The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Just so everyone got the point, Jeff Bumb announced to the press that he and Brian were divesting from Bay 101, and records show he eventually sold his shares for $1.4 million. In fact, he hasn't set foot in the place since October 1995, the year he stopped talking to his father and three brothers. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. "He worked for me." When the Vatican eliminated Latin from the Catholic mass in the '60s, George Bumb Sr. responded by building his own chapel, named for the rebellious St. Athanasius, at the base of Mt. Or at least he thought he didn't. During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. The court saga evolved into a battle of wills between a father--a man who wouldn't even let the Vatican tell him what to do--and his oldest son, determined to break free from the old man's grasp. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. In fact, Tim and George had to agree not to collaborate with other Bumbs on any new business venture. Some improprieties did turn up: Bumb & Associates, a partnership including the four brothers and their father, had failed to file required reports disclosing more than $100,000 in political contributions made between 1989 and 1992. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. Don't Shoot: George Bumb Sr., the publicity-shy patriarch of the Bumb family and creator of the Flea Market, in a rare photo which appeared in California Today magazine in 1980. The state, still busy conducting background checks, still hadn't approved the Bumbs and their partners' gaming licenses. Tim and George, under pressure from then Police Chief Lou Cobarruviaz, had already signed an agreement a year earlier that prohibited Brian, Jeff and their father from having anything to do with the card room. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. Preventive Medicine: George Bumb Jr. is a co-owner of Bay 101, where a snakebite kit is kept on-hand as a family joke. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. At the time, San Jose, like cities throughout the state, was strapped for cash, looking at an $11 million budget shortfall. It's like we had no life except for the family." Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. OK--we didn't get out--OK? OK--we didn't get out--OK? The state, still busy conducting background checks, still hadn't approved the Bumbs and their partners' gaming licenses. "And when I visited you at your home I told you that other than God you are the only person I've gotten down on my knees for," Venzon says on page 7. Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. Tim and George, under pressure from then Police Chief Lou Cobarruviaz, had already signed an agreement a year earlier that prohibited Brian, Jeff and their father from having anything to do with the card room. In response to Jeff's legal attacks, George Bumb Sr. and Bumb & Associates filed two separate suits of their own to collect nearly $1 million in loans and interest they claimed Jeff never paid. Deputy chief Tom Wheatley says that police wondered if Venzon, or someone, destroyed the barrel to prevent a ballistics test from tracing a fired bullet to the gun. Well, guess what? And he [Jeff] wants me to violate the condition which says in it that I sign away my rights and they close us down. The investigation was given a shot in the arm after the arrest of Johnny Venzon in 1997, a cop who made headlines for burglarizing homes while on duty to pay for his mounting gambling debts. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. Tim Bumb says writing a letter on Jeff's behalf would have violated the agreement with the police chief and put the club in jeopardy. "He worked for me." The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. Jeff Bumb later explained to the press that they didn't know partnerships were required to file such reports, and they paid the state a $1,250 fine. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. Finally, in July 1994, the state cleared Tim and George and gave them a conditional OK to let the games begin. The district attorney's office says that Bumb attorney Ron Werner turned the letter over to authorities immediately after it came in the mail. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." According to Werner, molestation of his daughter became part of a laundry list of damning things Jeff threatened to disclose if his buy-out demands weren't met. "I mean," Jeff later said at a deposition, "it was a time of hurt and heartache for us--and not my father, not my mother, not my brother George, not my brother Tim, not Brian could care less." When the Vatican eliminated Latin from the Catholic mass in the '60s, George Bumb Sr. responded by building his own chapel, named for the rebellious St. Athanasius, at the base of Mt. Jeff Bumb says he believes that state and local investigators at the time of Bay 101's limbo were investigating a rumor that Jeff had tried to get someone killed, a charge Jeff denies. And for nearly a month, they did. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" "They had to find Snow White and Cinderella," Tim Bumb says, "and that was George and I." And he [Jeff] wants me to violate the condition which says in it that I sign away my rights and they close us down. Some Interesting & Unknown Facts About Aditi Bumb Aditi Bumb is a Pet Lover. The court saga evolved into a battle of wills between a father--a man who wouldn't even let the Vatican tell him what to do--and his oldest son, determined to break free from the old man's grasp. Or at least he thought he didn't. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. But Jeff and his family started hearing that instead of showing concern and support for his daughter, George Bumb Sr. and others in the family were blaming his freshman daughter for the incident and not her adult-age cousin. Tim, the second youngest of George Bumb's four boys, was already running the family toy business, Fact Games, and Premium Pet Stores. EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. Just so everyone got the point, Jeff Bumb announced to the press that he and Brian were divesting from Bay 101, and records show he eventually sold his shares for $1.4 million. "And I told you that I loved you and you are like a father to me. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. He wanted to relocate and expand Sutter's Place in Alviso from a five-table card room to a 40-table one, matching the size of Northern California's largest card room, Garden City in San Jose. And as with any divorce, embarrassing private details about the family and its businesses made their way into the public record. Bumb family attorney Ron Werner suggested that Jeff and his family had a hidden motive for waiting nearly a month to report the incident to police. And Jeff himself had been playing poker since he was 12. Still Standing: Jeff Bumb, Bay 101's ostracized founder, boasts that despite various local, state and federal investigations over the years he has emerged squeaky clean. Snow White or Cinderella? Werner said no. After learning of the incident, Jeff and wife Elizabeth did not report the matter to police immediately. "I mean," Jeff later said at a deposition, "it was a time of hurt and heartache for us--and not my father, not my mother, not my brother George, not my brother Tim, not Brian could care less." Three years ago, the Mercury News listed the Bumb family in the Top 10 of the valley's most generous political contributors. The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." Some improprieties did turn up: Bumb & Associates, a partnership including the four brothers and their father, had failed to file required reports disclosing more than $100,000 in political contributions made between 1989 and 1992. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. It pitted Bumb against Bumb. OK--we didn't get out--OK? She told police about at least seven other sexual encounters she had with her cousin after that. (That thing that involved Jeff when Bay 101 was scheduled to open but didn't.)" Christopher Gardner attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. The only reason we are driving around in his Lexus today is because he knows I have read the bizarre and bitter contents of a 2-foot-high stack of documents down at the Santa Clara County Superior Courthouse. In a fit, he took the paper he was writing on, crumpled it up and threw it out the office door. About 20 percent of the 130 students there are Bumb relatives.) The ensuing delay forced Jeff Bumb to lay off 600 workers he had hired. And that ain't happening because I can't afford it." Jeff Bumb remembers that when he was going to school at Bellarmine in the '60s, the other kids would call him things like "Bumbsy" or "Bumbo." A FEW DAYS AFTER returning from his son's Oct. 13, 1995, military graduation in San Diego, Jeff and his wife, Elizabeth, got some appalling news: Their 14-year-old daughter had been involved in a sexual relationship with an older male cousin. Tim, the second youngest of George Bumb's four boys, was already running the family toy business, Fact Games, and Premium Pet Stores. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. Don't Shoot: George Bumb Sr., the publicity-shy patriarch of the Bumb family and creator of the Flea Market, in a rare photo which appeared in California Today magazine in 1980. And then there's the stuff that never made it into headlines, like the alleged murder-for-hire plot out at the Flea Market. He asked longtime family attorney Ron Werner if his brothers could write a recommendation letter for him, something state officials had told him he would need to be considered eligible for a gaming license. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. But Jeff says that privately he and his brothers had an oral agreement--which Tim Bumb now corroborates--that would one day let him repurchase his shares and become a partner in Bay 101 again. And there were gamblers everywhere who had come looking for some action. She told police about at least seven other sexual encounters she had with her cousin after that. "We made it very clear to Jeff and everybody else concerned," Tim says, "that I'm not going to stick my neck on the line here. When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. The card club has done more than bring unwanted public scrutiny to this insular group. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. At the time, Jeff was in the midst of negotiating an arrangement to be bought out of the family businesses. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. Well, guess what? ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. ON AUG. 11, 1995, Jeff sat in his Flea Market office scribbling on a piece of paper, plotting his grand return to his peach palace. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. "My issue with [George Bumb Sr.]," Jeff Bumb complains about his father, "was his control of where you lived, what kind of house you bought, where your children went to school, who your friends are, whether your children went to college, who they would marry, what kind of wedding they would have." "It's a very strong family. THINGS WERE certainly simpler back in the old days, before Bay 101, when the Bumbs were known for the Berryessa Flea Market, the family-owned business started in 1960 by 75-year-old family patriarch George Bumb Sr. And there were gamblers everywhere who had come looking for some action. Realizing that, Jeff offered to pay higher card-room taxes (next year the city expects to collect $4.5 million from Bay 101) and pick up the tab for security. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. Some improprieties did turn up: Bumb & Associates, a partnership including the four brothers and their father, had failed to file required reports disclosing more than $100,000 in political contributions made between 1989 and 1992. The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." Tim and George, under pressure from then Police Chief Lou Cobarruviaz, had already signed an agreement a year earlier that prohibited Brian, Jeff and their father from having anything to do with the card room. A FEW DAYS AFTER returning from his son's Oct. 13, 1995, military graduation in San Diego, Jeff and his wife, Elizabeth, got some appalling news: Their 14-year-old daughter had been involved in a sexual relationship with an older male cousin. Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." Don't Shoot: George Bumb Sr., the publicity-shy patriarch of the Bumb family and creator of the Flea Market, in a rare photo which appeared in California Today magazine in 1980. He followed that with suits alleging breach of contract, wrongful termination and misrepresentation. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. First, Jeff tried to have the Bumb & Associates partnership dissolved after accusing his family of trying to force him out without paying him a fair price. One of George Bumb Sr.'s granddaughters explained to police that her family was very old-fashioned: "The woman gets the short end of the deal; she is a whore. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. He can't ignore it. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. Even though all the lights were out, she told police that she knew it was Matthew "because the moonlight shined into the room through the large windows that faced the ocean." According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats.