Gail talks about people who do not wish to speak against Mike Castro because of thier fear of repercussions from him. Many of the people I have talked with express this same concern since they access through the Bowen Ranch. If they were to speak thier mind then they would most likely find themselves having to seek other options for parking other than the Ranch and they also might find themselves in a confrontation with Mike. The last time I went in to park at the Ranch, which was the day DCHS opened after the Willow Fire, Mike Castro was in a sour mood. We got into a brief argument because I did not appreciate him talking to me about trash and the hotsprings like I was somehow part of the problem. Since I didn't just say " yes Mr. Castro, yes Mr. Castro and I actually challenged his position, I was asked to leave the Ranch. So the people who depend on the Bowen Ranch for access and yet may harbor feelings that Mike Castro has commited unfair and violent acts against people are faced with a decision, to speak up about Mike or not. They usually opt to not speak up. I have seen and heard enough that I have no doubt that Mike Castro has commited many unjust deeds in the Bowen Ranch area. My feeling is I would not support Mike Castro by paying his fee to park at the Ranch, even if it were and option. To my mind paying Mike does at some level condone his actions, and also I always want to be in a position to speak my mind when I feel a need to without feeling that I have to unduly please some person to gain some particular benifit from them. Gary Roe has seen more than most of what Mike Castro is capable of and how he acts aggressively. Since Gary speaks up against Mike Castro's deeds and actions he has become a regular target of Castro. Broken windows, being chased by Mike on his motorcycle, threatening Gary with a gun, shooting in Gary's direction while Gary is trying to walk around the Ranch, etc. These are the possible rewards for " anyone " who dares to speak up against Mike Castro. Whether Mike Castro has a permit for his weapon really doesn't matter. Mike Castro has shown again and again that he consideres himself above the law when it come to his actions. If a gun has a permit but is used in an unlawful manner and nobody can prove that this happened then the fact that the gun had a legal permit would not matter. The law is only meaningful when people either choose to respect it, or others can prove without question that a crime has been committed. Mike Castro has alway depended on the fact that where he perpetrates his acts are in areas where no one is around to verify things that may occur. When he and his helpers rolled the rocks onto the Moss Mill road, thats a big act with lots of clues and yet he was not held accountable for this. I think this particular incident really shows how the authorities have turned a blind eye to Mikes behavior. So you see, lots of things have happened out there but the proof and as importantly the cooperation of the local authorities has meant that nothing ever gets done, so far reasonable justice has not materialized. So in view of all this it seems to me that it is important that our collective watchfullnes as a DCHS community of people is what we need to help keep things safer for " all " the springs visitors. Lastly, the Ronnie Bates incident is a disturbing, unexplained affair. The whole thing is very fishy. This guy parks at the Bowen Ranch and then disappears. His car remains parked at the Bowen Ranch for months. Mike Castro watches his turf like a hawk, so whats up with him not contacting the authorites for all that time. You would think if Mike Castro new nothing about what was up with this missing person that he would have contacted the police and indicated that a car had been sitting at his ranch for a long period with no sight of the owner. Isn't that what a normaly concerned person would do in that instance. Could this be a case of buying time to hide clues? Then the jaw bone of the missing man shows up down along the creek just upstream from the DCHS hotpools. The man who found the jaw bone said his dog came running up with it. Since the dog was with the man I would say where-ever the dog found the bone may very well be likely close to where the remains of this missing man where laying ( at least at that point in time ). So this would indicate that the man lost his life close to the springs and definitly in the general area. I had a conversation with a person who indicated that Mike Castro spoke in such fashion ( in a past conversation with this person ) that it appeared that Castro was taking credit for doing the deed on Ronnie Bates. Now I realize that talk is not proof, but I consider the person who shared this information with me to be a clear minded and sensible person, so I personaly would give due consideration to this person's interpertation of the conversation they had with Mike Castro. This person of course would not want to be indentified because of the REPERCUSSIONS it might cause them in consideration of Mike Castro's aggressive side. Sorry to have to use the word " person " so much in the last few sentences, it was necesary. If I were to come across solid evidence in the form of an eyewitness to crimminal activity or physical evidence, I would try and inform any authorities that could be found that also could be trusted with the information. I feel however that I must honor things that people tell me in good faith with the understanding that I will not expose thier indentity. Much of what I find out just comes out of conversations with people on DCHS general subjects while at DCHS. People tend to talk alot down there. Its a shame that " all " the people of the DCHS community can't just enjoy the springs in peace, whether they go through the Bowen Ranch, or the other public routes of access. Be careful and watchful.
