Top quotes of 2005

"Stringing him to an Oak tree might be too good for him. He has done a severe injustice to the citizens of Lodi and should be held responsible. I'm hoping, if possible, through a lawsuit that we might prevent him from doing this to other communities."
— Councilman Larry Hansen on the city's decision to sue its former environmental attorney, Michael Donovan, for fraud and negligence.

"I have this mental picture of them up there with their night goggles saying, 'Oh, there's that woman who watches us every evening for 20 minutes and has a couple smokes with her dog nearby.'"
— Kay Duelfer who, like many Lodi residents, watched the two planes that spent countless hours circling over the city after five men were arrested during a terrorism investigation.

"It's important to note that my client is not charged with being involved in terrorist acts. He has been painted with the brush of being a terrorist and he's not even charged with it."
— Defense attorney Johnny Griffin III, on the fact that Umer Hayat was charged only with making a false statement to FBI agents.

"From that day, it devolved into anarchy."
— Lodi Mayor John Beckman, speaking on fallout from the June arrests of two men with alleged terror connections, at a town hall forum at University of the Pacific.

"I pulled them out of school to bring them here. Some things are important."
— Lodi parent Toby Willson on opening day of "Star Wars Episode III, Revenge of the Sith."

"We've done the best with the nightmare we were handed. … It's time to buck up and move on."
— City Attorney Stephen Schwabauer defending the city raising water rates to pay for the groundwater contamination cleanup.

"By 8 p.m., I started getting frantic and calling around. By 10, I felt dead inside."
— Barbara Christian, recalling the night of Jan. 8, 1981, when her daughter, Tokay HIgh student Terri Winchell, disappeared and was later found murdered.

"McNair may be the nicest school out of the chain of all of them, but not if you're scared to send your kids there."
— Morada parent Pat Gotelli on families making the move to the new McNair High School

"The golden girl was as tarnished as they come."
— Anchorwoman Deborah Norville, describing a bout with depression over balancing career and family.

"Bring down the hammers of hell."
— Several folks at City Hall dropped this phrase after it was first used by Vice Mayor Bob Johnson while discussing housing code violations.

"It's pretty obvious in some respects — the geese are smarter than us."
—Tony Goehring, Lodi Parks and Recreation Director, remarking on the failed methods to deter a troublesome gaggle of geese that took up residence at Lodi Lake.

"They start collecting on street corners, they get pushed out in traffic, they just become garbage bins on wheels."
— Lodi Police Detective Dale Eubanks, after police rounded up more than 200 abandoned shopping carts in two separate operations.

"Without this list of blunders and errors, I wouldn't exist. They created me."
— Galt parent Art Oelsner, opponent of two most recent school bonds, on Galt High School trustees.

Compiled by News-Sentinel staff writers Andrew Adams, Jake Armstrong, Layla Bohm, Sara Cardine and Ross Farrow.