Judge delays pimp’s prison sentencing for wedding

Bergeron’s efforts did not sit well with the prosecution.

Prosecutor Sharron Lee formally objected to the delay, saying marriage was not good cause, District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.

“We just do not believe San Mateo County tax dollars should go to help a pimp get married. [Bergeron] is not doing this for Joe Q. Public on the street. Quite candidly, I find it offensive,” Wagstaffe said.

Defense attorney John Halley took a different view.

“It’s not always correct to take the most cynical view of what people do,” he said of Bergeron’s actions.

Halley said his client had been trying to follow the established jail process to get married through the Service League but doing so has become more complicated because notaries verifying inmate identity — necessary because he cannot appear personally at the county clerk’s office — now require a photo identification.

“Bergeron, out of ordinary human decency, saw this and realized it was ridiculous,” Halley said.

Bergeron issued an order having the affidavit notarized so that Halley and the fiancee can collect the marriage license and the judge will preside over the ceremony prior to sentencing.

Gaines has been in custody since January 2014 after he was arrested in South San Francisco as part of a human trafficking task force sting. Officers arranged a date at the Comfort Inn with “Mariahluv77” through MyRedbook.com. Police reported learning the woman worked for him since 2011 and she tried leaving in July 2013.

However, Gaines threatened to burn down his victim’s home and her parents even obtained a restraining order, Wagstaffe said.

After his arrest, the woman reportedly continued visiting him in jail and placed money on his books. Gaines told the Probation Department she was still his girlfriend and not an abused woman, all while making marriage arrangement with his fiancee, Wagstaffe said.

Gaines was originally charged with several charges including human trafficking but, on his November jury trial date, pleaded no contest to felony counts of pimping and witness dissuasion. He also admitted his prior strike in return for a flat eight-year sentence.

Wagstaffe said Gaines’ case and history make him unsuitable for the court’s help.

“The defendant is ... a convicted woman abuser and has a prior conviction for shooting two people which garnered him a 13-year prison sentence. In our view, clearly inappropriate to make special efforts to allow him to get married in open court,” Wagstaffe said.

michelle@smdailyjournal.com

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