OCTOBER 24 - OCTOBER 31, 2013 VOL. 28, NO. 13 W W W.NE W TIMESSLO.

COM SA N LUIS OBISPO COUNT YS NE WS A ND ENTERTA INMENT WEEK LY

Orange

is the new three-piece

Attorney Scott Whitenack picked up some new clients while he was in jail awaiting trial himself [16]

BY RHYS HEYDEN

A convoluted tale of conspiracies, arrests, and high courtroom drama

BY RHYS HEYDEN PHOTOS BY STEVE E. MILLER

RELEASE AND RETURN A mere five days after being released from SLO County Jail, attorney Scott Whitenack was back in action at the SLO Superior Court, arguing on behalf of two new clients he met in jail.

Lawyers, jail, and money

a misdemeanor, in Pismo Beach, after allegedly smoking marijuana, parking his car up on a curb at the Pismo Pier, and loudly ranting at several police officers. Five months later, on Aug. 18, Whitenack was booked for two more misdemeanors: allegedly driving with a suspended license and giving false informationa pseudonymto a peace officer, again in Pismo Beach. A few weeks later, Whitenack found himself in more hot water. After a monthlong investigation, he was arrested on Sept. 9 for three suspected felonies, dating back to an Aug. 3 incident. The charges were second-degree burglary, false personation, and petty theft. According to court testimony and a personal account, this latest arrest stemmed from an incident at a private event at the Avila Bay Athletic Club, which Whitenack allegedly crashed with his girlfriend and another individual. Club employees alleged that Whitenack was generally drunk and belligerent, signed in using a false name, and stole a valuable necklace. It did appear they were drunk, they were showing the necklace to our staff and asking them to put it on, and [Whitenack] totally grossed everyone out because he yelled It makes your tits look great to his girlfriend in the middle of the lobby, said Nancy Terrell, general manager of the club. SLO County sheriffs deputies later secured a warrant and arrested Whitenack at his mothers house in Orcutt, over the Avila incident. One of the arresting deputies testified that Whitenack was hiding under a bed sheet at the time. Stuck in SLO County Jail for the conceivable future, Whitenack did what any attorney would do: He organized his case and prepared to represent himself. New Times had the opportunity to review several legal documents Whitenack filed while he was held in jail. Riddled with typos, full of digressions, and imbued with the conviction of a practiced proselytizer, the documents seek to entirely exonerate their author. Essentially, Whitenack sought to recuse the entire District Attorneys Office due to conflicts of interest, a request that was, unsurprisingly, denied. When that failed, Whitenack painted a picture of pervasive law enforcement corruption that, he claimed, resulted in several illegal and persecutory arrests. Subsequently, Whitenack filed several broad motions to suppress evidence in his casearguing that warrants were served without probable cause, searches were conducted illegally, and that police actions in general were retaliatory. Three days after speaking with New Times in jail, Whitenack was set for a decisive hearing on his motions to suppress evidence.

cott Bryan Whitenack, 55, sat behind reinforced glass in an orange jumpsuit at the San Luis Obispo County Jail visiting room. His eyes were bloodshot, and his beard was flecked with gray. As he picked up the telephone, his mouth was already moving: Im an attorney, he said, and I believe all of this is retaliatory. Over the course of an hour on Oct. 4, Whitenack spun an elaborate story about how he ended up in jail. Originally charged with three felonies and three misdemeanors on Sept. 9, Whitenack said he was targeted by a vengeful former employer and falsely arrested by several SLO County law enforcement agencies. These violations have happened to me; I didnt imagine them, Whitenack said. I speak my mind, I speak the truth, and I back it up with the law. Intrigued by Whitenacks claims, New Times spent several weeks attending court hearings, examining court documents, and interviewing Whitenack and a variety of his associates. Though most of his allegations proved to be either untrue or impossible to verify, Whitenacks case offers an intriguing view into the pitfalls of the criminal justice system and, above all else, the enigma of Whitenack himself.

The backstory

In order to fully appreciate Whitenacks courtroom drama, its essential to first know his background. Whitenack grew up in Pasadena, the son of singer and entertainer Troy Cory and mother Dorothy Swafford. Whitenacks father was a semi-famous crooner and TV host who also toured extensively in China. He was initially represented by Sonny Bono. Whitenacks parents divorced when he was still relatively young, and he said he never had a strong father figure in his life as a result. He undertook his undergraduate studies at Ventura College and earned his law degree at the San Fernando Valley College of Law. All of that is beyond dispute, but almost every other element of Whitenacks life is questionable in some

The arrests

Whitenack has been an active member of the State Bar of California since 1982, but his first documented run-in with the law came earlier this year. On March 3, Whitenack was arrested on suspicion of being drunk in public,

Some day, Scott is going to go off like a firecracker, theres no question. Something bad is going to happen with Moriarty because of Scott. Its sad, but thats what Im expecting to see.
DARRYL GENIS, ATTORNEY

These violations have happened to me; I didnt imagine them. I speak my mind, I speak the truth, and I back it up with the law.
SCOTT WHITENACK, ATTORNEY
way, shape, or formeven down to his name. By law, he is still Scott Bryan Whitenack, but he refers to himself by a wide variety of names online and in person: Scott Belli, Scott WhitenackBelli, Scott Stubblefield, and Scott Stubblefield-Whitenack. His father, who went by Troy Cory, was born Keith Stubblefield, so thats the origin of one of the appendages. The other name comes from infamous attorney Melvin Belli, whom Whitenack claims was a mentor and an inspirationin addition to having a famous, bankable last name. In court documents and in person, Whitenack has insisted that he personally worked with Melvin Belli. In one court document, Whitenack claimed he worked with Belli from 1982 to 1996. I never actually worked in Bellis office, but I worked in association with him on cases, Whitenack later told New Times. I wanted to do entertainment law, and follow in the footsteps of my father and Melvin. Whitenack even went so far as to stick the Belli family name in his Santa Maria law firm: The Law Offices of Belli & Belli. Melvin Bellis son, Melvin Caesar Belli, told New Times that Whitenack might have done some small contract work for the Belli law firm many years ago, but Whitenacks involvement with the family has been very minimal. Belli added that his late father had represented Whitenacks father, Troy Cory, on a few lawsuits decades ago. Scott was never a partner or an associate, so hes just pulling the Belli name out of thin air, Belli said. I have no idea what hes doing, but I feel bad for him. At the root of this confusion is a divisive issue: Whitenack was diagnosed as manic depressive/bipolar in 2007. He freely admitted the diagnosis and said hes been on and off the antipsychotic Abilify, but said it doesnt affect his law practice or personal convictions. Thats the label they decided to put on me, Whitenack said. To me, manic just means your mind is moving faster than everyone elses. Theres nothing wrong with me. People try to use that to say Im paranoid or somehow delusional, but doctors have said Im highly intelligent and that theres no problem, he said. Others, however, beg to differ. Darryl Genis is a prominent Santa Barbara-based DUI attorney who knew and employed Whitenack for several years before Whitenack left Genis firm in January 2013. Hes not stable, in my opinion, Genis told New Times. Its a very sad, tragic, case of a bright man with a real disease thats going untreated. said. That said, if you backed Scott up along with his orange jumpsuit, he enthusiastically cross-examined four law against the wall and a case went to trial, enforcement officers involved in his three he fell apart. He wasnt a trial lawyer. arrests for more than four cumulative hours. Around the time of an office Christmas Three of the officers were from the party in 2012, Genis said Whitenack Pismo Beach PD, and Whitenack gave him his months notice, saying repeatedly attempted to make a that he had reconnected with a former connection between his arrest and his sweetheart and was moving down to L.A. On Whitenacks last day of work, Genis work on the Sproston case, claiming all of the charges he was facing were said that warning bells went off in his retaliatory and that there was a broad head for the very first time. On that day, conspiracy afoot. Genis had to argue Whitenack out of a As Whitenack emphasized several contempt of court violation with Santa times, the officer who arrested Sproston, Barbara Superior Court Judge Edward William Garret, retired a few months Bullard, a judge Genis said had the after the arrest. patience of a saint. I was thinking to myself, whats going Superior Court Judge John Trice, on? Genis said. A few weeks later, after visibly grimacing and furrowing his brow, repeatedly asked Whitenack Scott had left and I dug around a little to narrow his line of questioning to bit, I was shocked to find out that he was make it relevant to the motion at hand. bipolar, off his medication, totally wigged Whitenack, however, stuck with his out, and trying to steal clients from me. For his part, Whitenack accuses Genis broad conspiracy strategy. Whitenack, claiming it would exonerate of having a lot of animosity against him, wanted to view dash-camera video him and being vindictive. Whitenack of his arrests in court. Judge Trice was claims Genis intimidated clients and reluctant to take that step. As Trice was witnesses of his, and also had a private postponing a further motion continuance eye follow him around. until the next week, Whitenack and Deputy Its not paranoia if youre actually District Attorney Thomas Wilson appeared being followed, Whitenack said. I never hired a private eye to follow him, nor would I ever do that, Genis responded. Thats LAWYER SWAP Former Grover utterly ridiculous. Beach financier and alleged The main conflict between the $22 million Ponzi-schemer Al two attorneys was over the DUI Moriarty (pictured) dismissed his case of Robert Scott Sproston. The attorney, Tom Allen, and retained case, currently mired in appeals, Whitenack during an Oct. 16 bail is an ongoing, hotly contested legal reduction hearing. dispute over whether or not the Pismo Beach Police Department systematically suppressed evidence for DUI arrests. Sproston was brought into the firm by Genis, initially represented by Whitenack in the cases preliminary stages, and then represented by Genis after Whitenack left. However, Whitenack briefly convinced Sproston to come over to his own Santa Maria practice in February 2013, before Genis convinced Sproston that such a move was a bad idea. to reach an unexpected, last-second plea deal. Scott triedunsuccessfully and The judge was called back in to unethicallyto steal Sproston from me, mediate, and the deal progressed and it didnt work, Genis said. until it reached the last step. Wilson Sproston wanted me to take over his wanted Whitenack to agree to a year case, but Darryl was very vindictive and of probation, and Whitenack bluntly blocked that, Whitenack countered. refused. So he went back to jail. Genis said he wasnt surprised that his former colleague had ended up in jail, Freedom and but added that he felt sorry for him and hoped that jail time would encourage him further complications to re-medicate. Whitenack, undeterred by the setback, My mother is bipolar, so I know about was able to negotiate an acceptable plea the disease, Genis said. The symptoms deal with Wilson just two days later. are around 50 percent enjoyable, and Under that deal, each of the six who wants to give up that high? Hes not charges was reduced to a misdemeanor, stupid; he just lives in a true fantasy four were dismissed, and he pleaded no world. contest to the charges of petty theft and Whitenack denied that his condition driving with a suspended license. He had anything to do with the acrimonious was released from jail on Oct. 11, with split and said he just didnt feel the only stipulations being adherence comfortable working for Genis anymore. to a short probation period and a $30 restitution payment for the necklace. The hearing I saw that I wasnt going to get justice On the afternoon of Oct. 7, after in Trices court, so I took the plea deal, spending almost a month in SLO County Whitenack said. Im going to have my Jail, Whitenack was finally back in day in court when I bring my RICO lawyer mode. [Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Despite sporting hand and leg cuffs Organization] allegations against local

law enforcement. Genis, however, said that a RICO case, under the circumstances, would be impossible to prove. One unexpected benefit for Whitenack stemming from his month of jail time was picking up several new clients among them infamous former Grover Beach financier Al Moriarty and alleged drug offender Richard Granger. Moriarty is alleged to have defrauded his clients of up to $22 million in a massive Ponzi-like scheme, and has been held on a $5 million bail since May 2013. During an Oct. 16 bail reduction hearing for Moriarty, Whitenack newly released from jail and sporting a gray suit paired with a neon green shirtofficially snatched the reins on Moriartys case away from stunned attorney Tom Allen. Whitenack handed out a sympathetic poem about Moriartys plight, written by a fellow inmate, and argued that Moriartys painful hip condition and his desire to look after his aging wife at home necessitated a bail reduction. Judge Jacquelyn Duffy had denied a similar request on June 12, but Judge Barry LaBarbera remained noncommittal on Whitenacks motion, continuing the hearing until Oct. 24. Upon hearing the news that Whitenack had taken over Moriartys case, Genis said he was greatly saddened and worried. If this guy, carrying around so many peccadilloes, is un-medicated, doing dishonest things, and still being allowed

Genis vs. Whitenack

In the months building up to Whitenacks arrest, his public and private squabbles with Genis played a major role. Genis said he first hired Whitenack as an appearance lawyer, using him sporadically to fill in on cases, starting in 2010 or 2011. At the beginning of 2012, Genis hired Whitenack as a fulltime associate. Scott was a good worker bee, he got along with people, and he documented files meticulously and carefully, Genis

to practice law, thats unbelievable, Genis said. If he can convince a really troubled 80-year-old man whom he met in jail to dismiss a truly talented lawyer, then thats a tragedy. Whitenack said he sees no such tragedy, and has been invigorated since getting out of jail. Al is a really nice person. He approached me in jail with his case, and Im glad to be representing him, Whitenack said. Scott is going to go off like a firecracker, theres no question. Something bad is going to happen with Moriarty because of Scott. Its sad, but thats what Im expecting to see, Genis said. For his part, Whitenack said hes enjoying life post-incarceration, currently living with his mother in Orcutt, and looking forward to re-establishing his practice in Santa Maria. I didnt need to advertise. People just came up to me in jail, Whitenack said. Im excited. Staff Writer Rhys Heyden can be reached at rheyden@newtimesslo.com.