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1/22/16 – Police records obtained by the Banning Informer indicate that Mayor Pro Tem George Moyer has been under Police investigation for making death threats against one of his immediate neighbors in Sun Lakes.

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QUESTIONABLE CONDUCT BY PUBLIC OFFICIALS IS NOTHING NEW IN BANNING

If you have lived in Banning for any length of time, nothing will surprise you when it comes to the conduct of some public officials.

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• Not too long ago, Banning had a Mayor who was accused of sexual harassment, criminal sexual battery and false imprisonment (see our article here).

• In 2012, not one, but two candidates for Banning City council had active warrants for their arrests in other States (read story about one of them here).

• Several years ago, former City manager Andy Takata hired an Economic Development director that had an arrest record for solicitation of prostitution (click here to view Police Report).
  

• In 2012 former Mayor Debbie Franklin held an unlawful and unpermitted party at the Banning Fire Memories Museum, which lead to the death of senior citizen (see article here).

• Currently, Mayor Art Welch’s intimate involvement in the Banning Chamber utility scandal is being investigated by a Grand Jury.

 

Over and over again, it seems that Banning serves as a catch basin for shady, if not corrupt public officials. Despite such a wide array of alleged malfeasance, so far no Banning public official has ever been accused of making death threats – until now!
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“GO GET YOUR GUN AND JUST SHOOT THE SON OF A BITCH!”

According to Banning PD report #15-909, the following occurred on March 28, 2015: Moyer’s immediate neighbor John Clarke called 911 (click here to view the entire Police report) . Upon arrival of the officers, Clarke made the following statements:

Him and his neighbors, George and Sandra Moyer, have had disputes over each other’s barking dogs for a very long time. Clarke stated that he had made “dozens and dozens” of complaints about Moyer’s dogs to the Sun Lakes administration – to no avail, (Moyer is the President of Sun Lakes).

Clarke reported that he was in his backyard with his dog, when he heard an unidentified female voice addressing him with : “Oh yeah , you (Clarke) getting a good look, you pervert. You are a pervert, aren’t you, you pervert.” Clark reported then hearing an unidentified male voice, which he believed to be Moyer, saying : “Go get your gun and shoot the son of a bitch”.

Clarke stated to the officers that “the phrase scared the crap out of me”. He said he immediately went into his house and called 911.

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MOYER DENIES THE ALLEGATIONS

When talking to the officers, George Moyer admitted making a comment to Clarke across the fence about his dog, but denied saying “Go get your gun and shoot the son of a bitch”. Moyer stated that he was the only one near the fence, and that his wife Sandra at all times played cards inside his house with their friends, Steve and Sabina Goldbach.

It goes without saying that John Clarke’s accusations are very serious in nature. If true, they must not merely be classified as a “domestic disturbance”, but rather constitute a “ Criminal Threat” under PC 422.

No charges have been filed. John Clarke could not be reached for comment.

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DOES GEORGE MOYER HAVE THE INTEGRITY REQUIRED TO HOLD PUBLIC OFFICE?

The accusations made by his neighbor raise questions about the character and integrity of George Moyer. They also seem to indicate that, at a very minimum, Moyer completely lacks even the most basic of social skills. According to the report, Moyer did not claim to have made any attempts to diffuse the situation.

Are there other red flags indicating that Moyer may have a temper?

Here Moyer’s conduct at a recent council meeting comes to mind. At that meeting, Moyer was being challenged by former City councilmember Jerry Westholder for his lack of payment of  Sun Lakes’ outstanding utility debt, currently standing at over $ 220,000.

In his response, Moyer lost his temper, calling Westholder’s comments “a bunch of junk”. Please listen to Moyer’s outburst:

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As we can hear Moyer state on the recording, he recused himself from the Sun Lakes water scandal “long ago”. For Moyer to publicly comment on the matter after he had already recused himself, constitutes a blatant violation of the Brown Act.

In more ways than one, Moyer’s conduct appears to fall below the ethical standards applicable to a sitting City councilmember, If anything, Moyer’s behavior seemed to validate his neighbor’s allegations to the extent, that he tends to lose his temper rather easily.

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CONCLUSION

George Moyer has not been convicted of any crime and therefore must be afforded the presumption of innocence. However, it must be noted that Moyer is the first public official in Banning to ever be accused of making death threats.

Given George Moyer’s recent short tempered outburst on the City council, one cannot help but wonder about his character and integrity.

As Sun Lakes’ president and Mayor Pro Tem, does it appear that George Moyer has what it takes to bring the people of Banning together? Or are we dealing with yet another corrupt politician,  who thinks he is now so powerful that he is untouchable and above the law?

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