In Judicial Race, Whom Did the Mud Really Hit?

Re: “O.C. Judge Race Takes 2nd Ugly Turn,” Oct. 15:

One gets used to the mudslinging in political races, but for a Superior Court judge? And hiring a private detective to dig up mud to smear on an opponent should turn every voter’s stomach and bring out a sympathy vote for the victim!

I’ve known John Adams for more than 15 years -- first as a client and later as a business associate. In all those years John has shown himself to be a man of integrity, one who really cares about his fellow human beings.

To distort mistakes of the kind we all make is politics at its worst.

Samuel V. Inlow

Mission Viejo

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You chose the right word in your headline: “ugly” is an apt description of Gay Sandoval’s actions in attempting to discredit John Adams with disclosures concerning a private family financial arrangement between Mr. Adams and his parents.

His creditors were satisfied, so where’s the problem?

The willingness and financial ability of his parents to assist him during a difficult period 10 to 12 years ago has no bearing on Mr. Adams’ qualifications.

Robert L. Brown

Laguna Niguel

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The article mistakenly implied that my son and judicial candidate, John Adams, allowed us to be thrown out on the street. Nothing could be further from the truth.

For the record, my husband, John Adams Sr., was in business with our son at the time, and the McDaniels were friends of ours. As business reverses developed in the economic downturn of the early 1990s, we approached the McDaniels for a loan. They provided funds secured by a rental home we owned as collateral. My husband and I had lived in this home for 12 years before purchasing our current home in Laguna Beach in 1989.

After refusing to renegotiate the terms of the loan during continued hardship, the McDaniels foreclosed on the rental property. They were more than made whole. Our former home easily doubled in value and always delivered a substantial stream of rental income.

Nor was his divorce a bitter dispute. Our son installed his former wife in a beautiful home and paid $1,000 a month in support for his only child. He also paid for her education at USC.

The McDaniels’ vicious vendetta and tireless pursuit of anything damaging to our son and family have no place in this campaign.

Marjorie Adams

Laguna Beach