Jim Hori and I moved to Ocean Park to work in The Midnight Special Bookstore. We got a place on Strand in Santa Monica—$175 for a 2-bedroom plus loft with flooring on the hilltop. Our leaseholder got a new girlfriend, so we moved out to 230 Horizon, a little old bungalow that rented for $120—the site of much lovemaking with M.
We joined the Midnight Special Bookstore Collective just as founders Robert Gottlieb and Jim Berland (later KPFK General Manager) left the collective. As we joined, they made us very aware that the bookstore was being targeted by the FBI. Several Venice activists, including Robert Gottlieb, had been indicted by a grand jury in Arizona after being implicated in an entrapment setup by the FBI so they could be charged with criminal intent for crossing state lines. Also involved in the bookstore was Jane Gordon (mother of Joseph Gordon-Levitt; the father being Dennis Levitt).
The indictments of Robert Gottlieb and the other activists in the “Tucson Five” case were a major flashpoint for the Venice community, as documented in the Beachhead archives. The case was a textbook example of the “conspiracy” charges frequently used against the anti-war movement during the Nixon administration.
The Entrapment Setup
The activists were indicted under the “Anti-Riot Act” (often called the “Rap Brown Law”), which made it a federal crime to cross state lines with the “intent” to incite a riot.
- The Provocateur: The prosecution’s case relied almost entirely on Eustacio (Junior) Martinez, an infiltrator who worked for both the FBI and the LAPD’s Public Disorder Intelligence Division (PDID).
- The Strategy: Martinez was accused of being an agent provocateur—someone who didn’t just observe but actively encouraged and provided the means for illegal acts (such as transporting explosives or planning disruptions) so that federal charges could be filed.
The Indictment and Charges
- The “Conspiracy”: In Beachhead #31 – April 1971, the paper covers the “Persecutions of Anti-War Activists,” linking the Tucson case to other famous political trials like those of Daniel Ellsberg and Angela Davis.
- The Stakes: Because the charges were based on “intent” rather than an actual riot, the defense argued it was a “thought crime” designed to drain the resources of the Westwood Liberation Front and other Venice-based anti-war collectives.
The Outcome and Legacy
The Tucson Five case eventually fell apart. As the Beachhead later reported:
- Government Misconduct: The heavy-handed involvement of the PDID and the revelation of Martinez’s role as a paid provocateur led to significant legal pushback.
- PDID Fallout: This specific case contributed to the successful efforts by Venice activists to expose the illegal surveillance of the LAPD’s “Red Squad.” The scandal over these “files on activists” led to the PDID being disbanded and replaced in 1983, following a lawsuit that forced the destruction of millions of dossiers.
For Beachhead writers like Carol Fondiller and John Haag, the Tucson Five weren’t just activists in trouble; they were proof that the “Basic Car Shuck” was a cover for a much deeper, more aggressive system of federal and local political repression.
In the context of the Tucson Five and the PDID surveillance, Dennis Levitt is often noted for his role as a media activist. While not one of the primary “Tucson Five” defendants (like Robert Gottlieb or Peter Young), he was a contemporary who documented and broadcasted the very issues the Beachhead was printing.
The KPFK & Peace & Freedom Connection
- Media Activism: During the early 1970s, Levitt worked with KPFK, the primary broadcast outlet for the radical left in Los Angeles. KPFK provided extensive coverage of the PDID scandals and the Tucson Five legal battles that mainstream media ignored.
- The Peace & Freedom Party: He was active in the party during its most influential years in Venice. The Beachhead itself was essentially the “house organ” for the Venice chapter of the Peace & Freedom Party during that time.