EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. EIGHT MONTHS AFTER its approval by the City Council, the peach-colored Bay 101 held its "grand opening." I'm on the hook for $15 million. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. I'm on the hook for $15 million. In a statement to police, Jeff's daughter recounted how the first incident had happened the year before on the Fourth of July at a family beach house near Santa Cruz when the older boy allegedly started fondling her while she was asleep on the living room couch. "It's a very strong family. she said, referring to the family-run Catholic school at the Flea Market. 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. You know the school we went to?" Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. 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. The day before, Monday at noon, half of the club's tables were full of gamblers playing seven card stud, Omaha and Texas Hold 'Em. The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. "I'm a big boy." And for nearly a month, they did. 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. He demanded $10 million from his brothers to compensate him for violating the purported secret Bay 101 deal. He can't ignore it. 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. But his dream, which now seemed so close to being a reality, was about to become a nightmare. I'm on the hook for $15 million. 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. You think this didn't break my heart?" In a statement to police, Jeff's daughter recounted how the first incident had happened the year before on the Fourth of July at a family beach house near Santa Cruz when the older boy allegedly started fondling her while she was asleep on the living room couch. 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. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. Well, guess what? During his long tenure at the Flea Market, Venzon apparently developed a close relationship with George Bumb Sr. EVERY DAY THE CLUB stayed closed, the Bumbs lost more money. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." The elder Bumb may not have been feeling well, but he wasn't too sick to remember who was boss in this family. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. I'm on the hook for $15 million. But Jeff was confident. 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. (Tim Bumb, the school's director, says it was put there to save on rent. Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) And then there's the stuff that never made it into headlines, like the alleged murder-for-hire plot out at the Flea Market. 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. As legend has it, the Bumbs still send a monthly check to the widow of a former head of security who died of a brain tumor 20 years ago. Jeff signed a deal with his brothers that prohibited him from owning Bay 101 stock until he got all the necessary licenses. It's like we had no life except for the family." ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. Well, George, whether you want to believe it or not I do love you and you are like a father to me." "He worked for me." 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. Attractions A Mariachi band performing at San Jose Flea Market The eight miles (13 km) worth of aisles allows for over 2000 vendors to sell an array of goods. 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. So Jeff, Brian and the remaining non-family partners backed out of Bay 101, handing everything over to Tim and George Jr. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. They recorded the conversation. That promised to be a hard sell to the San Jose City Council, which would have to authorize both the new site and the expansion. And then there's the stuff that never made it into headlines, like the alleged murder-for-hire plot out at the Flea Market. The guy doesn't get a slap on the hand." San Jose Flea Market. And then police remembered the old rumors about a murder plot at the Flea Market, where Venzon had worked as a security guard for more than 15 years. 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. But the Bumbs are hardly traditional political players. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. "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." 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. It wasn't the idea of gambling. The couple even had a purchase contract for a $850,000 house on Golf Links Road. In her 10 years as the Flea Market's community relations specialist, Bryant has come to adore the lack of pretension among this clan of millionaires who have their offices in a mobile home where none of the furniture seems to match. OK--we didn't get out--OK? Their pun-afflicted surname adds to the hillbilly mystique. According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. But he didn't cash out. Matthew Bumb's attorney argued that the relationship was consensual. When Werner broke the news that Jeff's brothers wouldn't write a letter on his behalf, he says Jeff became furious. It's like we had no life except for the family." (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) (In one case, George Bumb Sr. loaned Jeff $31,250 in 1992 for his son to invest in Bay 101.) In a statement to police, Jeff's daughter recounted how the first incident had happened the year before on the Fourth of July at a family beach house near Santa Cruz when the older boy allegedly started fondling her while she was asleep on the living room couch. 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. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. "Jeff is a wheeler and dealer," explained his Uncle John, the Flea Market's executive vice president and owner of the Skeeball Arcade. Ultimately, the charges against the older Bumb were reduced to a misdemeanor. Snow White or Cinderella? 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. 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. Snow White or Cinderella? George Bumb Sr., an avid card player, held a regular weekly family poker game at his home. 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. Eight months later, the frame of the weapon was found in a Salinas pond near Venzon's home with the barrel and slide missing. "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." 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. 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. Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. One month later, the state attorney general's office made a devastating announcement: Authorities had come across issues of "such magnitude" and "concern" that they would need at least another month to decide if gambling should be allowed at Bay 101. One month later, the state attorney general's office made a devastating announcement: Authorities had come across issues of "such magnitude" and "concern" that they would need at least another month to decide if gambling should be allowed at Bay 101. attorney Frank Ubhaus asked the Bumb patriarch. A nurse was present to monitor his condition. According to Jeff, there was tremendous pressure from his father and others in the family to keep the incest a secret. Or at least he thought he didn't. 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. "He worked for me." Christopher Gardner 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. Jeff entertained offers to buy the club, the highest bid, he recalls, coming in at $40 million. The teenagers had been drinking booze earlier in the night. The ensuing delay forced Jeff Bumb to lay off 600 workers he had hired. But Jeff Bumb hasn't made a penny from the club since it opened in September 1994. He started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. "Could he [Jeff] do any other work on his own behalf?" Almost four months later, on July 21, 1998, George Bumb Sr. appeared in the downtown offices of Berliner Cohen to have his deposition taken. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. 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. There were flowers everywhere. 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. Snow White or Cinderella? 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 also pulled off an armed robbery of the Aloha Roller Palace. The two, she said, never talked about what was going on while it was happening. 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. He started telling people around the office that he wanted out of the family business. Now that their gaming license had been denied, a decision needed to be made--quickly. "Hell, no," George Bumb replied. Soon after his confession, the word started spreading in the family about what happened. He was also the kind of guy, police records reveal, who told his mother about the incidents "because he felt guilty." 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. Toward the end of the call, things got heated. AN ATTORNEY involved likened the whole contentious affair to a divorce. You think this didn't break my heart?" 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. Christopher Gardner "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." "They didn't teach anything about this. ALL TOGETHER, the intrafamily litigation has spanned nearly three years. 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. 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. Dealers stood at the tables, ready to deal the cards. Meanwhile, Jeff and his lawyers spent 15 months trying get his father to appear at a deposition. And then police remembered the old rumors about a murder plot at the Flea Market, where Venzon had worked as a security guard for more than 15 years. 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. "My wife broke the code," he says, "and I supported her." About 20 percent of the 130 students there are Bumb relatives.) He also disputes that such a letter was even necessary for Jeff to get licensed. Over the years, he had developed working relationships with the city's politicians and bureaucrats. Over the past year alone, Bumb & Associates and Bay 101 have given $56,000 to now-Attorney General Bill Lockyer, the man in charge of card-room regulation. Or at least he thought he didn't. Jeff tells the story differently: "Matthew was my godson. 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. Three years ago, the Mercury News listed the Bumb family in the Top 10 of the valley's most generous political contributors.