The True(r) Story of Casey Nethercott

A couple of months ago, on a drive from Atlanta to Eugene, I did what I always do on long drives: I listened to conservative talk radio. It keeps me awake with rage. Dr. Laura is best -- she amazes me with the consistently wrong advice she gives out, even about things that aren't politically charged.

Anyway. one of the more hilarious commentators is Michael Savage, author of Liberalism is a Mental Disorder and professional loud, obnoxious racist.

(Aside: I swear to god I heard this on his show one time -- "In fact, it is the people who call me a racist that are the racists. All I'm doing is trying to save our country from stupid spics who don't even speak English!")

Anyway, it was then that I first heard the oft-repeated-by-conservatives sob story of Casey Nethercott. Casey, defenseless puppy-loving Arizona rancher, who bleeds apple pie and picnics, "caught two illegal aliens sneaking onto his ranch," where he apparently held them for an hour.

Though the pair admitted Nethercott's ranch hands provided them with cookies, water and a blanket and let them go after an hour, the illegal invaders enlisted the legal help of Morris Dees of the Southern Poverty Law Center to represent them in a suit charging they were abused by Nethercott.

Long story short, Nethercott's ranch is awarded to the illegals. That above quote is from an online account; on the radio, they don't even tell you about the allegation of abuse. Basically they don't give you any details. So I knew something was up. I figured it was something creepy and sexual.

It turns out the whole story is, well, an entirely different story.

First if all, the El Salvadorans did not, in fact, trespass on Nethercott's ranch. In fact they trespassed on some other guy's ranch; Nethercott was involved because he's part of an organization called Ranch Rescue, a group of nutty vigilantes akin to the Minutemen. Ranch Rescue was hired by the ranch owner to do, ahem, rescue his ranch from the overwhelming threat of illegal aliens.

Nethercott, who has prior convictions for assault and false imprisonment, and who is apparently a neo-Nazi -- Savage totally glossed over that -- evidently pistol-whipped one of the El Salvadorans in between plying him with cookies and blankets.

Crazy version: "And since he was in jail and unable to defend himself against Dees' civil lawsuit, Nethercott's ranch was seized and handed over to the illegal aliens."

Sane version: "Sutton, who'd invited the border watch group to his land because he was fed up with drug-traffickers and immigrants passing through on their way north, settled for $100,000. But Nethercott and Foote didn't respond to the suit, resulting in a combined $1.35 million default judgment against them. Nethercott's ranch, which he bought in cash for $120,000, was signed over to the immigrants Aug. 11. "

So there you have it, Nethercott-googlers. Furdell.com -- doing the web-research so you don't have to.