Age 108
Second wife Maude Robbins Barnard; father of Marjorie Barnard and the late PFC Clarence Harold Barnard, Jr; brother of Ruth Newman of Pebble Beach, Genevieve Gully of Pleasanton and the late Aimee Barnard Jennings and Juanita Baumeister.
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Written by Sandy Frary, Sonoma County Coroner's Office Archivist on 6/1/2016:
"Clarence H. "Barney" Barnard was the last known survivor of the group of masked vigilantes who lynched fugitives Terrance Fitts, George Boyd and Charles Valento in retaliation for the murders of Sonoma County Sheriff James Petray and two San Francisco Detectives. Before Barney died, Gaye LeBaron did a taped interview with Barney, which was to be opened only after his death. The tape was locked in a vault at the Sonoma County Library.
Barney died on January 20, 2008. Eventually the tape was released and is now at the Sonoma State University Library. Barney revealed that the masked mob was a carefully selected and disciplined band of vigilantes with a "captain" who was a World War I Veteran. All the men were from Healdsburg and all were friends of Sheriff Petray.
I've listened to the interview, and found the following quite interesting. Before the vigilantes drove into Santa Rosa to break the three fugitives out of jail, they smeared mud on the license plates on their cars so their license plate numbers could not be read and therefore could not be traced to the owners. Clever.
I don't recall Barney naming all the men involved, although he does say that his father was part of the mob."
Second wife Maude Robbins Barnard; father of Marjorie Barnard and the late PFC Clarence Harold Barnard, Jr; brother of Ruth Newman of Pebble Beach, Genevieve Gully of Pleasanton and the late Aimee Barnard Jennings and Juanita Baumeister.
-----------------
Written by Sandy Frary, Sonoma County Coroner's Office Archivist on 6/1/2016:
"Clarence H. "Barney" Barnard was the last known survivor of the group of masked vigilantes who lynched fugitives Terrance Fitts, George Boyd and Charles Valento in retaliation for the murders of Sonoma County Sheriff James Petray and two San Francisco Detectives. Before Barney died, Gaye LeBaron did a taped interview with Barney, which was to be opened only after his death. The tape was locked in a vault at the Sonoma County Library.
Barney died on January 20, 2008. Eventually the tape was released and is now at the Sonoma State University Library. Barney revealed that the masked mob was a carefully selected and disciplined band of vigilantes with a "captain" who was a World War I Veteran. All the men were from Healdsburg and all were friends of Sheriff Petray.
I've listened to the interview, and found the following quite interesting. Before the vigilantes drove into Santa Rosa to break the three fugitives out of jail, they smeared mud on the license plates on their cars so their license plate numbers could not be read and therefore could not be traced to the owners. Clever.
I don't recall Barney naming all the men involved, although he does say that his father was part of the mob."
Age 108
Second wife Maude Robbins Barnard; father of Marjorie Barnard and the late PFC Clarence Harold Barnard, Jr; brother of Ruth Newman of Pebble Beach, Genevieve Gully of Pleasanton and the late Aimee Barnard Jennings and Juanita Baumeister.
-----------------
Written by Sandy Frary, Sonoma County Coroner's Office Archivist on 6/1/2016:
"Clarence H. "Barney" Barnard was the last known survivor of the group of masked vigilantes who lynched fugitives Terrance Fitts, George Boyd and Charles Valento in retaliation for the murders of Sonoma County Sheriff James Petray and two San Francisco Detectives. Before Barney died, Gaye LeBaron did a taped interview with Barney, which was to be opened only after his death. The tape was locked in a vault at the Sonoma County Library.
Barney died on January 20, 2008. Eventually the tape was released and is now at the Sonoma State University Library. Barney revealed that the masked mob was a carefully selected and disciplined band of vigilantes with a "captain" who was a World War I Veteran. All the men were from Healdsburg and all were friends of Sheriff Petray.
I've listened to the interview, and found the following quite interesting. Before the vigilantes drove into Santa Rosa to break the three fugitives out of jail, they smeared mud on the license plates on their cars so their license plate numbers could not be read and therefore could not be traced to the owners. Clever.
I don't recall Barney naming all the men involved, although he does say that his father was part of the mob."
Second wife Maude Robbins Barnard; father of Marjorie Barnard and the late PFC Clarence Harold Barnard, Jr; brother of Ruth Newman of Pebble Beach, Genevieve Gully of Pleasanton and the late Aimee Barnard Jennings and Juanita Baumeister.
-----------------
Written by Sandy Frary, Sonoma County Coroner's Office Archivist on 6/1/2016:
"Clarence H. "Barney" Barnard was the last known survivor of the group of masked vigilantes who lynched fugitives Terrance Fitts, George Boyd and Charles Valento in retaliation for the murders of Sonoma County Sheriff James Petray and two San Francisco Detectives. Before Barney died, Gaye LeBaron did a taped interview with Barney, which was to be opened only after his death. The tape was locked in a vault at the Sonoma County Library.
Barney died on January 20, 2008. Eventually the tape was released and is now at the Sonoma State University Library. Barney revealed that the masked mob was a carefully selected and disciplined band of vigilantes with a "captain" who was a World War I Veteran. All the men were from Healdsburg and all were friends of Sheriff Petray.
I've listened to the interview, and found the following quite interesting. Before the vigilantes drove into Santa Rosa to break the three fugitives out of jail, they smeared mud on the license plates on their cars so their license plate numbers could not be read and therefore could not be traced to the owners. Clever.
I don't recall Barney naming all the men involved, although he does say that his father was part of the mob."
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