Trial Begins in Jogger’s Injury Lawsuit Over Pier

From the early moments of jury selection, attorney Michael S. Duberchin warned prospective jurors that his client was a convicted perjurer--a not-so-minor detail that prompted the dismissal of some panelists who said there was no way they could take his trip-and-fall claim against the city of Ventura seriously.

But late Friday morning, after finding 12 people who said they could hear the case impartially, Duberchin told Jerry J. Fraschilla’s story and asked the panel to award a judgment to his client, who claims to have suffered a debilitating back injury last year after tripping over a loose plank while jogging on the Ventura Pier.

For the 61-year-old Oxnard man and his girlfriend, Darlene Faye Gillespie, an original member of the “Mickey Mouse Club” expected to be a key witness in the case, the courtroom scene was familiar.

In the last year, the pair have been tangled up in two other cases--a shoplifting trial last summer in Ventura County Municipal Court and an ongoing federal securities fraud case in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

But this time, Fraschilla is the one making the accusations.

An ex-Marine, Fraschilla contends he was badly injured when he tripped over a board while jogging on the Ventura Pier with Gillespie on the afternoon of March 4, 1997.

He is seeking unspecified medical and general damages from the city and one of its contractors who did work on the pier.

“This is a monumentally simple case,” Duberchin said Friday in his opening statement. “The plaintiff’s position is that there was no warning on the boardwalk when he entered it.”

Holding up the long, thin piece of wood he said clipped his client, the Calabasas attorney argued the city failed to properly anchor it to the pier during a repair project, after wedging similar boards between the structure’s larger planks.

But in his opening statement, Oxnard attorney Terrence J. Bonham said the city was not at fault and called Fraschilla’s claim “patently ridiculous.” Bonham, who is representing the city, described Fraschilla as a convicted criminal who once used a fake name, driver’s license and Social Security number. He said evidence to be presented during the three-day trial will show the plaintiff had a history of medical problems, including back pain, prior to his alleged fall.

“I think when all the evidence is presented, you’re going to conclude this case has no merit,” Bonham said.

Los Angeles attorney Gerald B. Malanga, who is representing the contractor, said no other complaints have been made about the repair work done to the pier. He told jurors that by the end of the trial, they would find no fault with his clients.

As the lawyers spoke, Fraschilla sat at the counsel table dressed in a blue pinstriped suit and occasionally whispered to his attorney. Gillespie, 56, waited in the hallway outside the courtroom.

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In August, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. Jack Weiss, Fraschilla pleaded guilty in federal court to 21 counts stemming from his role in an alleged securities fraud scheme. He is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 16. Meanwhile, Gillespie is awaiting trial on charges of perjury, conspiracy, fraud and obstruction of justice. Her trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 30.

The couple were arrested Dec. 3 at their Oceanaire Drive home in Oxnard on suspicion of engaging in a fraudulent stock-buying practice known as free-riding. Authorities said the couple purchased stock in 1992 and 1993 without means or intent of paying for it.

Federal officials accused Fraschilla and Gillespie of opening accounts at six brokerage houses under a fake name and in the names of companies they controlled. A federal indictment alleged that the couple placed orders with closed and overdrawn bank accounts for more than 194,000 shares of common stock valued at $827,000.

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil lawsuit against the pair in 1994 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. The suit was settled a year later, after the couple agreed to pay a fine and replace the money they lost.

FBI investigators later concluded that the couple lied during depositions taken during the SEC’s civil action and gave authorities false documents, officials said.

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In addition to the federal case, Fraschilla and Gillespie were charged in Ventura County Municipal Court last year with shoplifting from a Macy’s department store. Both were convicted and placed on three-years probation.

In court Friday, Fraschilla’s attorney said his client needs back surgery as a result of his fall, which occurred four months before the shoplifting trial. Duberchin said the surgery will cost at least $25,000, plus $7,000 more for related medical costs. He said Fraschilla is also seeking “a reasonable amount for pain and suffering.”

Testimony in the case is expected to resume Monday.