Virginia McMartin in Courtroom Outburst

Denied her request to act as her own attorney, an angry and almost tearful Virginia McMartin threatened to not show up in court next week, unless the “sheriffs come and drag me there.” The outburst came Friday afternoon after Los Angeles Municipal Judge Aviva K. Bobb denied the 77-year-old woman’s request, and ordered McMartin’s attorney, Bradley Brunon, to continue to represent her without pay.

One of seven former teachers at the Manhattan Beach school charged with 208 counts of molestation and conspiracy, McMartin had wanted to act as her own attorney because she is broke and had not paid Brunon for several months.

“I have a moral and religious obligation . . . to set him (Brunon) free,” McMartin told the judge. “. . . You can put me in jail right now, but I will not accept him for free.” Bobb said that she was denying the defendant’s request because “it would disrupt this preliminary hearing and deprive Mrs. McMartin of Mr. Brunon’s representation, which I believe she truly desires.”

McMartin’s request had been prompted by Bobb’s refusal Wednesday to grant Brunon court-appointed status, which would have required the county to pick up his fees.

Lack of Training Cited

The judge, citing McMartin’s lack of training as an attorney, noted Friday that the preliminary hearing had dragged on for more than nine months and is expected to go on for another year.

The proceeding to determine if the defendants should stand trial in Superior Court has produced 400 volumes of transcripts, 25,000 pages of written discovery, and involved many complex and unique legal questions.

McMartin, who is usually unresponsive to media questions, gave a rambling interview Friday outside the courtroom about her plight and then handed out copies of a poem she had written about the justice system.

The wheelchair-bound school founder, who is called “Miss Virginia” by the 12 children who have testified at the hearing, said that the allegations against her and the other defendants are not true.

“How could anyone believe we have the devil living under our avocado tree,” she said, referring to testimony of a child witness who testified that he was taken to a church where satanic ceremonies were held.

“I’ve never known anyone who molested children. In my thinking, that type of thing just doesn’t go on. When this case began I had to look up those filthy dirty words they were using in a dictionary.”

Recites Poem

McMartin, who was in the nursery school business for nearly 30 years, said that the only time she ever touched children was when “we had to brush sand (off them) and change their pants. How can you do that without touching?”

She recited the poem, which she had written in court. It said in part:

“Innocent until proven guilty is supposed to be the U.S. Judicial way.

But in our case, we have been judged guilty without us even having a say.

We’ve been tried, judged and condemned without even a trial, by the police, people, courts, judges, media and TV with a sarcastic smile.

Sadly, fellow Americans, this also can happen to any one of you....”

Her voice broke and she looked tearful as she continued: “Do you realize I loved all those children? . . . This court is not going to take my love for those children away.” When asked if he thought his client would show up in court next week, Brunon said: “I don’t know what’s going to happen. This case is so unusual that I don’t ever know from day to day what’s going to happen.”