & Mrs. Leonard Datson, Verlina Hollins, Florida Johnson, concerning the possible crime committed by James MacElvane and James Jones — the crime being extortion. He said he couldn’t wait until you were through with your murder case in Marin and [unreadable] couldn’t get you a day or two recess so he could conduct his investigation in your presence. He said he would attempt to interview these people even though I had asked him not to and said those were your wishes. He said a Crime had been committed — when I pointed out to him there was only a possibility of a crime — he said he stood corrected. He said he has been receiving letters for a month from members of PT threatening him. I told him it couldn’t have been us since we didn’t even know he existed until Friday. He refused to tell me the content of the letters or the names of those who had written — and said “I know they are members”. I asked him how he knew and he said he wasn’t under any obligation to reveal his investigation to me. He asked for the name of the case in Marin and for the name of the judge we were before. I told him if he could stop the trial he sure had a lot of power. He went into the whole crime thing again and I said I thought it was silly to think of asking clients to give information concerning other clients. He kept referring to the Temple as a business and not a church — the business being run by Mac and Jones. I kept saying you represented the church on some occasions and some individuals within the church on others. I told him he was really interfering in a Civil litigation pending in the LA courts and he said he wasn’t. I told him there was a counter suit filed against SToen the Medlocks attorney and he said it was of no concern of his — I was just confusing the issues of a commision of a crime. He indicated he would go ahead and I finally got him to promise to call you tonight at 6PM. He said he would do so before he went ahead. He suggested that you call the office and talk to just anyone on duty. I said does that mean the entire staff is aware of this case and he said “okay, I will call him.”
Clients notified not to speak to anyone through Jean Brown.
[Photocopy of business card for John Van de Kamp for the Office of the District Attorney Bureau of Investigation]