132

After Months, Years, Rumors Lead to Facts Revealed About Candidate Corkey Harmon’s Tragic Family Ties

Prologue

This story inspects and dissects graphic rumors tied to District 3 Candidate Corkey Harmon regarding both close and extended Harmon family connections.

Much of our reporting will exonerate Harmon.

While I cannot speak for what’s being said to other local media professionals, since the first week in May, A News Cafe has been accused of burying this story, and even participating in the story’s cover-up.

One evening several months ago I received an extended, highly charged phone call from the sobbing mother of a man who’d died in Redding. That deceased man is one of the key subjects in this story. The mother raged, cried, and begged me to not write about her son.

My journalist side was overpowered by the maternal weight of the part of me who, like that protective mother of the deceased man, has adult kids and grandchildren. My heart connected with the grief-stricken, angry mother on the phone. I buckled. I agreed to not do the story.

That night, the mother in me said I’d done the right thing. The journalist in me disagreed.

That was nearly six months ago. 

Fentanyl, the death of two prominent local sons, and our community’s collective inability to deal with their loss led to the rumors and lack of coverage. A News Café is now setting the record straight.

Before now, the time never seemed right to reveal what we’d heard, what we knew for sure, what was false and what we didn’t know. Until today. Today’s that day. 

The parents of the deceased man mentioned here are aware of A News Cafe’s decision to proceed with this story. 

Candidate Corkey Harmon’s complicated familial connections

Corkey Harmon at work. Campaign video screengrab.

Corkey Harmon’s a laid-back, golly-gee-whiz country guy and successful businessman who’s running for office. His decision in late 2023 to become a candidate for Shasta County’s District 3 Supervisor race catapulted him from private Palo Cedro citizen to an overnight prominent person. Topped by a black dress-cowboy hat, Harmon’s face appears on ads plastered all over social media.

Massive Corkey Harmon signs are also scattered throughout Shasta County and beyond.

According to his campaign website, curbing drug abuse is among Harmon’s top priorities: “Understanding the critical role of law enforcement and community security, I am dedicated to tackling the county’s issues concerning the jail, crime, homelessness, drug abuse, and mental health. My #1 priority is to reduce crime and homelessness. We need to take swift action by implementing successful strategies from other regions, tackling mental health and addiction issues, and embracing an approach that combines responsibility, accountability and empathy. My commitment is to create a safe environment for all residents.”

You’ve already read a lot about Corkey Harmon here. And here. And here.

Although this story involves Harmon, he’s not the main focus. Rather, we report on Harmon’s relevant family connections, and three specific stories related to Harmon that have remained submerged; two for nearly six months, and one for more than three years.

Unchecked and unreported, two of these stories have metastasized into a toxic series of persistently larger rumors that have branched off into ugly new rumors, some of which are so egregious that they will not be repeated here, to avoid lending them credence.

Two of the stories are tragic; about a pair Shasta County men who died in the spring. Although the deceased men were not related to one another, each had familial ties to Harmon, a relatively newbie public figure by virtue of being a candidate running for the District 3 Supervisor seat against incumbent Mary Rickert.

The third story concerns a legal inquiry from three years ago. It pertained to Harmon’s connection by marriage to a Shasta County Superior Court judge who was scheduled to preside over a trial that some North State attorneys believed were grounds for the judge to either pass the trial onto another judge, or verbally disclose his potential family conflicts and connections at the start of the trial.

Double tragedies

The men died three days apart; one in Redding, and the other in Palo Cedro. Despite the fact that each of the deceased men were sons of two well-known prominent North State public personalities, until now, no local media outlet has reported details about Harmon’s relationships to the two men.

The prominent fathers are KRCR news anchor Mike Mangas, and former Shasta County Sheriff Jim Pope.

Respectively, the deceased sons were 41-year-old Andrew Mangas, and 56-year-old Kevin Pope.

Andrew Mangas

Andrew Mangas died on May 1 of a fatal fentanyl overdose. He was 41. Early that morning his girlfriend found Mangas unresponsive inside one of the Harmon home’s bathrooms. Mangas, his girlfriend, and their 2-year-old daughter had been visiting the Harmon home from Texas for an annual Harmon family reunion. Mangas’ girlfriend is Corkey and Cindy Harmon’s eldest child; Corkey’s stepdaughter from Cindy’s previous marriage.

Mangas had a history of drug abuse, both with prescriptions and illicit substances. According to the Shasta County Coroner’s report, the family stated that Andrew Mangas had been in rehab approximately 15 to 20 years earlier, and his family believed he had been clean for about five years. The coroner’s “presumptive” toxicology report about Andrew Mangas listed toxic levels of fentanyl, as well as methamphetamines, morphine, oxycontin and cocaine, among other drugs in his system.

According to the coroner’s report, Andrew Mangas “…was last seen alive at approximately 2230 hours the night prior as he was going into the bathroom. Foil, tooter straw, lighter and small clear container with white powdery residue was located within his pant pocket.”

There were no responses to A News Cafe’s invitation to Andrew Mangas’ parents and girlfriend to submit photos of Andrew, or statements and/or memories about him.

Mike Mangas TV news anchor/co-grandfather

The close relationship between Corkey Harmon’s daughter and Mike Mangas’ son produced a child, making Corkey Harmon and Mike Mangas grandfathers to the same little granddaughter.

From left, District 3 Supervisor candidate Corkey Harmon chats with KRCR TV news anchor Mike Mangas during a recent political event. The men have a 2-year-old granddaughter in common.

It’s unknown whether Mangas has ever disclosed the men’s family ties during his KRCR reporting on Harmon’s run for elected office.

Kevin Pope

Kevin Pope photo courtesy of Jim Pope.

Kevin Pope died of congestive heart failure on April 28 at the age of 56. Although Pope’s death record contained no toxicology screening results — unlike Andrew Mangas’ — the Shasta County Coroner’s Office report provided some limited findings regarding Pope’s death.

The Shasta County Coroner’s report said methamphetamine was found in Pope’s urine.

“The positive urine test for methamphetamine cannot be ignored and it must be considered as a factor leading to his heart condition. Therefore, the cause of death was determined to be congestive heart disease with other significant conditions of methamphetamine use.”

Despite the coroner’s report, Former Sheriff Jim Pope doesn’t believe his son was a
drug addict.

These drug details will become more relevant later.

In a recent lengthy interview with former Sheriff Jim Pope in his Redding home, he recalled April 24, the day he dropped off his adult son Kevin Pope at Shasta Regional Medical Center’s emergency room after Kevin Pope had complained the previous night and following morning of chest pressure and shortness of breath. Pope, who wiped away tears as he spoke, said he and his son both believed that Kevin Pope would be examined, treated, and released to return home. In fact, Pope said he was so sure that his son would be OK that he drove to Aqua Golf on Park Marina Drive in Redding to pass the time and hit some golf balls for more than an hour. However, upon Pope’s return, his son’s condition had worsened. Four days later Kevin Pope died in the hospital, surrounded by family. He was 56.

Kevin Pope, a gentle soul who helped people

From Pope’s living room he said that in all his 83 years, throughout all the heartaches — and even facing the most gruesome, nearly unspeakable violent crimes he’d witnessed during his time as sheriff — by far, his son’s death is the most painful, difficult thing he’d ever faced.

Jim Pope photo by Doni Chamberlain.

Pope said he and Kevin, his only son — who was adopted — were extremely close. He said they’d spoken nearly every day. Pope described his son’s smile as one that “lit up a room”, and added that Kevin Pope’s helpful, lovable nature drew people to him.

Jim Pope recalled his son’s younger years; a gifted athlete, a “good boy” who loved his mother, father, his two younger sisters, and his Lord Jesus.

Pope recalled many years earlier, following his son’s work trip to Alaska, when Kevin Pope moved into his own small space on his parent’s property behind their house, and remained there for the rest of his life. He gave up driving, and used a bike for transportation.

Tami McKay, the Shasta County Deputy Coroner who prepared the report on Kevin Pope, included a notes about her conversation with Jim Pope.

The coroner’s report quoted Pope as saying he was unaware that his son had any drug-abuse issues, and that his son did occasionally drink beer. But at the conclusion of the report, under the social history section, Kevin Pope was described as an “unmarried male who resided with his parents and had a history of drug use.”

Pope choked up as he showed a wood project that Kevin had made at about age 8, of a wood-on-wood rustic cross. A small eyelash-shaped sun peeked out from the left corner, while w-shaped birds dotted the background.

“I mean, look at this. This is what got me,” Pope said. “The Holy Spirit had to direct him. See, he put the crosses, and birds flying, and clouds,” Pope said of his young son’s artwork.

“He didn’t even tell us. I didn’t even know. He just made it for us.”

Pope opened the back door and pointed outside to a small wooden playhouse he’d built for his daughters, and pointed to something small nailed above the door.

“See, he made that little white cross,” Pope said. “That was just something he wanted to do.”

Pope said that Kevin was beloved and trusted by many people, such as family members, friends and neighbors who relied upon Kevin to chop fire word, do minor repairs, and take care of their yards. Pope said many of these people openly wept when they heard Kevin had died. One neighbor, a retired parole officer, even entrusted Kevin with keys to their home so Kevin could come and go and do odd jobs for them when they were away.

Another neighbor made a wood-burned saw-shaped sign for the Popes, with the names Kevin, Sandy, and Jim carved beside the word “welcome” adorned with a small American flag.

Former Shasta County Sheriff Jim Pope shows a hand-carved sign with family names, a gift from a neighbor who was especially upset to hear of Kevin’s death. Photo by Doni Chamberlain.

Pope wanted it on the record that even if his son did have a drug problem — which Pope said he’d never fully accept — he wanted the world to know that Kevin Pope was a kind, honorable, hard-working human being who was deeply loved and sorely missed.

Pope acknowledged that his son sometimes struggled with depression, and although Jim Pope – the former sheriff, who was strongly, adamantly, and publicly against any illegal drug use — didn’t want to admit it, the coroner’s report stated that Kevin Pope had been a long-time drug-user.

Pope said he and his wife — affectionately referred to by Pope as “Hurricane Sandy” — were extremely upset that the tragedy involving their son had produced so many rumors, and had been considered newsworthy.

Kevin Pope/Andrew Mangas rumor connection

When Andrew Mangas died of a fentanyl overdose at Corkey Harmon’s home three
days after the death of Kevin Pope, Shasta County’s social media rumor mill quickly tied
the two men’s deaths together. Corkey Harmon was the common denominator.

The rumor spotlight beamed onto the trinity of public figures who emerged: candidate Corkey Harmon, KRCR TV news reporter Mike Mangas, and former Shasta County Sheriff Jim Pope.

Kevin Pope is Jim Pope’s son. Corkey Harmon is Jim Pope’s nephew; so Kevin and Corkey Harmon are cousins. Andrew Mangas is Mike Mangas’ son. Andrew’s girlfriend is Corkey Harmon’s stepdaughter.

Faulty rumor logic figured that if Andrew Mangas had a history of drug abuse, and if Andrew Mangas died of a fentanyl overdose at a Harmon family reunion, then ergo, maybe Harmon’s cousin Kevin Pope — who also had a history of drug abuse — also attended the same family reunion, and maybe he died of a fentanyl overdose, perhaps from the same “bad batch” and perhaps on the same night.

The rumors were so persistent that as A News Cafe and North State journalist Mike Chapman conducted research for a story about Shasta County’s epidemic of fentanyl deaths — ‘Grieving local parents band together to confront lethal drug that killed their sons’ — Chapman reached out to Mike Mangas and Jim Pope for comment. Chapman hoped that even in the midst of the fathers’ grief, as community influencers, perhaps they could say a few words to bring information to the subject of fentanyl, break stereotypes about “typical fentanyl users” and provide first-hand messages from two high-profile families that fentanyl tragedies are no respecter of status, popularity, or prominence. Fentanyl doesn’t care if the victim is the child of a public figure.

Mangas told Chapman he’d release a statement about it the next week. No statement arrived.

Pope responded and mailed Chapman a letter. Pope — who said that he’d worked most of his career fighting against all aspects of illegal drugs — insisted his son did not die from fentanyl use, but congestive heart failure at Shasta Regional Medical Center. However, Pope acknowledged that, “sadly, he had methamphetamine in his system at the time of his death.”

“The tragic death of our son was very devastating to our family and we will have much pain and sorrow for many years to come,” Pope wrote. “We will continue to cherish and celebrate the memories of our beloved son.”

In the spring, the Mangas/Pope rumors started small, as most rumors do, but within a week the explanations about what happened at Harmon’s home spun out of control. Some of the most scandalous false tips that connected the two deceased men to Harmon came from sometimes usually reliable, equally prominent, well-respected community members.

For months, a recurring question arose: Is it fair — depending solely upon the families involved — for some tragedies to go unreported, while other tragedies are widely and repeatedly publicized?

Consider a local, fairly recent example, where a former elected official’s name is continually tied to her son’s recent alleged violent crime that left a neighbor dead. As much as that mother would like for news outlets — including KRCR, where Mike Mangas works —  to cease linking her name and position to every story about her son, many media companies continue to refer to the accused’s mother’s former high-profile status.

On the quest for the truth, A News Cafe submitted requests for and received both men’s death certificates and coroner’s reports, as well as other public documents. I spoke with Andy Mangas’ parents, Jim Pope, and Corkey Harmon.

While speaking with Pope, he said there were plenty of rumors out there he’d heard about me, too,  such as that I was smearing Pope’s name, and saying horrible lies about his son, and that I was claiming that deputies had been inside Kevin Pope’s hospital room and were looking for drugs that Kevin Pope may have brought with him.

All false.

However, there was one related question pertaining to possible illegal drugs that Kevin
Pope may have brought to the hospital, something that remains unknown. Soon after Kevin Pope’s death A News Cafe received two independent tips that claimed that when Kevin Pope arrived at Shasta Regional Medical Center, he arrived with illegal drugs. Both sources’ tips alleged that as a favor to former Sheriff Pope, a high-ranking member of the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office took possession of Kevin Popes’ drugs so hospital staff wouldn’t find them and contact Redding Police Department, the law-enforcement agency that has jurisdiction in the city of Redding.

These tips were investigated to put to rest rumors and allegations that because of former Sheriff Jim Pope’s position of power, normal law enforcement chain of evidence procedures were bypassed, to avoid Kevin Pope’s possible arrest while hospitalized, which later became moot, as Kevin Pope died.

Rumor mill run amok

When Jim Pope was asked to address these tips regarding the possibility that his son had brought drugs with him to the hospital, or if Pope had asked anyone to take any of his son’s alleged drugs away, Pope shook his head and said no.

Pope said that yes, Sheriff Mike Johnson had visited the hospital, but only as a friend concerned about the Pope family, and to lend support.

On September 27, to follow up on the allegations about Kevin Pope allegedly bringing drugs to the hospital that were allegedly later removed and taken away by a Sheriff’s Office staff person, A News Cafe submitted a public records request to the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office pertaining to the tips. Among the questions asked were if anyone from the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office had taken possession of the alleged drugs, and if so, details about the chain of evidence confiscation and containment, the nature of the alleged drugs, where they and/or any alleged drug paraphernalia were taken, by whom, when, and the storage location of Kevin Pope’s alleged illegal drugs.

More than a month later, the Sheriff’s Office has still not responded to that records request.

Harmon sets the record straight

Corkey Harmon answers questions at a Mountain Top Media interview. Photo source: video screengrab.

The week after Andrew Mangas’ death in early May, I called Harmon and asked about the rumors.  He was unequivocal in his desire to set the record straight and correct misinformation.

Harmon said that contrary to the rumors, his cousin Kevin Pope did not die at the Harmon home, and contrary to the rumors, Kevin did not die of a fentanyl overdose. Finally, he said that not only did his cousin Kevin Pope not attend the “family-oriented” fourth-annual barn hoedown/reunion, but Harmon said he wasn’t that close to his cousin Kevin, and that Kevin hadn’t been out to Corkey Harmon’s place in many years.

However, he said Sheriff Pope did briefly attend the hoedown, and spoke to several people about his then-living son’s declining medical condition.

Harmon said he could not understand why the rumors took off in the direction they did; falsely claiming Kevin Pope died of a fentanyl overdose at Harmon’s home.

” ‘Corkey and drugs, Corkey and drugs’! I don’t know why everyone wants to connect everything to my house,” Harmon said during a phone interview. “In fact, I didn’t hear about Kevin until the night of the event, from someone else who said Kevin was in the hospital, and it didn’t look like he was going to make it.”

Harmon said he’d also heard the rumors that connected him and drugs on the premises of his home, not just the weekend of Andrew Mangas’ death, but other times over the years, too.

“I want you to know that I never would — and never have had anything to do with drugs,” Harmon said. “I’m just not that person. I mean, I’ll have a little beer once in a while, but that’s about it.”

Harmon said that when it came to his daughter’s boyfriend Andrew Mangas and his cousin Kevin Pope, Harmon was in the dark about the men’s issues with drugs.

“I have to say, in both those cases, which is about as close as I’ve gotten to experiencing anything like that — in both those cases, I didn’t realize that either one of them was still struggling,” Harmon said. “And one of them was right under my nose. But I’ll admit I’m pretty ignorant when it comes to some of that stuff going on. It would have to be pretty obvious.”

Asked about being characterized as having ties to such far-right groups as Red, White and Blueprint, or Nathan Mendes — Zapata’s friend and business partner — Harmon replied that he attempts to “stay in his own corner” which he conceded is difficult.

“You get caught sitting next to somebody, or I walk into some places, and I’ve even some other candidates saying, ‘Hey, can I get my picture taken with you?’ It’s so awkward,” Harmon said.

“You wanna say, ‘No, I’m just trying to stay out of the limelight,’ or whatever you gotta say. I just want to run as Corkey Harmon.”

Harmon said because he and his family have lived in Shasta County for so long, he knows lots of folks. Plus, he’s neighbors with people like Red, White and Blueprint co-founder Carlos Zapata, who lives just down the road from Harmon.

“Even like Kevin Crye (District 1 Supervisor), we have all kinds of mutual friends, but I don’t really know him that well,” Harmon said.

“I know him a little bit, and we’ve talked more in the last few months, but when he asked me if I would support him during the recall, I said, ‘Uh, nope, I don’t want no part of it.’ Even that Red, White and Blueprint, they just needed a venue, and there I was, and now everybody thinks I’m part of Red, White and Blueprint.”

Harmon said he’s not part of Zapata’s Red, White and Blueprint movement.

Jim Pope and Corkey Harmon connections

During a recent Corkey Harmon campaign fundraiser, Pope held a microphone and explained why he was endorsing Harmon. His statement didn’t include the fact that he’s “Uncle Jim” to Harmon.

During the interview in Pope’s home, the former sheriff laughed as he recalled toddler Harmon in the backyard, still in diapers, trying to help his Uncle Jim with some repair project. Pope said that all in all, his nephew Corkey turned out extremely well — owning three businesses, raising a family — amazing feats considering Harmon’s extremely unstable early foundation.

According to Pope, Harmon’s father, Earl Leon Harmon, married Pope’s sister Gladys Pope. According to Pope, the Harmons were neighbors, which is how Gladys Pope and Earl Harmon met.

But Pope clarified that Gladys is not Harmon’s birth mother. According to public records, Harmon’s mother was Betty Lou Gizinos, who gave birth to Harmon in 1960 when she was 18, and Earl was 20. Subsequent records confirmed that by next year, when Harmon was barely 1 year old, his parents divorced.

As Harmon has mentioned during several public speaking engagements and forums, his mother suffered so severely from mental illness that she spent the majority of her life institutionalized.

In fact, as documented on Betty Lou and Earl’s final judgement papers for the dissolution of their marriage in 1965, her mother, Myrtle Gizinos, was listed as the Guardian ad Litem –“guardian of the case” — respondent on behalf of her daughter.

After Betty Lou and Earl’s divorce, Pope’s sister Gladys Pope married Earl Harmon and assumed the role as wife for Earl Harmon and mother for Betty Lou Harmon’s children until Gladys divorced Earl in 1992.

According to Pope, Earl Harmon turned out to be a troubled man, as Earl Harmon was later arrested on suspicion of child molestation.

There is scant available public records to confirm Pope’s allegation. A clerk at the Shasta County Courthouse confirmed she could see the criminal records, but they had been sealed to protect the defendant’s privacy, so they were unavailable to the public.

A submission by “Anonymous participant” on the non partisan Facebook group “Thought You Should Know Shasta County” shared a Truth Finder report regarding charges filed against Earl Harmon for “Lewd Or Lascivious Acts With A Child under 14 years of age” but could not locate a case file.

Earl Harmon died in March of 2022. Gladys later married Larry Kent, who died in April of this year.

So although Jim Pope knows Corkey Harmon’s entire life history inside and out, and despite the fact that the two have considered themselves uncle and nephew to one another for more than 60 years, technically, they’re not biological relatives. Rather, they’re related through the marriage of Jim Pope’s sister and Corkey Harmon’s father. Even so, stepmother Gladys Pope Harmon has served as Corkey Harmon’s primary mother since he was a little boy.

Story No. 3, from three years ago

Corkey Harmon was first featured on A News Cafe in 2010, when he ran for Shasta County District 5 Supervisor, with a promise to do business “the cowboy way.”

This was back before county redistricting assigned Harmon’s property to its current District 3 designation.

District 5 Supervisor candidate Corkey Harmon in 2010 on Carl and Linda Bott’s 2010 radio show.

Harmon lost to Les Baugh, and returned to a quiet life that focused upon family and running his three companies, Stimpel-Wiebelhaus, Mountain Gate Quarry, and White Rock Trucking.

It wasn’t until the spring of 2021 when Harmon’s name again materialized publicly. This time Harmon was affiliated with the extremist organization Red, White and Blueprint as the host of the group’s first fundraiser, “Patriots at Harmon Ranch.”

Carlos Zapata is Red, White and Blueprint’s co-founder, and was the emcee for “Patriots at Harmon Ranch.” The event was a sold-out success.

Yes, A News Cafe has covered all that, and more.

We’ve also reported the recent growing list of prominent far-right people who are endorsing Harmon, noteworthy because Harmon initially claimed he had no affiliations, and liked to “stay in his own corner.”

Apparently, Harmon’s corner is a wide one, since the short list of far-right notables endorsing Harmon includes District 1 Supervisor Kevin Crye, District 4 Supervisor Patrick Jones, District 5 Supervisor Chris Kelstrom, Carlos Zapata, Patty and Ron Plumb, Katie and Authur Gorman, Laura Hobbs, Richard Gallardo, Dr. Paul Dhanuka, and last, but especially not least, former Sheriff Jim Pope. Harmon’s name was also endorsed on a voter guide found recently at a class taught at Bethel Church.

This voter guide was found at Bethel Church in Redding.

Trials and ethical tribulations

From left, Rebecca and Carlos Zapata chat with District 3 Supervisor candidate Corkey Harmon at a Corkey Harmon political fundraiser.

What has not been reported previously regarding Harmon was exactly how he was related to former Sheriff Jim Pope, something revealed here today.

The subject of yet another possibly significant Harmon familial relationship arrived via a tip A News Cafe received in the fall of 2021. This tip arrived several months after the Patriots at Harmon Ranch Red, White and Blueprint fundraiser; and a few days before A News Cafe embarked on a marathon series of stories regarding the prolonged trial that featured defendants Carlos Zapata, Elizabeth Bailey and Christopher Meagher.

From left, defendants Carlos Zapata, Christopher Meagher and Elizabeth Bailey sit inside Shasta County Superior Court Judge Jody Burgess’ courtroom. Photo by Doni Chamberlain

The tip pertaining to a potentially ethically problematic situation involving Harmon’s name came in a phone call from a well-respected North State attorney. He expressed his and other attorneys’ concerns regarding possible conflicts of interest on the part of Shasta County Superior Court Judge Jody Burgess, who was scheduled to preside over the then-upcoming Zapata/Bailey/Meagher trial.

The attorney said that for him and his colleagues, the issue wasn’t whether Judge Burgess would be fair, because Burgess has a reputation for being both fair and ethical. However, what bothered them was their belief that in the spirit of full transparency, Burgess should either decline to preside over that trial, or publicly acknowledge prior to the trial’s start that he was related by marriage to Corkey Harmon. According to the attorney, Harmon was somehow related to Judge Jody Burgess’ wife, Robyn Burgess, former Sheriff Pope’s daughter. The attorney wasn’t sure precisely how Robyn Pope was related to Harmon.

At the time, the information presented that suggested Judge Burgess had family ties with Corkey Harmon was unknown to A News Cafe.

The attorney said that because the trial looked like it would begin soon with Burgess as the presiding judge, if Burgess did not publicly disclose his family ties to Harmon prior to the start of the trial, then the attorney suggested that A News Cafe reveal that information as part of the trial coverage.

The attorney listed why he believed the connection between Judge Burgess and Harmon was relevant, and should be disclosed:  First, he said, Zapata — on trial in Jody Burgess’ courtroom — was the head of Red, White and Blueprint. Second, the Red, White and Blueprint fundraiser — ‘Patriots at Harmon Ranch’ — occurred at Corkey Harmon’s ranch. Third, the attorneys believed that since it appeared Zapata and Corkey Harmon were friends, and since Harmon was related to Robyn Burgess, that if Judge Burgess did not remove himself as judge in that trial, or if he did not disclose his relationship to Harmon by marriage, then the judge’s undisclosed family ties to Harmon could appear unethical at most, and bad optics at the least.

Ultimately, A News Cafe did not publish that information, because we only had the claim of one attorney, and we were unable to learn exactly how Corkey Harmon was connected to Robyn (Pope) Burgess. The trial began, and it was too risky to report unsubstantiated information that could possible harm the trial proceedings. So A News Cafe carried on and covered the trial, but never mentioned the tip that allegedly tied Harmon to Judge Burgess.

Recent conversations with Jim Pope and Corkey Harmon finally solved the three-year-old Jody Burgess/Corkey Harmon family-connection mystery: Robyn Burgess — wife of Judge Jody Burgess — is Jim Pope’s youngest daughter, and Kevin Pope’s youngest sister.

According to Jim Pope, his daughter Robyn Burgess, who previously worked alongside former Anderson Police Chief Mike Johnson for the City of Anderson, now works for Corkey Harmon. Mike Johnson is Shasta County’s current Sheriff. According to Pope, his son-in-law Judge Jody Burgess and Shasta County Sheriff Mike Johnson are close friends.

Regarding the Zapata/Bailey/Meagher trial, as the reporter who attended nearly every day of the trial, and who wrote most of the stories about the trial, my opinion was that Judge Burgess appeared to be even-handed, accurate and unbiased. Despite not revealing his connection to Harmon, never once did it appear that Judge Burgess was favoring Zapata. In fact, there were a few times when Burgess spoke sternly to Zapata, such as about wearing face masks properly, and made it clear that Judge Jody Burgess ran a tight courtroom, and would not permit any disruptions or incivility.

Epilogue: What took so long?

On an almost weekly basis for nearly six months now, A News Cafe has received a barrage of inquires from frustrated citizens asking why we’d not published the stories about the growing rumors they’d heard, especially since Mike Mangas and Jim Pope were high-profile, prominent public figures.

We had two main reasons. First, we were collecting facts via interviews and multiple records requests. The story wasn’t ready.

The second reason is more complicated. As mentioned earlier, I’d initially backed away from the story after being moved by a tearful phone conversation with one of the deceased men’s mothers.

Eventually though, as the months passed, and the rumors grew darker and louder, and as A News Cafe compiled more information, I changed my mind. We had everything needed to move forward, destroy the rumors and write the truth.

I notified Andrew Mangas and Kevin Pope’s parents, and Andrew Mangas’s girlfriend that the story was coming soon. I did not ask for their permission.

Friday marks the six-month anniversary of Andrew Mangas’ death.

Some days I feel proud to be a journalist. Other days I feel sad. Today is one of the sad days.

Editor’s note: This story was edited and updated for clarity at 10:06 p.m. on Oct. 28, 2024.

###

If you appreciate journalist Doni Chamberlain’s investigative reporting and commentary, please join other awesome readers who support this locally owned, locally interested independent website with voluntary subscriptions to ensure A News Cafe can continue its work. Thank you!

Doni Chamberlain

Independent online journalist Doni Chamberlain founded A News Cafe in 2007 with her son, Joe Domke. Chamberlain holds a Bachelor's Degree in journalism from CSU, Chico. She's an award-winning newspaper opinion columnist, feature and food writer recognized by the Associated Press, the California Newspaper Publishers Association and E.W. Scripps. She's been featured and quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Washington Post, L.A. Times, Slate, Bloomberg News and on CNN, KQED and KPFA. She lives in Redding, California.

Subscribe
Notify of
guest

132 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments