Orange County and Los Angeles county have moved into the Orange Tier for reopening after being restricted due to the global health emergency. That’s big news for theme park fans. Alas, we’re still waiting on details for how guests will be able to buy tickets… Read More »Disneyland now allowed to reopen at 25% capacity, other SoCal theme parks opening too.
The Mayor of Orange County Florida, in which the vast majority of the Walt Disney World Resort is located, has issued a stay at home order that will prevent residents from non-essential travel through at least April 9th. This pushes back any potential reopening date… Read More »Orange County in Florida announces Stay at Home Order
Woody from Pixar’s Toy Story movies, but built out of food? That’s the amazing accomplishment by the Disneyland Resort Design & Engineering team. It took more than 7,000 food cans to built the sculpture, which is on display at the 2019 CANstruction Orange County design-build… Read More »Disneyland VoluntEARS build Woody Food Sculpture at Canstruction
The rising costs of rent in Southern California have left many facing difficulty finding affordable housing. According to the Orange County Housing Trust, there are 2,700 people homeless who have an immediate need for housing in Orange County. As it turns out that is also… Read More »Disneyland makes a big gift toward housing the homeless in Orange County
Guests at Downtown Disney at the Disneyland Resort now have a new place to get a scoop of ice cream at Salt & Straw. Since all the ice cream is made in small batches with local, organic and sustainable ingredients, you know it’s not just… Read More »Salt & Straw now serving unique ice cream flavors at Downtown Disney in Disneyland
Disneyland Design and Engineering Cast Members showcase their own super powers to fight hunger by transforming 8,900 canned goods into a towering 10-foot Jack-Jack sculpture and his cookie num nums. This scene from Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” was created for the 11th annual CANstruction Orange County,… Read More »Disneyland Cast makes giant Jack-Jack out of canned goods for a good cause
Welcome to the Magic is a Disneyland Timelapse by Matt Givot and Dan Douglas, both Orange County based photographers. They took over 20,000 images to showcase Disneyland and Disney California Adventure using timelapse photography. I love the way it captures crowds, lights, and the unique… Read More »Welcome to the Magic – Fan Made Disneyland Timelapse Video
A Note on Sources
The following article is based primarily on documents on file with the Superior Court of California, County of Orange in the case of The People of The State of California vs. Larry James Allred and Robert Edward Smyrak, 11NF1191.
My research in these was supplemented by telephone interviews with the defense attorneys involved (I thank them for taking the time to speak with me); law enforcement press releases; public record searches; and, in a few instances, previous media reports from reputable news-gathering organizations such as the Los Angeles Times.—Mike Bastoli
S
eptember 29, 2011 was not a good day for Robert Edward Smyrak. At 8:00 AM in Courtroom N3 of the North Justice Center in Fullerton, California, the 52-year-old Anaheim man appeared before Judge Nicholas Thompson of the Superior Court of California, Orange County to receive his sentence.
Smyrak, who goes by Bob, was pleading guilty to one count of felony trademark infringement. The penalty, at least as paper, would be one year in jail, three years probation, plus restitution. In truth, because of overcrowding in California’s prisons, he would serve out his sentence entirely at home, through supervised house arrest. But it was still, to be sure, an unfortunate turn of events for the IT operations manager whose most serious prior conviction was for using a cell phone behind the wheel.
Smyrak’s journey into California’s madhouse corrections system had begun, at least in earnest, in the early days of 2010, with a little help from a friend, Larry James Allred, then aged 56 and a resident of nearby Walnut.
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