Voting Station

Virginia McMartin

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Scapegoat

The Resume

    (July 23, 1907-December 17, 1995)
    Born in Venice, California
    Birth name was Virginia Steely, nicknamed 'Miss Virginia'
    Founder and co-owner of the Virginia McMartin Preschool and Day Care Center in Bakersfield, California
    Mother of school administrator, Peggy McMartin Buckey
    Grandmother of McMartin school teachers, Raymond Charles Buckey and Peggy Anne Buckey
    One of the McMartin Seven: defendants in the longest and most expensive criminal case in American history, starting in the summer of 1983
    Virginia McMartin Preschool eventually was shut down after 28 years in business (Jan. 13, 1984)
    With her daughter, two grandchildren, and three other faculty members, was charged with numerous acts of sexual abuse, and Satanic ritualistic abuse, allegedly performed on over 60 children left in her care
    Personally charged with 12 counts of molestation, which called for a prison sentence of 96 years if convicted
    Charges were dismissed against her, her granddaughter, and faculty in 1986; charges were dismissed against her daughter and grandson after a seven year period, when a second trial ended with a hung jury (1990)
    Portrayed by Sada Thompson in the made-for-TV film adaptation of the trial, 'Indictment' (1995)

Why she might be annoying:

    Her husband left her for a younger woman in 1946.
    Her school was a status symbol for the elite Manhattan Beach Sandpipers.
    She was reportedly disturbed by Judy Johnson (who started the whole scandal) dropping off her son at the school despite not being officially enrolled in the school.
    As such, she gave orders to her administrator daughter that Matthew Johnson was not to be allowed into the school under any circumstances (needless to say, Peggy didn't listen).
    She was accused of heading off an elaborate child porn ring via secret tunnels.
    Some of the more wild accusations from children detailed her photographing them naked while they were being fondled (usually by her daughter or grandchildren), often involving her touching them inappropriately.
    Her frequent outbursts in the courtroom often angered the Judge and prosecuting attorneys.
    She requested to serve as her own attorney due to being out of money and facing penury, refusing to talk to any state-funded attorney.
    When she was denied, she made a scene, threatening to not even show up in the courtroom, 'unless the sheriffs came and dragged her there' (her daughter and grandchildren convinced her to abide by the decision, avoiding a Contempt citation in so doing).

Why she might not be annoying:

    She started attending childhood education classes at a local college after her husband left her.
    She drove a school bus for years to get the money to start her school.
    She was one of Bakersfield's most upstanding citizens.
    Case in point, the local Chamber of Commerce presented her with the 'Rose and Scroll' award for her work with children, commending her as the 'Citizen of the Year' (1977).
    Her wheelchair was confiscated initially after her arrest.
    Even those who believed in the guilt of Raymond Bucky at least sympathized with the plight of his grandmother, whose integrity had been beyond reproach.
    She possessed a remarkable equanimity throughout the long ordeal of the proceedings, often knitting quietly on the court bench.
    She had an occasional flare for sarcasm, at one point offering to take prosecutors to the avocado tree where she and the Devil supposedly tortured the children, if they wanted a corroborating interview with him.
    The charges against her were dropped but she still had to watch her daughter and grandson endure slander and accusations of child molestation while behind bars.
    In addition to the loss of her reputation and emotional well-being, the court case resulted in the loss of her school, her assets, and her oceanfront home (which she sold to pay her attorney's fees).
    It is widely believed that the image of a sick, wheelchair-bound old woman being dragged before a judge to answer for charges of blood drinking and mutilation made many realize the sheer ugliness of the false accusations leveled.
    She was a modern-day Rebecca Nurse during a modern-day Salem Witch Hunt (except she survived).

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 4 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 5 Votes: 40.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 73 Votes: 43.84% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 9 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 4 Votes: 75.00% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 65 Votes: 49.23% Annoying