Silberman Taps Old Pals to Defray Costs of Trial

Richard T. Silberman, facing federal charges of conspiring to launder drug money, is seeking individual donations of up to $10,000 to help pay his legal bills.

Silberman has centered his fund-raising attempts on a handful of business people and political contacts in San Diego and Los Angeles, some from his days in the administration of Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. He would like to gather 20 or more donations of $10,000 each.

Silberman has told would-be contributors that his case involves troubling ethical and legal issues of how far the federal government will go to gather evidence for a drug case, including widespread wiretaps and a sting-style operation.

“If it happened to me, it can happen to you,” Silberman has been quoted as saying, and “You wouldn’t believe this could happen in America.”

Blaine B. Quick, a wealthy real estate investor who lives in Rancho Santa Fe, said Silberman asked him to raise money by “contacting mutual friends of ours.” Quick said he told Silberman he would be glad to do so.

“I think we’re seeing an abuse of the legal process,” said Quick, a former Brown contributor. “The government gave the press so many details even before Dick was charged with anything. It seems a way to have the hanging first and then the trial.”

Quick said he has “heard talk”-- although not from Silberman--that the case is tinged with anti-Semitism and a political vendetta by a Republican-appointed U. S. attorney. Silberman, who is Jewish, has been a prominent Democrat for two decades.

“It has to be embarrassing for Dick to have to ask for money,” Quick said. “Here’s a man who has lived an exemplary life for 60 years, serving his city and his state, running a major bank, raising a fine family. And now the crushing weight of the federal government is after him.”

Supervisor Susan Golding, who is married to Silberman, said the fund-raising idea began when Silberman’s friends starting contacting him and asking him if they could help. Golding said the figure of $10,000 came from the friends, not from Silberman.

She said legal defense funds are not unusual, given the enormous cost of legal bills. One estimate of Silberman’s pretrial costs alone is $200,000.

“A great many people are offended by what the government has done,” Golding said. She said she will assist with the fund-raising “if I can be helpful” and will list the donations as spousal income on her disclosure forms if required by law.

She said she did not know whether any donations have yet arrived.

“I have to tell you, Dick has a great many friends who are willing to help--many of them people he has helped in the past,” Golding said.

Assistant U. S. Atty. Charles F. Gorder, the lead prosecutor, declined comment on any aspect of the fund-raising effort.

But Assistant U.S. Atty. Judy Feigin, who described herself as a Jew, a Democrat, and chairwoman of the civil rights committee of the local Anti-Defamation League, said any suggestion of political or religious bias is absurd.

Frat Gets Dressing Down

The investigation by the UC San Diego administration into the appearance of a stripper at a fraternity rush event on campus is complete.

The verdict: The event violated campus rules against lewd behavior when the stripper allowed students to nuzzle her bosom. Ditto when a fraternity man lost his pants.

As penance, the fraternity, Sigma Alpha Mu, will be banned from using school facilities for six months. Also, members will volunteer at the Rape Crisis Center, take part in discussions about sexual harassment, and hand out flyers in the San Carlos area Saturday to try to help police catch a rapist.

Award With Backbone

The San Diego County Chiropractic Society is out with its annual Divine Spine awards, including the Reclined Spine Award for the most remarkable performance in a reclining position.

This year’s winner, naturally, is Steve Garvey. Honorable mention: Wade Boggs.