Val Verde Activist Granted Continuance on Felony Counts

With a half-dozen supporters at his side, one of the Santa Clarita Valley’s most visible leaders Friday asked a judge for more time before he enters a plea on two felony charges that he falsified court documents.

Edwin Seth Brown, a longtime activist in the semirural community of Val Verde, was scheduled to be arraigned in Newhall Municipal Court but was granted a continuance by Judge Adrian Adams to allow his attorney time to better review the case. Adams ordered Brown to appear again Jan. 23, ready to enter a plea.

Brown, director of the Samuel Dixon Family Health Center, is alleged to have presented documents to the court that credited two friends with more court-imposed community service hours than they had completed. He also attempted to mislead the court about where the two men performed their service, according to court records.

Jay Kapac and John Milton Campbell were ordered to perform their community service at the clinic, records show, but Kapac told Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies that he did most of his work at Brown’s home. Brown, 44, declined to comment on his case.

Brown, a former Castaic Town Council member and the town’s 1994 Man of the Year, has been active in a variety of community causes for years. Among the people at the hearing in support of Brown was Ruth Newhall, former Newhall Signal owner and editor and a well-known figure in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Brown’s supporters did not address the judge but spoke briefly outside the courthouse. “I’m here to support a man who has given a great deal to the community,” Newhall said. “The charges against him are very suspicious and I believe this man is being wrongly prosecuted.”