She who represents herself has a fool for a client. Judge Timothy Covello warned Gaea Powell about the foolishness of being her own lawyer in her election fraud trial, but did she listen? Nope. And now that her trial was supposed to start on Monday, Aug. 31, she wants the court to appoint her a lawyer. Hey Gaea, why don’t you save the court’s time and taxpayers’ money and plead guilty so I can write about someone else?
Powell’s ongoing travails are colossally inane and entirely of her own making. Her nine fraud charges stem mostly from alleged false claims of residency during her two failed runs for Arroyo Grande mayor in 2022 and 2024. Early this year, while preparing for her fraud trial, she ran for SLO County clerk-recorder. And lost.
According to the District Attorney’s Office, Powell is charged with eight felonies—three counts of fraudulently attempting to vote, two counts of perjury by declaration, two counts of false filing of declaration of candidacy, one voter registration violation—and one misdemeanor for failing to disclose campaign finance donations of more than $2,000. If convicted on all counts, she could be sentenced to eight years and seven months.
On Aug. 30, the day before her trial was scheduled to begin, she emailed the court to say she couldn’t attend because she had a tummy ache or something. Boo-hoo. Covello issued an arrest warrant that would go into effect on Sept. 1 at 1:30 p.m. if she didn’t show up by then, but she did. Bummer!
Still, Covello was pissed!
“Unless you’re so unwell you physically can’t be here … you’re ordered to be present. You understand that?” he asked.
Powell produced a doctor’s note, conveniently dated that very day, that claimed she suffered from lightheadedness, severe fatigue, diarrhea, and an inability to speak clearly. The note also claims she might suffer from severe anxiety.
“I don’t know if any of the things in the note are things discovered by your doctor or things you’ve self-reported,” Covello said incredulously. “And that gives the court very, very grievous concern.”
But wait! It gets better! Prosecutor and Deputy DA Ben Blumenthal noted that the doctor who signed Powell’s note—Alana Runnerstrum—shared the same office address in Arroyo Grande as Central Coast Thermography, a business Powell founded.
Sounds sort of fishy, amirite?
Runnerstrum’s website says she specializes in “quantum neurology, neurological emotional technique, chiropractic, herbal remedies, and kinesiology.”
Covello also noted that Powell hadn’t filed required paperwork or subpoenaed any witnesses prior to her trial date. In other words, she was woefully and completely unprepared to defend herself against the charges, but sure, go with the tummy ache thing.
“I think at this point because of my health and ability … I think it would probably be wise to go ahead and request an attorney,” she told Covello. “I also don’t want to hold up the process, and I’m afraid I will. I don’t want to waste the jury’s time.”
Um, huh? Blumenthal reminded the court that Powell had been given multiple opportunities to request an attorney and chose not to, and that an attorney can’t be granted on the eve of her trial.
“This court could not have done more to make you understand the risks of self-representation,” Covello admonished.
Powell countered that she’d felt unwell for “quite some time,” but Covello didn’t have much sympathy, noting she never told the court about her illness until her trial was upon her. He also noted that the weekend before her trial, she’d submitted a document “full of good questions,” “well-raised points,” and “legal analysis.” So, how sick was she? Maybe she’s seasick from being adrift on the legal system.
To throw a little salt in her self-inflicted wounds, Covello scolded Powell for prioritizing civil cases she’d filed against multiple parties, including Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano, who beat Powell in the primary election earlier this year, and the city of Arroyo Grande, claiming her civil rights had been violated.
“This court cannot and will not assist you,” Covello said flatly.
In her defense, Powell compared herself to an elite athlete who had simply overtrained.
“When you’re watching a marathon, and you’re watching these marathon runners training and training, their bodies fail them, and that’s what happened,” Powell explained. “I actually enjoy it, I love it. I had no idea about the law. I overworked … I was foolish to try and do it all by myself.”
Foolish? Took you long enough to figure that out, looney tune. Anywho, on Aug. 28, U.S. Magistrate Judge David T. Bristow dismissed one of Powell’s four civil suits (two others have also been dismissed). He said the suit against SLO County and Cano lacked factual evidence or clear argument on how the plaintiffs had violated her constitutional rights. The judge did give her an opportunity to amend her complaint within 30 days of his ruling, but Covello noted that criminal cases should be prioritized over civil ones. Duh!
In other words, get your shit together. You’re at risk of prison.
On Sept. 2, her criminal trial was set to begin jury selection at 1:30 p.m., right after I wrote this. Will Powell be any more prepared? ∆
The Shredder pleads the Fifth. Confess your crimes at shredder@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Sept 3-10, 2026.
