August 19, 2006
City of Rio Dell Police Department
Chief Graham Hill
675 Wildwood Ave
Rio Dell, CA 95562
Dear Chief Hill,
I am writing to you in regards to yet another incident with a Kemp family member earlier today, August 19, 2006, at Fireman’s Park. This ongoing situation has gone far beyond the point of ridiculous.
We were playing at the bocce’ court with my mother and stepfather, who are visiting, when we noticed Mrs. Kathleen Kemp driving past, in both directions, in her blue explorer with the sticker in the back window. That would be very insignificant except for the fact that Mrs. Kemp felt the need to switch into her husband’s clearly marked Kemp Inspection truck when she came back to the area to park directly behind the Suburban, blocking it in. Why she felt the need to come park directly behind the Suburban, so close that we would not have been able to safely open the back tailgate doors of the car, we can only guess. We did not see her until we all went to leave the park after hitting a few softballs in the field. As we walked up to our car we noticed Mrs. Kemp standing outside the bocce’ court fence and that is when we saw where she had parked. When we were still a bit of distance away, we told my mom who it was who was blocking us in. Mom asked Steve if that was “the one who blew you kisses?” Steve told her, “no, that was her daughter.” As soon as we got near the car, Mrs. Kemp told Steve that he was violating their restraining order. I told Mrs. Kemp that we were at the park playing when she came up and parked right behind us and it was her that was violating the order. I told her that she couldn’t come and park right behind us and then say we were violating the order and that she shouldn’t have come there while we were there. She responded that “this is America” and she would do whatever she wanted to. She said that she was going to go right down to the police and tell them that Steve was violating the order. I told her that we would see her in court on the first for the contempt hearing. She mumbled something about seeing us there earlier because she was going to the police to cry violation. Steve got into the driver’s side of the Suburban (he hadn’t said anything in this exchange). I walked back to my mom’s Toyota, which was parked in front of the Suburban and pulled it out so that Steve could move his car. Mrs. Kemp proceeded to contact the Rio Dell Police Dept.
We came home to continue our visit. Steve and our son Richard stayed home while the rest of us went to the hotel for swimming. Steve was visited by Officer Diaz. Steve was told that if Mrs. Kemp shows up anywhere that Steve is at, Steve has to leave. I would assume that means walking away since she had blocked in our car. I would like some clarification on this. I have already told multiple members of your department that the Kemp family members have been doing this exact same behavior for quite awhile. According to the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, which responded when one of their family members blocked Steve from picking the kids up at school and then cried violation of the order, it is illegal for the person who has a restraining order out against someone to block them, impede their progress or follow them around and then cry violation. The only appropriate response to a person who does that would be for the police to tell them to stop parking right behind them, don’t follow them around, etc.
I would like to make sure I am understanding this correctly. Our kids are protected persons from Mr. Arnold Kemp and Andrea Free. I have always told them to avoid these people and don’t go somewhere they know that they are at. If we apply the same logic to this situation that the Kemp’s are using, the kids can follow Mr. Kemp or Ms. Free around and when they stop somewhere to go about their daily life, the kids can come right up to them and demand that they leave. If the kids are near their car, Mr. Kemp or Ms. Free must immediately walk away and leave their vehicle. The kids can come right up next to them anywhere that Kemp or Free might be and then say that there is a violation of the restraining order.
Of course, we do not stoop to the level of others around here. We want this family to stay away from us. We would have no contact with them if they would stay away from us.
We have been told by your office that the 50 yard restriction on Kemp being anywhere near our home or family just isn’t clear enough. We have a court date on the 1st of September for contempt against Arnold Kemp since your office stated that we should bring it before the judge since there wasn’t anything that could be done by the PD on the repeated violations by Kemp. This is a far sight different than the level of support the Kemp family receives. Would an Officer have gone out on an immediate response when Mrs. Kemp said she was parked right next to us so Steve was in violation, if it was any other family reporting? I doubt seriously that your office has the time or resources to waste. The next time, perhaps your office could give the Kemp’s the same answer that they give us, take it to the Judge.
Please include my letter in the official record, along with Mrs. Kemp’s police report.
3 Painter St.
Rio Dell, CA 95562