San Diego

After two days of testimony, a Superior Court judge Friday appeared to be near to stripping cult deprogrammer Ted Patrick of his probation on a kidnaping conviction.

Patrick, convicted in 1980 after the abduction of a Tucson waitress to deprogram her from a religious cult, was ordered to refrain from deprogramming activities during his five-year probation.

A Lubbock, Tex., woman testified Thursday that she paid Patrick about $4,000 to remove her daughter from a cult but later reneged when her daughter came home on her own.

The allegations by Dolly Edwards led to the current hearing, which could lead to Patrick being ordered back to jail. Patrick, 54, served one year in the San Diego County Jail for his 1980 conviction.

Patrick’s defense attorney, Tom Gayton, said he would call five witnesses, including Patrick, to testify.

Earlier Friday, Gayton claimed that Edwards’ testimony was vague and that many of the things Patrick was accused of doing were part of his right to free speech.

But Judge Norbert Ehrenfreund said the prosecution had successfully fulfilled its burden of proving that Patrick had disobeyed court orders regarding his probation.

“One aspect of deprogramming is the forcible removal of a person. The people . . . have a right to be protected against kidnaping. Mr. Patrick was convicted by a jury of kidnaping. The order was that he refrain from any aspect of deprogramming,” Ehrenfreund said.

“He certainly associated himself in this case with Mrs. Edwards for the forcible removal of her daughter. He was ordered not to engage in any financial transactions (regarding deprogramming). The evidence is, and it’s believable, that he received several thousand dollars.”

Deputy Dist. Atty. Harry Elias said that if Patrick’s probation were revoked, he would ask the judge to order Patrick to serve five years in state prison.