Kerri Krysko on A&E Secrets of the Hells Angels: Update

OK here it is. Episode 5 of the Secrets of the Hells Angels on A&E is about Sonny Barger and is called Leader of the Pack. It has some pictures of Sonny's wife Noel when she was young (3:26) and she tells her side of the story. She said Sonny was very romantic and it all started off well but after the first a*s kicking she should have left. (36:07)

I remember when George Christie was beefing with Sonny Barger. George said Sonny dialed 911 and Hells Angels aren't supposed to dial 911. George was referring to an incident where Sonny had beat up Noel so bad he called an ambulance to come and get her. I was like I don't think that counts. I'm far more concerned with the fact that he beat up a woman so bad she needed an ambulance than about the fact that he called an ambulance to come and get her.

In steps Kerri Krysko (36:32). Kerri is local. She wrote two books. We know the story. I know some things that weren't written in the book. I don't like her ex but there was good in him and I don't like the best man her ex had at their wedding. I respect her bridesmaid and I respect the Master of Ceremonies they had at their wedding. It was all very high profile so it was.

I think that situation was abnormal. Overall, I think most Hells Angels treat their wives fine. Better than most cops who have a worse record for spousal abuse than the Hells Angels do. That's not to say the Hells Angel don't mistreat the patch pounders, the groupies or the prostitutes that work for them. In that situation I think the Margo Compton story was the norm but wives in the club, for the most part, are different. Most Hells Angels treat their wives better than most cops.

Noel said I think the fists came into play because I can be lippy. (38:46) There was a little bit more too it than that. Don't get me wrong. I don't like Sonny Barger but that article George Christie made reference to about when Sonny beat up Noel and called an ambulance for her contained a few missing pieces to the puzzle. She was punching him. In the Phoenix Magazine article Noel admitted accepting money from the FBI. She claimed the FBI tricked her into signing a nondisclosure agreement and stated she never testified against anyone.

The article explained that the assault occurred after they had separated. Noel was furious that Sonny had started a new relationship with someone else. She was yelling at him and hitting him so he beat the sh*t out of her. The article also admitted that Noel was bipolar. "Under cross examination FBI agent Stephen Smith admitted that Noel told him she took several medications for her mental health problems." Agent Smith testified in court that when he visited Noel in the hospital on the night of the fight, he saw no visible injuries on her.

I'm not saying what Sonny did was right because it wasn't right. I'm saying there's more to the story. There is no excuse for a man to hit a woman. Ever. Yet if a woman thinks she can rage on a man and hit him while he does nothing, that is an unrealistic expectation. In that situation the innocent victim image disappears and it simply becomes a toxic inappropriate fight.

As I learned in the Guardian Angels, domestic violence situations are very dangerous to get involved with. One time another member and I were returning to headquarters at Harlem in the middle of the night. We're in the subway and we hear a woman scream. We see a man had pinned her against the wall. We rush over to her aid and she starts screaming don't hurt him. It was her boyfriend and they were having an argument. I was like AYFKM? I looked at my buddy and said I'm out of here. Let's go. That chick is crazy. We can't help her so we left.

I'm not going to get into the Dr Phil reasons why women stay in abusive relationships. That's beyond me. I'm just saying that there is good and bad in everyone. Many marriages break down. We all need to move forward. Kerri's kids are awesome only they're not kids any more they are capable grown men that would make any parent proud. Trials don't define us they refine us.

As for the Sonny Barger 911 tape, he called an ambulance not a cop. The show cut out the part where the dispatcher asked him if there was a firearm on the property. That was a trick question because he was under a firearm ban. If he said no and they found one he would have been charged. They asked him is there a firearm on the property? He said Noel has one in her car. They asked him is it in the car? He said yes, I believe it is. He didn't call the cops saying she tried to shoot me. That didn't happen. His involvement with Margo Compton's case was far worse.

Download the Phoenix Magazine article about Sonny and Noel

Update: After rereading the article in the Phoenix magazine there's even more background to the story about Sonny's fight with Noel the night the ambulance was called. One page 83 the article states Just after midnight July 14th 2002 Sonny's neighbor called 911 because Noel was outside Sonny's house banging on the windows screaming and she had a gun. The neighbor said Sonny was a really good guy and was trying to avoid her.

The Deputy Sheriff shows up and sees Noel has a 9mm handgun sticking out of the front of her jeans which she had a conceal carry permit for. Noel gives the sheriff her gun and tells him she lives at the house. Noel later admitted to the journalist that she lied to the Deputy Sheriff about living at the home. She clarified that she and Sonny were separated at the time and she lived at a different residence Sonny paid for in Glendale.

According to the police report Noel looked into the garage and saw Sonny's motorcycle wasn't there so he wasn't even home at the time. The deputies told Noel to leave the property to avoid a fight which she did. But just a few minutes later Noel spotted Sonny and a girlfriend named Michelle Scott on the highway.

The police interviewed Michelle who said Noel started following them in her car. Sonny made two U turns to try and lose her but she kept following them and literally ran them off the road in her car. Sonny got off his motorcycle and argued with Noel. He got back on the motorcycle and rode home. Noel followed them to the same home after the deputy told her to leave the property.

Sonny tells Michele to stay in the house while he went out to try and calm Noel down. He was unsuccessful and ended up calling 911 saying that he kicked Noel because she was going for her gun in her car. When the police arrived they found a handwritten note on a piece of cardboard addressed to Slut that said stay away from my husband and my house.

When the deputies arrived they found another gun in Noel's Camero. It was the second gun they had confiscated from her that night. I'm sorry but that is batsh*t crazy and the A&E episode didn't mention any of that. The A&E episode tried to make Sonny Barger sound like a common wife beater but when you look at the facts a very different story quickly emerges.

As I said when I first posted the in-depth article about Sonny and Noel in the Phoenix magazine, after reading that article I have more respect for Sonny than I had for him before I read it. It's sad. When you see the picture of Noel on her Harley when she first met Sonny she was hot. (3:26) I'm not saying now she's not. I'm just saying that there were a lot of outside influences trying to destroy that marriage. The FBI were grooming her and the club 86'd her. Sonny displayed an incredible amount of patience dealing with her. That showed he really did care.

Oh one other thing. The next day Noel told the reporter over coffee that she was strung out on crystal meth at the time. Noel admitted to the reporter she and Sony were separated at the time and that she was living in a different residence. Noel explained that she was upset when she saw Sonny with some other groupie after they were separated. Hell hath no fury...