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. Werner said no. When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. "I don't need their help," he barked at Werner. Other allegations were more dubious: Investigators chased after a tip that the Bumbs were skimming cash from the Flea Market parking lot, an accusation that was never proven. Tim and George Jr. worried that pressuring state and city officials to deal Jeff back in at Bay 101 would backfire and authorities would close down the card room. George Bumb Sr.'s loan-repayment demands came in July 1996, just as his oldest son and his wife were about to move to Los Gatos and break away from the family and its eastside enclave. When he was jailed, the desperate cop wrote a 15-page handwritten letter in pencil to George Bumb in May 1997 asking the Flea Market owner to bail him out. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. 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. "I'm a big boy." You know the school we went to?" On March 17, 1993, the City Council gave Bumb and his partners the green light to open a 40-table card room on a 10-acre plot of land off U.S 101. 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. 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." He started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. 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. "I'm a big boy." Jeff's grandfather, Frank Bumb, had met his wife, Mary, at a card parlor in San Francisco where they worked. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. But he didn't cash out. Along the way, Jeff raised the ante, hiring Frank Ubhaus, a lawyer who represented Garden City card club, Bay 101's crosstown rival. In fact, on the day he was arrested, records show that Venzon pawned a 14-karat-gold diamond cluster ring and a ladies' gold tennis bracelet for a total of $298 at American Precious Metals, a jewelry store at the Flea Market run by Joseph Bumb. "I'm a big boy." 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. 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. 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. 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." 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. At one point in the investigation, sheriff's detectives had Jeff's daughter call Matthew while he was working at the Flea Market to confirm the sexual activities. For all his quirks and controlling behavior, the old man is regarded as a benefactor by most family members and some Flea Market employees who know their boss to be capable of great generosity. 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." But he didn't cash out. Christopher Gardner For all his quirks and controlling behavior, the old man is regarded as a benefactor by most family members and some Flea Market employees who know their boss to be capable of great generosity. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. Other allegations were more dubious: Investigators chased after a tip that the Bumbs were skimming cash from the Flea Market parking lot, an accusation that was never proven. At the time, San Jose, like cities throughout the state, was strapped for cash, looking at an $11 million budget shortfall. Christopher Gardner But the Bumbs are hardly traditional political players. Originally he was scheduled for questioning on March 10, 1997, but the old man's lawyers explained that their client was extremely ill, suffering from "severe life-threatening conditions," practically on his death bed. In February 1994, nearly one year after the San Jose City Council gave Bay 101 its blessing, the state denied the Bumbs and their partners' gaming license application. EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. Initially, police filed felony charges against Matthew Bumb for having oral sex with a minor and penetrating her with his fingers. In fact, he hasn't set foot in the place since October 1995, the year he stopped talking to his father and three brothers. Of the four brothers, Tim and George had faced the least resistance from state gaming officials. But he didn't cash out. 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. "They didn't teach anything about this. It's like we had no life except for the family." When Jeff and Brian were denied licenses for Bay 101, Tim (above) and brother George Jr. jumped in. "They didn't teach anything about this. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. 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. But Jeff says the loan dispute screwed up their moving plans. Police reports would suggest she had, "for about a year," been giving "blow jobs" to 19-year-old Matthew Bumb, son of George Bumb Jr. "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." Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. she said, referring to the family-run Catholic school at the Flea Market. In fact, he hasn't set foot in the place since October 1995, the year he stopped talking to his father and three brothers. Whenever trouble arose at the Flea Market with city code or building inspectors, the Bumbs sent Jeff to settle things. 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 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. On Nov. 8, 1995, attorney Albin Danell, Elizabeth's brother-in-law, contacted the police, apparently after consulting with Elizabeth. And it was very explicit in there that no Bumbs could have anything to do with the club. 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. Their pun-afflicted surname adds to the hillbilly mystique. Three years ago, the Mercury News listed the Bumb family in the Top 10 of the valley's most generous political contributors. Tim and George Jr. would appeal and reapply, the hope being that the club would open as soon as possible. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. 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. They recorded the conversation. But the Bumbs are hardly traditional political players. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. The card club has done more than bring unwanted public scrutiny to this insular group. Before the end of the month, the Flea Market laid off Jeff's daughters Anne and Rebecca. "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." Finally, in July 1994, the state cleared Tim and George and gave them a conditional OK to let the games begin. According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. At the time, Jeff was in the midst of negotiating an arrangement to be bought out of the family businesses. She recalled that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt covered by a blanket. It's very tightknit," says Bryant, adding that the senior Bumb doesn't give interviews--ever. Snow White or Cinderella? Within weeks, Jeff says, his six-month-old dog was dead, his cat was dead and the tires of a family car were slashed. 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. 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. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. 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. Eight days after the molestation incident was reported to police--and one day after Jeff Bumb formally refused his father's $6.9 million buyout offer--George Bumb Sr. sent Jeff a curt typewritten memo informing Jeff that he was terminated effective immediately and had to clean out his desk before 5pm. When he was jailed, the desperate cop wrote a 15-page handwritten letter in pencil to George Bumb in May 1997 asking the Flea Market owner to bail him out. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. 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. 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. When Werner broke the news that Jeff's brothers wouldn't write a letter on his behalf, he says Jeff became furious.