Taking Down the Predator of Seville, Deranged Doorbell Intruder, and Representing Major Athletes, with Gabrielle Vega

Summary

MK True Crime Podcast – "Taking Down the Predator of Seville, Deranged Doorbell Intruder, and Representing Major Athletes"

Date: April 29, 2026
Hosts: Mark Eiglarch & Janice Bilboer
Guest: Gabrielle “Gabby” Vega
Network: MK Media
Episode Overview:
This debut episode of Positively Legal covers legal defense stories from the hosts, a viral “Creepy Doorbell Guy” case breakdown, and an extended conversation with Gabrielle Vega—the brave central figure and investigator behind Netflix’s The Predator of Seville docu-series. The episode explores the personal and legal intricacies of true crime, from home invasions to international sexual assault cases, and offers real-life insights into defense law, trauma, resilience, and the pursuit of justice.

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Episode Main Themes

• Launching "Positively Legal": Introduction of the co-hosts, their backgrounds, and show format (01:05–03:00).
• Behind the Scenes of Defense Law: Day-in-the-life anecdotes and legal strategizing with a focus on DUI/DWI defense (03:07–13:09).
• Case Study: Deep dive into the viral “Creepy Doorbell Guy” home invasion—threat response, self-defense law, and mental health questions (14:28–25:19).
• Feature Interview: Gabrielle Vega recounts her assault, investigation, and the international legal odyssey depicted in The Predator of Seville (28:44–54:26).
• Reflections / Off the Record: Humor, courtroom traditions, gratitude, and appreciation for trauma survivors and law enforcers (56:58–65:49).

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Key Segments & Insights

1. Meet the Hosts: “Positively Legal” Debut

Time: 01:05–03:07

• Mark Eiglarch introduces himself as a criminal defense attorney, former prosecutor, and law professor; playful tone (“pickleball player almost every day. And I love my pizza with extra sauce and well done. Sue me.” – Mark, 01:08).
• Janice Bilboer boasts her own defense firm; humorously jousts with Mark, setting a bantering and candid tone:
  “This is our first show on Meghan's Fabulous Channel together. … I had to run around from court to court. … But it began, Mark…” – Janice, 03:07

Key Insight: Legal practice is anything but glamorous—real courtroom chaos, client crises, and constant strategizing.

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2. What Defense Lawyers Really Do

Time: 03:07–13:09

• Technical Defense Stories:
  Janice describes fighting a DMV license suspension with a “pulled outta my butt” legal technicality—after the judge demands her presence and briefs.

  • “I have to think outside the box. I've got to make some sort of argument. … This is my Hail Mary, right?” (Janice, 04:32-06:08)

• Athlete Legal Drama:
  Mark discusses defending Lawrence Taylor (NFL legend, hospitalized with privacy concerns) and Antonio Brown (wide receiver facing “attempted second degree murder” after an alleged shooting; Mark claims self-defense and files a “stand your ground” motion).

  • “They're not paying us to come in second place.” (Mark, 08:26)
  • “I have inside information. I won’t give it to them.” (Mark, 10:02)

• Humor & Humanity:
  Playful digs over sports knowledge, work-life chaos, and courtroom stress.

Notable Quote:
“Only us, Mark. That’s the worst part of being a defense lawyer.” – Janice, 07:51

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3. The Creepy Doorbell Guy: Viral Home Intruder Analysis

Time: 14:28–25:19

• Case Summary:
  In California, a man repeatedly appears on a family’s doorbell camera, escalating from polite inquiry to demanding their daughter’s whereabouts, issuing threats (“If you don't open this door, I’m breaking it down. … Or I will end you. Do you understand me?” – Intruder, 17:05/19:00).

• Hosts’ Legal & Emotional Reaction:

  • Immediate fear response—Mark and Janice debate at what legal threshold self-defense (including lethal force) would be justified.
  • “I’d already be on the phone with 911… then I am thinking about getting one of my firearms. And I’m not even kidding.” – Janice, 16:13
  • “If he shot him through the door, he’d probably be charged to be honest with you. The homeowner.” – Janice, 19:56

• Legal Analysis:

  • Evaluation of mental competence for defense, distinction between “molest” in law vs. vernacular, severity of charges (potentially life in prison), possibility of plea deals.
  • “This is not a who-done-it. About burglary with an assault therein. … you're looking at potentially life.” – Mark, 23:52

Memorable Moment:
When the intruder invades the house, hosts reflect on real-life escalation and home defense realities.

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4. Interview: Gabrielle Vega (Subject of "The Predator of Seville")

Time: 28:44–54:26

Introduction and Background

• Gabby’s Story:
  • Moved to Spain at 19 for study abroad, assaulted by Manuel Blanco Vela (tour guide/owner of Discover Excursions).
  • Initially unable to seek help: “I had no idea how to navigate the legal system, let alone say the word rape in Spanish.” (Gabby, 30:46)

Why She Fought Back

• Did not report at first—shame, lack of support, unfamiliarity. Years later, testified, launched a grassroots investigation after hearing from additional victims.
• “I started posting on Facebook. And within two days… I found eight women. … That’s when I got in touch with you and started… trying to find more women.” (Gabby, 33:23)

The Turning Point—Going Public

• Media & Today Show:
  • Mark helped secure a national interview with Megyn Kelly. Gabby recounts the emotional build-up, needing support from other survivors on air.
  • “I had really kind of, like, tunnel vision at that point in my life.” (Gabby, 37:02)
  • “Your strength is just incredible.” – Janice, 41:04

Building the Case and International Justice

• Relentless gathering of evidence: eventually 50+ women, forced the Spanish authorities to open a case.

• “My most powerful tool is to be honest about it. … I'm a random girl living in Montana. I was able to get a conviction in one of the highest courts in a foreign country.” (Gabby, 52:20)

• Spanish Legal System:

  • Surreal, informal courtroom, frustrating delays: “It was a really different, strange experience.” (Gabby, 47:41)
  • “He never spent a day in jail… All this is while he’s on the street.” – Gabby, 49:48

• Broader Impact:

  • Helped stop a serial predator, possibly saved lives.
  • Still hearing from young women at risk: “He is my landlord. He's invited me to his birthday party. He's asking me what kind of alcohol I want…” (Gabby, 50:50)
  • “I'm really bored of being afraid of them.” (Gabby, 52:20)

Notable Quotes

• “I call her the Erin Brockovich of our time.” – Janice, 25:25
• “What a piece of shit. And shame on you, Spain… He just got to be stopped.” – Janice, 51:35
• “People love you. They want to support you. … Talk about these things… it's important to realize… your most powerful tool is to be honest about it.” – Gabby, 52:20

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5. Reflections and Off the Record

Time: 56:58–65:49

Secret Service & Trump Attempt

Mark voices gratitude for Secret Service efforts in the wake of an attack attempt, refusing to blame agents (“…the system did work. The guy didn’t get into the room…these individuals are putting their lives on the line…” – Mark, 57:17)

The Courtroom Gavel Bit (Comic Relief)

Janice rants about primitive courtroom traditions:
“If you had to explain [the gavel] to somebody, you go: ‘Oh, that’s the be-quiet hammer.’” – (Comedian, 59:32)
Proposes innovative alternatives, including a judge’s “shut the up” button.

Closing Reflections on Gratitude

Mark emphasizes the power of gratitude as an antidote to stress:
“Gratitude is the antidote to stinking thinking… I believe that's the answer to all of our problems today.” (Mark, 63:53)
Janice lists her own gratitudes: new show, clean shirt, partnership with Mark, Gabby’s heroism.

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Memorable Quotes

• “In order for this suspension to apply, there has to be certain language on the blood alcohol results. It has to be certified a certain way.” – Janice, 06:41 (on legal technicality)
• “If you don't open this door, I'm breaking it down. … Or I will end you. Do you understand me?” – Creepy Doorbell Guy, 17:05/19:00
• “If he shot him through the door, he'd probably be charged, to be honest with you. The homeowner.” – Janice, 19:56
• “I just became very determined to find more people. … All of the emotional part… was kind of negated and put to the wayside…” – Gabby, 36:24
• “My whole 20s were just like a shit show, to be honest.” – Gabby, 41:20
• “He’s a convicted rapist. I mean, I don’t know what else you need to know, you know.” – Gabby, 50:33
• “I'm really sick of this shit, where I think these people that do commit these crimes are absolute fucking losers. And I'm really bored of trying, like, being afraid of them.” – Gabby, 52:20

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Important Timestamps

| Segment | Time | |---|---| | Co-host Introductions | 01:05 | | Defense Stories / Legal Work | 03:07 | | Athlete Representation | 09:03 | | Creepy Doorbell Guy Breakdown | 14:28 | | Home Invasion Escalation | 19:00–21:02 | | Defense Law Q&A (Burglary, Competence) | 23:19–25:19 | | Gabrielle Vega’s Interview | 28:44–54:26 | | Gabby’s Account of Assault & Aftermath | 29:52–41:20 | | Spanish Justice System, Prosecutorial Gaps | 46:14–50:33 | | Gabby's Final Reflections | 52:20 | | Gratitude and Off-Record Reflections | 56:58–65:49 |

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Tone and Language

• Conversational, Candid, Occasionally Irreverent: The hosts banter, tease, and digress with humor, but ground the discussion in real trauma and the pursuit of justice.
• Direct, Sometimes Raw: Gabby’s honesty about her ordeal is spotlighted; profanity is used to underscore frustration with systemic injustice.
• Legal Insight with Heart: Both hosts explain complex criminal defense scenarios with accessibility and frequent emotional investment.

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Conclusion

This first episode of Positively Legal establishes a promising mix of real-life legal battles, viral true crime intrigue, and survivor resilience. The heart of the episode is Gabrielle Vega’s account of her transformation from victim to investigator, and the international ripple effect of her pursuit of justice. The episode balances serious topics with humor and humanity—while offering the practical, emotional, and ethical realities of legal defense and trauma survival.

Suggestions to listeners:

• Watch The Predator of Seville for the full story.
• Reflect on the importance of speaking up, supporting survivors, and cultivating gratitude.

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“I'm a random girl living in Montana. I was able to get a conviction in one of the highest courts in a foreign country. … I genuinely think that anyone is capable of that.” – Gabrielle Vega, 52:20

Transcript

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[Mark Eiglarch]

Hello and welcome to Positively Legal, our first ever episode. This show is the newest one on the MK True Crime Channel. I'm Mark Eiglarch, one of your hosts, and I'm a criminal defense attorney, former prosecutor, adjunct law professor, father of three spectacular kids, devoted husband of 25 years, pickleball player almost every day. And I love my pizza with extra sauce and well done. Sue me. And with me is. What's her name? Who the hell are you?

[Janice Bilboer]

Right, who am I? I'm Janice Bilboer. I'm a criminal defense attorney, founder of my own firm, Janice Spielberg Law. I. I like pizza, too, Mark. But look, this is our new first inaugural episode of Positively Legal. But it's not the first time that we've been on the air, not the first time separately, not the first time together, because we go way back along with our own Megyn Kelly.

[Mark Eiglarch]

That's right. Listen, we have worn makeup together on the small screen, and we've enjoyed each other. And now we're doing this, and we're going to make it fun. And right out of the gate, we're going to analyze this creepy doorbell guy. If you don't know what I'm talking about, stick around. This guy is bizarre, and it is scary what he does. Also, we have the privilege on our first show to talk to Gabby Vega, Gabrielle Vega, as she's known in the new Netflix docu series called the Predator of Seville. She was victimized by this monster, and I had the privilege of being able to assist her through her journey. And Megyn Kelly played a Huge role in getting justice for her. We're gonna talk to her in our second block, but right now we're gonna get to know Jana because I don't know much about her. Okay, we talk about all these legal issues. Let's start with, like, what did you do today, Jonna?

[Janice Bilboer]

A lot of people think. I think. And you probably get this, too, because they see you on TV or they listen to you on the radio or whatever. They think that you're just a lawyer in theory. And then you sit around, you know, in your case, painting your walls purple and, you know, and eating your pizza, and you don't really. That's such a bull. Like, we. It's funny because today of all days, this is kind of a big deal. This is our first show on Meghan's Fabulous Channel together. And I had to run around from court to court. I was, you know, trying to, like, sip some soup. I slopped it on my. Like, just an ordinary day. But it began, Mark.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Yes.

[Janice Bilboer]

Began.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Yeah.

[Janice Bilboer]

So. So I'm in court, and I don't know. I don't know how Florida handles DWI laws, but in New York, we call

[Mark Eiglarch]

DUIs here, driving under the influence of the influence.

[Janice Bilboer]

Okay, that's real froofy. We call it driving while intoxicated. No bullshit. That's what we call it here. But in New York, and maybe you have a similar law, we have this law called the prompt suspension law, which means that when you're charged, not found guilty yet, the court is required to yank your driver's license while the case is pending.

[Mark Eiglarch]

If you blow here, if you blow over the legal limit, which is a point zero eight, or if you refuse to, they suspend your license for 12 months, or if you have a prior refusal, 18 months. So we've got that here.

[Janice Bilboer]

So we do something. We do something similar now. Okay, to me, that's very cookie cutter. And I have a client who does not fall within that box. I have a client with very special circumstances. I have a client with a very good reason to not have his license suspended pending prosecution. So what does that mean for me? That. That means that I have to think outside the box. I've got to make some sort of argument. I got to make sure the eyes are dotted and the T's are crossed. I got to come out fighting right from day one to see if I can save this client's license.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Are you dealing. Wait, hold on. Are you dealing with a prosecutor at this point, or just the judge?

[Janice Bilboer]

Prosecutor and judge and the prosecutor.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Did you make the argument to the prosecutor, whatever this brilliant argument you're about to tell us is.

[Janice Bilboer]

Sure did. Sure did.

[Mark Eiglarch]

It didn't work like most of your arguments. Yes.

[Janice Bilboer]

And she said. And she said, I like the argument. I can't make a decision today. And I'm like, but today is the day, because today is the arraignment. You have to make the decision.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Right.

[Janice Bilboer]

Okay. So here's what happened. So now I've got this client. He deserves a break. I've got no real legal argument to make. But I'm going through the paperwork, and I decide to split hairs and literally, Mark, pull an argument out of my butt. It was like my Hail Mary, right? So. So there I am. There I am. And I say to the prosecutor, I'm like, bear with me. I'm about to pull an argument out of my butt. So she knows that this isn't my normal course. So off I go, I start arguing. The judge gets furious, Furious with.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Why? Why?

[Janice Bilboer]

Because he's like, I gotta arraign this guy. I need his driver's license. Where's his driver? Give me his driver's license. I'm like, judge, let me make the argument.

[Mark Eiglarch]

And then be honest. Were you dropping F bombs?

[Janice Bilboer]

No.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I don't know.

[Janice Bilboer]

So the judge takes my client's driver's license. I am making this argument, which, even though it's coming out of my butt, right, on one hand, it's kind of brilliant on the other hand.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Are you going to tell us what it is? Are you just going to dance around it? I mean, I want to know what

[Janice Bilboer]

the argument is, so I don't want. I don't want to bore you. Here's the argument.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Real, real tight. Real tight. Just to give us a taste.

[Janice Bilboer]

All right? The argument is, in order for this suspension to apply, there has to be certain language on the blood alcohol results. It has to be certified a certain way.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Right?

[Janice Bilboer]

And the law. The statute in New York says if it's going to be a digital signature. Because now, you know, we're 20.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Yeah. You are boring me. All right, so some legal technicality. Keep going with what the judge did. You're right. It was boring. You were right.

[Janice Bilboer]

I was right. You were. Okay, okay.

[Mark Eiglarch]

We got to get to creepy doorbell guy, and I want to hear all

[Janice Bilboer]

the technicalities of your doorbell guys. More fun than this. So. So the judge takes my client's license, and I'm still arguing with him to the point where he throws up his hands. He gives the license back to my client and says, be here on Friday and make sure. You have these arguments briefed?

[Mark Eiglarch]

What does that mean? What does that mean? Did you win?

[Janice Bilboer]

I won. Until Friday, okay. For 72 hours.

[Mark Eiglarch]

That's beautiful. So client can drive for the next three days. But you didn't like how you were treated, right? You didn't like what the judge did.

[Janice Bilboer]

I mean, he was very, very. He was. He was foaming at the mouth. Fire was coming out, right? What other profession. Look, look. What other profession can you work in where somebody who doesn't pay your salary can tell you to be someplace a few days from now at a certain time and make sure you do extra work before you get there? Only us, Mark.

[Mark Eiglarch]

That's the worst part of being a defense lawyer. A judge telling you to show up, that's the part you're picking? How about the demands placed on us by our clients because they're not paying us to come in second place.

[Janice Bilboer]

I'm not. That's not what I'm bitching about today. I'm bitching about the guy on the bench.

[Mark Eiglarch]

That's fair, right? So what did I do today? Oh, my God. Thank you for asking about me, Jonna.

[Janice Bilboer]

I was just getting there. What did you do today? What'd you do today?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Oh, you really.

[Janice Bilboer]

Oh, wait, I'm sorry. Wait. What'd you do after you. You drank some wheatgrass and did a few yoga poses to start your morning with a nice gentle walk on the beach? Then what'd you do, Mark?

[Mark Eiglarch]

You mean tapped into my higher power and asked how I could be of service today, which I actually did. Meditated. You call that crap me?

[Janice Bilboer]

Now you're boring me. Let's get past that.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Okay?

[Mark Eiglarch]

What you do today was. Was an unusual day and that. I actually wasn't in court. Yesterday I was. Today I wasn't. But I. Let's see. Today I represented two former athletes, so I was helping Lawrence Taylor. Former linebacker? Yeah.

[Janice Bilboer]

The refrigerant. No, wrong guy.

[Mark Eiglarch]

He's Lawrence. Do you know anything about football? Lawrence Taylor, he's beloved in New York for sure, where he played for the Giants and. And. And is a Hall of Famer. Anyway, he's in the hospital and has been now for eight days. And the media has been asking me about him, and I did a press release and they continue to ask me questions and want to know more specifically. Can you confirm it's pancreatitis? Can you tell me this? Can you tell me.

[Janice Bilboer]

Oh, no.

[Mark Eiglarch]

And I'm like, no, no, no. Here's the press release. And that's it. And he's grateful by the way for everybody who's thinking about him and. And all the prayers. And I conveyed that to the media again today.

[Janice Bilboer]

Why didn't you say? I'm. I'm a lawyer, not a doctor. Why are you asking me if he's got pancreatitis?

[Mark Eiglarch]

They want to print it, and I have inside information. I won't give it to him. So the second client, Antonio Brown, who's up for the hall of Fame next year?

[Janice Bilboer]

What's his sport? Oh, my God, I don't know.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Can I get a new co host who knows anything about sports? Jesus. Really? Nothing.

[Janice Bilboer]

Do you know. Do you know who Nadia Cominic was? Probably not.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Perfect 10.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Hello.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Phenomenal gymnast. Gymnastic person. All right, anyway, keep going. Antonio Brown. He played for the Steelers for years. One of the best wide receivers ever, but equally as, you know, controversial off the field. And he's facing a 30 year sentence with a 20 year minimum mandatory here in South Florida for allegedly attempting attempted second degree murder for allegedly trying to shoot at the alleged victim. And I say he was standing his ground. I filed a motion already and we are heavily litigating it. But what I'm doing is he needs to earn a living, so he's. He's restricted to the jurisdiction in which he's in. And I have to keep filing these motions to get permission for him to go to different places, like a autograph signing or he wants to train Elijah Moore, a wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles. And we went in front of a substitute judge who said, hell, no, he can't do it. He's just trying to feed as many children and different, you know, baby mamas. He's just trying to earn a living.

[Janice Bilboer]

What are his charges? What are his charges again?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Attempted second degree murder.

[Janice Bilboer]

All right, but you are a stand your ground state.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Thank you.

[Janice Bilboer]

Right?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Yes, thank you very much. Speaking of stand your ground, I want to jump into creepy doorbell guy, because this is intense. And we'll get back to. I want to know more about what you do and what your story. There's so much I want to talk about and get to know you, Jonna, because I think I know that is one of my objectives. That's why I said yes to Positively Legal, because I really find you to be intriguing. Seriously. And I want to know more about what you do on a daily basis. Promise you'll give up. Give up some more?

[Janice Bilboer]

Yeah, maybe. Maybe a little.

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[Janice Bilboer]

Let's talk about creepy doorbell guy.

[Mark Eiglarch]

All right, well, first of all, okay, how do we start this thing? You started off, Tell us, where are we? What state are we in?

[Janice Bilboer]

Okay, so we're in California, which kind of makes sense, right? I used to, I spent a lot of time In California. Yeah. But this was weird because when this viral video, most people have probably seen it, it was the strangest thing because there's this guy who looks, I don't know, almost like he's a character out of a video game standing in front of somebody's door, clearly captured on the ring camera, whatever type of camera it is. And he, yeah, and he, he's very sort of sedate at first. Knocks on the door.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Let's hold on, hold on, hold on. Let's roll, hold on. Let's roll it. Do we, do we need to know the context? Like, like, do we know why he's knocking on this door?

[Narrator/Voice in Docu Series Promo]

I don't think.

[Janice Bilboer]

Do we know why he's knocking on the door?

[Mark Eiglarch]

I don't think we do. That's why I'm asking you. I don't think I do. All right, so let's, that's what makes it even more creepy. All right, let's start with rolling the tape and let's see what happens. And I want everybody themselves for what?

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

I just want to make sure that everything's okay. There seems to be something going on. What? What do you mean?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I don't know.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

I just figured I'd check on something. I don't know what you want, man. Get out of my house.

[Janice Bilboer]

There we go.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Where's your daughter, man? Where's your daughter, man? Talking about, where's your daughter?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Pause for a second. Pause for a second. Okay, I have a daughter. Okay? So now I'm going, oh, my God. What's this about? Who is this dude? He's kicking my door. I'm asking you right now, John, what do you do if you're the dude on the under end of this door when you got somebody acting like this?

[Janice Bilboer]

What are you two, Two things. I don't even think I would have the conversation thus far that the homeowner was like, hey, what do you want? I, I, I'd already be on the phone with 911 because clearly this is just weird. He's not a delivery driver. He doesn't have a bag of food. He's not Amazon. Like, it's just weird then when he says, I just want to make sure everything's okay. What about your daughter? Then I am thinking about getting one of my firearms. And I'm not even kidding, like, because

[Mark Eiglarch]

we're going to talk about that. I'm, I'm telling you, I've never thought about carrying a firearm. I, until I saw this. Let's keep going.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Keep going in there with you. Bro, Bro, if you don't open this door, I'm breaking it down. You understand me? Leave my house. You don't. Are you okay? Is everyone in this house?

[Mark Eiglarch]

What?

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Everyone's okay? What do you want?

[Janice Bilboer]

Too much conversation, right?

[Mark Eiglarch]

I mean clearly, you know, name plan. He's not with a full deck. Right there, there, right. You know, you know, and worse, he's evidenced that he's going to be violent based upon how he was, you know, acting earlier. And, and this is when I thought the video was paused. But no, the guy's just staring down that ring. Look at him, he's staring right into the ring.

[Janice Bilboer]

Breathing into the, the doorbell cam.

[Mark Eiglarch]

You're definitely on 911.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Can you leave my house please?

[Mark Eiglarch]

I don't know if the guy is.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Can you open the door please? You have nothing to do with my house. My house. You know what my name is. I don't know who you are. You don't belong this neighborhood, that's for sure. This is my neighborhood though. Oh yeah, I live there. I don't know you. My name is Harry Dresden. Mother. Open the door. This is my neighborhood. Open the door.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I paused for a second. First of all, what. Look at that. Just, just look at it. Is that, is it. Are you getting a sense that he's mentally ill at this point?

[Janice Bilboer]

Yeah. He's not playing with a full deck. And what I originally thought is like, was this a neighbor dispute, Right. Did somebody, you know, drive up and down the street and offend someone or something? But it doesn't sound like this homeowner has any clue.

[Mark Eiglarch]

No.

[Janice Bilboer]

Who this nut job is. But, but right now, seriously, not only am I on the phone with 91 1, he's going to know I'm on the phone with 911 because I'm not playing games with a whack job like this.

[Mark Eiglarch]

He didn't say. See? The homeowner didn't say it. Keep going. The homeowner doesn't say. Hey, by the way, 91 1. You know, I called the police, they're on the way. Keep going, keep going. Look at that.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

No, that's just.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Or I will end you. Do you understand me?

[Janice Bilboer]

Okay. Darth Vader

[Mark Eiglarch]

can make light, but in that moment, I'm freaking, I'm totally freaking.

[Janice Bilboer]

He's gonna, he goes bananas. Now the neighbors should be.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Oh my goodness. Oh, I mean, come on. Oh my gosh. Oh no.

[Janice Bilboer]

Yeah,

[Mark Eiglarch]

come on.

[Janice Bilboer]

When does, when does your right, do you think, the right to self defense? If he shot him through the door, he'd probably be charged to Be honest with you. The homeowner. If the homeowner shot him.

[Mark Eiglarch]

You think?

[Janice Bilboer]

I mean, I know this is crazy. Well, California. Yeah. Wait, he hadn't breached the entry, but.

[Mark Eiglarch]

No, that's a great issue. That's a great issue. He's. He's out. He's outside. He hasn't come in yet. Could you shoot him? I don't know, man. I discount my fee to represent the homeowner. I guarantee you, if not, do it for free, because I get how he's feeling. Okay.

[Janice Bilboer]

That is really scary. Another note to self that I just picked up. This is like, the third or fourth time I've watched this. Don't have anything outside your front door that somebody else can use to break in the bell, which is probably very cute, right? I don't know. Maybe they call the neighborhood kids for snacks or Kool Aid or whatever with that bell. Boom. He could have easily broken a window with that bell.

[Mark Eiglarch]

You're joking, right?

[Janice Bilboer]

We should not.

[Mark Eiglarch]

The lesson is, let's not have bells and things outside that somebody could use.

[Janice Bilboer]

That's not the lesson, but keep that in mind.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Okay, so. So. So the guy. The guy wants to get in. And how do we know that he does? Let's. Let's keep going. Let's look at some more tape, which is just. It just is. You hear about these stories. Most of our cases, you don't have actual video. Oh.

[Janice Bilboer]

Oh, my God. All right.

[Mark Eiglarch]

He's in the house.

[Janice Bilboer]

Yeah. Now he's getting shot in my house.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Dead.

[Janice Bilboer]

He's shot. Victor, you around?

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Oh, my God.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Okay. That's the homeowner.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

I'm telling you. Do you have the shovel?

[Mark Eiglarch]

With a shovel, that's the best he could do in all that time?

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

Please.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I'd have a knife in one hand.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

There's three rooms, man.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Oh, my God. I feel for this. 1797.

[Janice Bilboer]

Lacy had cameras inside, too.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

I don't know who you're talking about, man. Why do I hear screaming? Are you military? Yes. Okay. Can you help me out? Okay. I understand what you're going through right now. Yes. Can you step outside?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Wow. Pause for a second. That's huge.

[Janice Bilboer]

Look at this.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Okay, pause for a second. Are you military? What made him think he was military?

[Janice Bilboer]

He's trying to negotiate. He is trying to negotiate, and the guy might not even be military. He is trying to do this with some sort of empathy, right? Oh, he doesn't want to hurt this. And the guy's in his house. He's a nut job. The homeowner clearly could have Taken his freaking head off with the shovel. And he doesn't. He wants to.

[Mark Eiglarch]

It's not so easy. Something. Something that's different. If you have a gun, I don't know how easy it's going to be. You know, you could take out Snow. I don't know how. If you could take down this psycho. So I think he also wants to avoid any further confrontation, but he's trying to. Interesting. Are you military? And then he says, yes. First of all, I find that to be fascinating. All right, let's keep going. This is so disturbing.

[Homeowner/Resident in Creepy Doorbell Guy Segment]

John on the street. Bro, bro. Everything's fine. Please step outside. Okay, we'll sit there. Sit on the ground, please, sir. Okay.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Okay. So he gets arrested. Obviously, the police show up, right? And so here's my question to you.

[Janice Bilboer]

Wow.

[Mark Eiglarch]

What are you doing when you're representing this guy? Let's say, first of all, is there anything about the facts and what you know that would preclude you from representing the accused? No judgment. Stop.

[Janice Bilboer]

No, I mean, no. I mean, if he walked in and said, you got to represent me, I lost my mind and I broke into somebody's house. Yeah. I mean, of course you're gonna. The. One of the first things you're gonna have to do is determine if he's playing with a full deck. He does not appear to be. Maybe he's not even competent. Right.

[Mark Eiglarch]

So we both agree, right? The first thing we gotta do is we have to have him evaluated, correct. To see whether he's competent to assist us in his defense. Right. That's the first thing we would do. Second thing, I mean, this is not a who done it, right? I mean, about burglary with an assault therein. I mean, these are serious charges here. You're looking at potentially life. I don't know about New York.

[Janice Bilboer]

Then they added some charges, too, for, quote, unquote, molesting. But molest has a different meaning in the eyes of the law. Molesting a child under 18 related to something. I don't know if it was because he said, where's your daughter? Or if it had something to do with some other incident, but I. We got to give this guy a medal. The homeowner a medal because he did his best to de escalate and did successfully de escalate, whereas. I can't say. I cannot say I would have done the same thing. I can say this. I probably would have aimed for his leg and not his face if. If I were protecting myself, because I wouldn't want to necessarily kill him. But that's a threat that definitely warrants a self defense.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Ultimately, this is gonna be a plea, right? I mean, there's no trial here if you're representing him. No question he's taking a plea, right? Mental health treatment.

[Janice Bilboer]

Unless he doesn't want to. These types of defendants, they wanna go all the way. They wanna be on the stand. They want the jury staring at. They want that. So I'm not convinced he's gonna take plea.

[Mark Eiglarch]

All right, we'll follow up with this guy.

[Janice Bilboer]

Yeah, we will.

[Mark Eiglarch]

All right, Jonna, what are we talking about?

[Janice Bilboer]

You know what? I am very much looking forward to this because I did watch the Netflix docu series the Predator of Seville. You have a client who is joining us momentarily because why? She not only stars in that docu series, she is the reason for it. And when I tell you that Gabby Vega is a compelling young woman, I'm calling her the Erin Brockovich of our time. Gabrielle Vega will join us to share her story. Stay tuned. You are not going to want to miss this.

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[Mark Eiglarch]

Welcome back to Positively Legal. And joining us is a dear friend, a client of mine, Gabriella, also known as Gabby Vega, who is the subject matter of the new Netflix docu series, the Predator of Seville. It's on Netflix to three parter. Absolutely. Watch this. You must see this series. It's spectacular. And Gabby, thank you so much for joining us. We are extremely grateful that you're here at all. But for our very first podcast, thank you.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I'm really happy to be here. Thank you.

[Mark Eiglarch]

So we have limited time, but I want to make sure that we cover the story. Okay. So first, before I ever met you, some really bad stuff went down while you were a student. We don't have to stay there. And I know it's difficult for you to relive the whole thing and they can watch the series, they want to know all the graphic details, but I just want to know from you, just kind of set it up what stage in your life you are at. And let's start with that.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah, I had just graduated from high school and I had family living in Spain and was going to go to school in the spring at Florida State and had the opportunity to go abroad and do a gap year. And while I was abroad, I was traveling a lot and I was 19 at the time. And I went on a study abroad trip with this company called Discover Excursions. And on the last night of my trip, it was about three days, I was drugged and assaulted by the owner of the company and lead guide and his name's Manuel Blanco Vela. So yeah, it was like about three months after I moved overseas that it had happened.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Got it. And so do you immediately report this assault or do you keep it to yourself?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

No, I mean, I didn't have the means or the language, like baseline. It was really difficult for me to even wrap my head around what had happened. I was in a completely different place, completely removed from my family. Brand new to all of the people there in the culture. I had no idea how to navigate the legal system, let alone say the word rape in Spanish. So I was going to the authorities was not really on the docket for me at that point.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Got it. I want to give the viewers kind of an overview of the documentary, the docu series, and kind of an idea of how far this thing went. So let's first look at the promo for it and then we'll come back and talk about it.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

When I moved to Spain to study, I was an 18 year old kid.

[Janice Bilboer]

I studied abroad in Sevilla.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Sevilla, Sevilla. I really loved it. It was like an adventure. I was really excited by the whole thing and thinking about all the trips. Discover Excursions was recommended and they emphasized safety. The main tour guide seemed like a nice guy.

[Narrator/Voice in Docu Series Promo]

He was handsome, he knew everyone.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

A playful personality. It's the last night of the trip. He was like, oh, well, I can get champagne and we can all hang out in the room.

[Janice Bilboer]

Room.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I started getting really tired. I woke up the next morning. That's when I realized what had happened. The embassy said, you shouldn't talk to anyone about this second. He told me, no. I was like, that's exactly what I'm going to do. I started building an investigation. The story just kept getting bigger. I went on the Today show. I had no idea what I was involved in. A lot of people started reaching out to me. He had been doing this for years. And then I got a direct message on Facebook. It's terrifying. You feel like you were in the room with the devil. We thought that we would be quiet about it. You were wrong. Something has to change. This is just the beginning for him and me.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Wow. So you get home from this horrific experience and do you reach out to the authorities in Spain right away? When does that take place?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

So I this had occurred in 2013 and then I moved home in around May of 2014. And then I went straight to college. I didn't tell my parents or my family for about two and a half years after that. And during that period I was going to therapy for post traumatic stress disorder and was really kind of down and out. And then 2018, January 2018, I had participated in an art project and somehow through that conversation, I had shared that I had been assaulted. I was living abroad in Spain and went on a trip to Morocco and I Didn't mention the company name. I didn't mention the guide's name, and I just said I was raped and drugged by my tour guide. And the woman I had sent this to reached out to me and told me that she knew of something similar happening to a girl on her trip four years later and named the company and then asked me if his name was Manuel. And that's when I kind of put two and two together. And I started posting on Facebook. And within two days of posting on my personal page, I found eight women. And that's when I realized what had been going on. And all of these women were from 2017, and my assault was 2013. So I figured that there was an obvious gap in time. And that's when I got in touch with you and started to kind of go through the process of trying to find more women. And then eventually, once I found 50 of them, I was able to open an investigation in Spain and work with the embassy.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Okay, so first, how did we come together? Tell. Tell everybody how we. How you became my client.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah, well, my mom was a school teacher, and she taught your son. And I remember when I had found those eight initial women, I was just like. Went to my parents, and I was like, this is. I don't know what to do. I'm kind of at a loss right now. My mom was like, well, maybe what we can do is try and get you on a network so we can find more women. And that was, like, the ultimate goal was to try and figure out what was really going on. And so I had contacted you about potentially trying to find a way to get this beyond my little Facebook page. And so we got in contact, and then you really helped me kind of get the word out and find all the others.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Well, I was concerned because I knew that I was 100% going to get you on some show somewhere. But top of the list would be, at the time, Megan Kelly, Today Show. Huge audience. And I was, like, sheepishly asking you, are you ready for that? Is that if we can get that? If she'll say yes, are you down? And you were like, yeah. And I was concerned because I. I didn't know if you were ready for it. How did. How did you feel when I gave you the news? Like, Megan said yes.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I mean, I think I entered into work mode. Like, I completely separate. It was like a separation of church and state in terms of my emotions and actually having a goal. And so I think I just became very determined to find more people. And so if this was the way I was going to do it. I really. All of the emotional part of it was kind of negated and put to the wayside because I felt like this was a real opportunity to kind of really figure out what was going on and what I was a part of. So I think I was having, like, a complete mental breakdown right before we went out. I remember it was really.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Oh, I remember.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

But at the same time, it was. I had really kind of, like, tunnel vision at that point in my life.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Remind me what you. Do you remember? I mean, I. I was very concerned because at some point I was ready to say, if you just can't do it, I'm not going to force you to do it. But I remember. I mean, I think we were backstage, maybe, like, Green Roomish, you know, backstage. And it really did hit you. Do you remember what you were thinking? And I know Megan helped you through it, too.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah, I think it was just. I don't even think I had words at the time. It wasn't really, like, a rational thing. I think it was just this overwhelming emotion that maybe I had been suppressing before. To get to that moment. I had been reading all these stories from these women who came forward to me. The first eight. And two of the other girls that were there that day were also really. I remember I met them the first time the night before we went on air, and their parents didn't even know they were there. Like, it was very stressful for all of us. It was the first time we were meeting, and I just felt like I needed to calm down. I remember you having a conversation with me. I remember Megan having a conversation with me very briefly before, and I just tried to kind of, like, muscle through it. And honestly, I just remember going out there, and my aunt, my mom's sister was in the audience, and I saw her, and that was literally the last thing I remember. I completely blacked out. And, like, I just remember it ending and then hoping it went well. And then, you know, it aired a few days later, and everything kind of just took off.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I remember. I remember one of the things that you told me that you were comforted by was that you weren't there alone. We had two other girls who. Women who decided to join us on set. How did that make you feel?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I mean, I knew I needed them. I was really grateful. I mean, it's so difficult. And then they didn't know me, so it was really just kind of a matter of trust to show up and be there. And so I felt like I needed to be strong. In that moment and be somebody that they can rely on. And I felt like they were really key to this whole thing, to be honest, because I was raped by him, but they were, like, harassed. I don't know what it would be recognized as.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Real creepy stuff.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

They had a situation that they were able to get out of before it escalated to the point of my interaction with him. And so by having them there, I felt like it was so important because they really opened up this spectrum of assault, and for it to be legitimized by a show like Megan Kelly's was something that really opened the floodgates. So I was really happy they were there. I was really concerned about how they were doing because they were basically putting their faith in me to, like, help. And they had a similar goal. So it was helpful having them there. It was stressful having them there. I'm really grateful that they were there, and I'm just happy that I wasn't alone.

[Mark Eiglarch]

They did extremely well. Yeah, go ahead, Jonna.

[Janice Bilboer]

Sorry, Mara. Let me jump in. Gabby, I. I only met you through the docu series that I watch, and I have to begin by saying you are a freaking rock star. And, oh, my God, the strength and the strength of character. And one of the things. One of the many things that struck me in watching this docu series is you became sort of this accidental private investigator, right? So you started to gather information, and this grew and grew and grew. And your selflessness just oozes out of you. Like, this became not just something that you needed to do for yourself, and you absolutely would need to do something like this for yourself. You were doing this to help others, probably not realizing how many other women you were going to positively impact by this. And I swear, you know what? I. This is. This how stupid I am. I'm watching the series, and I think I'm. When I got to the last episode, I'm like, I need to hire her. She needs to be my paralegal. And then I'm like, oh, Montana, New York, that's a big commute. But you, you're just. I love you. I think this. Anybody who has not. Who has not tuned into this series, you have to for a number of reasons. Your strength is just incredible.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Thank you. No, that's really kind of you to say. I. I genuinely like. It's funny you bring it up, because I genuinely never, ever wanted to report. It was not something that was something I felt like I needed at some point in my life. But then the second I found out there were these other girls and they were younger than me. I just. I knew how much it destroyed my life at that point. Like, my whole life, whole 20s were just like a shit show, to be honest. And I think that finding them gave me the motivation, which was kind of became like a byproduct for me that I didn't realize I needed to kind of go through this process for myself in order to kind of close the door. Because I don't know how anyone could really find themselves in a position where they're the one that finds out that there are 50 plus other women, a girl who passed away, like, just extreme pain. Going through this group of young women who are extremely vulnerable and just going on with the rest of my life, I just didn't see that as a path for me to move forward.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Gabby, let me ask you about the impact. Yeah. Rough time. I remember the Today show was colossal for you. Let's first take a look at a clip, and then we'll talk about how that then led to further actions against this horrible human being.

[Narrator/Voice in Docu Series Promo]

Gabrielle spoke with her friends in the morning and asked if they remembered anything from the night before. One told her Gabrielle had been in the bathroom with Vela for half an hour.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

It's difficult talking about it just because I've talked to a lot of girls now who have dealt with this at his hands, and I could have done something and.

[Janice Bilboer]

Thank you, David.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Yeah. So you courageously told your story on the Today show. Open, honest, raw. There was no lying in you, so it was undeniable. Now, from that, tell us the ripple effect and what happens next.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah. So once it had aired, my phone just completely blew up. I was being contacted by hundreds of people, and I had expected it. That was the whole motivation of going on the show in general and putting myself in that position. But it was an extreme amount of people either coming to me and telling me stories about assaults that they have experienced or their friends have experienced. This woman, Carrie Bodorek, reached out to me about her daughter, Lauren Bojorek, who had passed away at Manuel's apartment. And I think once I heard that alongside all the other rape and just assault allegations that were coming out, it was. It was really jarring because I had no idea what I was involved in. You know, it was a really overwhelming experience. But I just immediately kind of went to work and just started kind of compiling everything and trying to collect stories and having meetings with the Spanish government and the police over there. And then the US Embassy was also involved. And so I was kind of leading these meetings, trying to figure out what avenues and options we had. And I just started collecting the statements and kind of going through all the protocols that were presented to me, even though it was very ad hoc, and it took a lot of force and a lot of pressure on my end with them to take this seriously. And I think by finding the 50 women, they could not ignore it. And also having the press involved was a really big tool for me to create that kind of pressure, because otherwise, I think it would have been something that wouldn't have brought the attention that would make them take this type of case seriously, especially so many years later.

[Janice Bilboer]

That was a little bit of culture shock. Sorry, Mark. That was a little bit of culture shock because when we were watching. When I was watching the, like the courtroom scene, for example, without giving too much away, it looked so informal, like, what does. Manuel walks in as if he's going to be a guest on a talk show, and he leans back in his chair, and it's just a chair. It's not a witness stand. There's no majesty. There were. I don't know if all those people were judged, you know, sitting at like a big, long picnic table. It was very, very odd. And you even had a couple of your witnesses who sort of, for lack of a better term, threw you under the bus a little bit. And I could see where it was nerve wracking for you to have to wait for a verdict. But I did appreciate, and tell me if this is accurate, your lawyer. I think you picked the right lawyer. I think he was very much on your side and got you through this step by step, very methodically and with compassion. And I really appreciate that was the only thing that was familiar to me, knowing that you had a lawyer that was compassionate. But the rest of the legal proceeding of this was very, very foreign.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah, I mean, it was foreign for me. I'd never been involved in the legal system in the US So to navigate that overseas on my own was kind of difficult. And then my lawyer, I was basically giving him everything on a silver platter. I had all of these women that wanted to participate, and then that fell through. And so you don't see it in the documentary, but during the trial, he named all of the women, just listed them out who wanted to be there, that couldn't. And it was very odd. I was. When I was. I testified here in Montana, and I was with the FBI and the U.S. attorney, and they shielded Manuel for me, so I didn't see him during the trial. But, yeah, I definitely. It was a very difficult process. It Was really short. It was only three days, which I think is different from the US System. I know those things can be drawn out. So they were pretty focused on kind of protecting us emotionally, I guess you could say. But I mean, he testified for 15 minutes. It kind of was like a joke to him. And I mean, I think if you have somebody who dies at your apartment and you have criminal charges dropped immediately, you probably think you're going to get away with everything. And, I mean, it was a really shot into the dark what I was trying to pull off. And so I figured I needed to go through with it. But I don't know, I can't compare it to what it would be like here, because I'm not too sure. But it was a really different strange experience.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Totally different. And, you know, the documentary does touch on this gal who, you know, the argument was that she jumped or she fell off his balcony. You have any doubt that he played a role in her tragic death?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I mean, it was the same exact scenario as all of the other women. This guy preyed on all of the things you probably tell your kids. And what my parents told me, the buddy system, you know, be with your friends, don't go anywhere by yourself. So he. I mean, it's very common for him to assault anywhere from four to two women a night. So Lauren was there with this other girl, Sarah, and they were in the apartment while Sarah somehow was completely naked with an extreme blood alcohol level and somehow managed to fall, even though she should have been in a coma. I'm not really sure how that works out. It's also interesting that Sarah. Sarah was completely inebriated and Manuel was completely sober. And he was the one that was kind of giving the statement to the police. I think it was very much dismissed by the police as it just being like a young American girl kind of drinking too much. And it's an unfortunate accident. And then you realize that there's something much more sinister going on.

[Mark Eiglarch]

So it's very likely he got away with murder. I could say that very, you know, very comfortably. So let's talk about post documentary. I know that I received a number of emails from people who said, can you reach out to Gabby either to praise you, but also, I was one of his victims. I'm. I'm another victim. Like, people came forward. How many more people came forward to you? Total after the documentary aired, it's about 10 women. So are we going to.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

So I'm up to about 6.

[Janice Bilboer]

What about some civil suits?

[Mark Eiglarch]

Like, I want to know. Criminal John hold on, hold on, hold on. Guy probably doesn't have a pot to piss in. I'm talking about. I want him to go to prison longer than. I don't want to give away the docu series, but whatever. He got prison time. But number one, he got only like six years or something, right? And lord, he got, he originally got

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

nine years but he's, he went through an appeals process and so he was in the second highest court in Spain. Went through the appeals process which he was able to do from the comfort of his home. He's never spent a day in jail but been over a year and there was some paperwork where names were filed incorrectly. So he was able to shave six months off of that. And now it's being overlooked in the Supreme Court where they could potentially give him more time or give him less time. But all of this is while he's on the street.

[Mark Eiglarch]

But okay, two things. One, isn't it a fact that it was the prosecutors who allowed him to remain out of prison while he appealed his sins?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Yeah, they don't think he's a flight rape.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Disgusting.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Because they took his passport.

[Mark Eiglarch]

But he's a danger to the community, is he not?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

He's a convicted rapist. I mean, I don't know what else you need to know, you know.

[Mark Eiglarch]

And how about the people who, while he didn't yet harm, they're now realizing, my goodness, he's my landlord, he's around me now. Didn't you get some of that in the form of email or calls?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I've gotten emails from 19 year old Erasmus students who are in the. It's basically just the same snake, just a different color sort of thing. And these young girls are emailing me, kind of freaking out being like, he is my landlord. He's invited me to his birthday party. He's asking me what kind of alcohol I want. I think he's living a very normal life. I think he's. I mean, I've never. This is the only person in my life, luckily, that I've ever come across that's completely psychotic. And I just think he's functioning at a level where he thinks this is all going to go away. But we'll see what the Supreme Court says.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I truly hope that we can bring additional charges against this creep. He really does deserve to face justice for the others that he has harmed. Jonna, I'm sure that you agree with that. Yes.

[Janice Bilboer]

Thank God for you, Gabby, because were it not for you, God only knows how many more other women not only would have been harmed, but would have been dead. Since we know that he was involved in at least one woman going over a balcony. And thank God that you had the wherewithal and the strength to do that. What a piece of shit like. And shame on you, Spain. I mean, I don't know anything about their system of jurisprudence except what I saw on. On your show, but he just got to be stopped. He just.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I hope. I agree with you, and I do hope that we hear about more convictions in the future and let's stack some years. Gabby, people love you. They want to support you. What can they do? How can we bring more attention and support to this cause?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I think that just talking about it in general, I think we. I mean, I think about this a lot. And I feel like we lived in such an interconnected kind of society now we're very globalized. People travel all the time. And I think there's a level of vulnerability that hasn't been accounted for yet. And I think that the legal system, if I wasn't so bullish and stubborn, there was no way this would have gone forward. If I would have given up, I don't think there were any of the. The other women that would have been able to kind of push it forward emotionally. And I just don't think it should be up to us to try and navigate foreign legal systems. I think we have to be realistic, that crimes happen cross culturally, and you need to have the structures in place to be able to support these people in order to make your community safer. And if you want your tourism to keep up, I would really suggest it, because otherwise you're going to have Netflix documentaries coming out like this. Because I genuinely think the tide is kind of changing where I'm really sick of this shit, where I think these people that do commit these crimes are absolute fucking losers. And I'm really bored of trying, like, being afraid of them. And so I think that it's important for people to talk about these things. I think it's important to realize that the position that they're in is your most powerful tool, is to be honest about it. And I'm a random girl living in Montana. I was able to get a conviction in one of the highest courts in a foreign country. I was able to protect all of these people, and I genuinely think that anyone is capable of that.

[Mark Eiglarch]

We are. We are so proud of you, Gabby. First of all, thank you. Thank you for coming to me years ago. Thank you for the privilege of being able to assist you. I think the world of you and your family and I love to be at least part of some of your journey through this. And I celebrate you and I'm so grateful that you shared your experience with us and we're so grateful. Thank you.

[Janice Bilboer]

Keep up the great work, girl. No matter what you do in your life, keep it up.

[Mark Eiglarch]

I'm always here for you, Gabby. Anything you need. Okay?

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

Thank you, guys. It's been so nice talking to you.

[Janice Bilboer]

And let me know when you want to be a paralegal in New York.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

I will let you know. All right.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Be well, Gab. Take care.

[Gabrielle 'Gabby' Vega]

All right, thanks, guys. Bye.

[Mark Eiglarch]

All right. All right. So Jona, that was just such a privilege.

[Janice Bilboer]

She's so inspirational.

[Mark Eiglarch]

She is. She is. I hope others follow her lead and speak up. Alright, so in just a moment, Janna and I go off the record. Stay tuned.

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[Mark Eiglarch]

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[Janice Bilboer]

Welcome back to Positively Legal. We are so excited to have our own show and to get to say anything off the record. This is going to be our time to do just that and rant about whatever is on our minds. Mark, what's on yours?

[Mark Eiglarch]

There's a lot on my mind. I don't know how to narrow it down. And listen, I just heard someone go off on those Secret Service people, and their position was they allowed this to happen. They're not doing enough. And I'll say this, okay? We're talking about the latest attempt on Trump's life. Okay? First, anytime you can reevaluate and see if anything can be done differently, I think that that's great. It should always do that. That said, I'm picturing these guys who are part of the Secret Service, their fathers, their heroes in some respect, because they're willing to take a bullet. They've trained, they're ready for the moment, and all they're hearing from a lot of folks is, you failed. The guy got in. And all I'm doing is thinking about them right now, and I'm thinking that they did the best they can at their level of awareness, and the system did work. The guy didn't get into the room. You've got a hotel of 1100 rooms. You live in a free society where people are allowed to carry weapons. It is incomprehensible to think that you're always going to protect people from getting even remotely near our leaders. I believe it worked. I believe there may be ways that they could do better in the future. But these guys, these individuals, are putting their lives on the line. They deserve a little praise. So to you guys, I thank you. To the guy who took a bullet, a guy who went to work and took a bullet that day, I thank you for doing everything you could to protect the leader of the free world. Thank you, guys. Thank you for all you've done. Can we do better? Maybe. But I thank all of you for what you do. That's the only thing on my mind, Jonna, right now. What's on your mind?

[Janice Bilboer]

So, Mark, I'll tell you what's on my mind. The other day, I was listening to a comedian doing a bit about, of all things, courtroom gavels. Just when you thought commanding attention in a courtroom couldn't possibly be funny, this guy managed. Take a listen.

[Comedian on Courtroom Gavels]

Not enough comedians are talking about the courtroom gavel. Here we go. I think the courtroom gavel is weirdly primitive for the situation. Like if you had to explain that to somebody, you're just like a courtroom. What's that? And you're like, oh, it's like the thing that makes us a society. It's very official. And I go, okay, what's that the judge is holding? Oh, that's the be quiet hammer. They still do it that way. It feels like they are figuring out what they should do for that. And a gorilla was like, you know what I would do? Have you tried banging a stick on a thing so they know you're the boss?

[Janice Bilboer]

I mean, he's right. How utterly primitive is it that in the 21st century here we are forcing the most important person in the courtroom and to bang a be quiet hammer to get people to stop talking and show some respect when it comes to court? We have not come a long way, baby. I mean, okay, so I suppose some of the esthetics of traditional jurisprudence have been modernized. Like we ditch the ugly white wigs, but that's about it. Judges still wear the ill fitting robes and smash a murder weapon on a desk to command quiet in the courtroom. How very Fred Flintstone of us. Isn't it time we upgraded to a less barbaric method? I say yes. Hence I've come up with a couple of alternatives and thought maybe we could take a poll and decide which would be a more modern day way to get respect in a courtroom. The obvious choice is to use a human resource already in the courtroom, the court officer. They carry weapons, wear uniforms, and maintaining order is already part of their job description and frankly, their DNA. Unfortunately, because law enforcement as a whole has been unfairly marginalized by fat mayors in crime ridden cities, only court officers with necks wider than their faces would be intimidating enough to hush a whole crowd at once. So that ain't gonna work. Then I thought, what about a few professional courtroom shushers? Like a group of polite little old ladies straight off the bingo bus who march in with their bony fingers already pressed to their non existent lips, loudly extruding the sound an S and an H make when mashed together over the din of the rowdy courtroom crowd? I quickly figured, nah, that'll work. About as good as sending a social worker onto a subway to keep some lunatic from stabbing you in the navel. Then it came to me. What is our system of jurisprudence if not a place that celebrates words? Words, even though surrounded by no other words, like granted, denied, objection, can irretrievably change the course of a courtroom proceeding the same way. A perfectly timed two fingered whistle on fifth Avenue can make the difference between whether you're getting a cab or getting wet. My idea, a button. It could be on the judge's phone or under her bench or displayed prominently on the wall somewhere in the vicinity of In God we Trust. One gentle press of the button and a hush befalls the entire courtroom as this button will express a to the point yet gentle yet powerful command to

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write to shut the up.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Hey, shut the up, will you? Shut the up and listen to me.

[Janice Bilboer]

I like it. Coming soon to an Etsy shop near you. And that's off the record.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Very nice, Jonna. Wow. Is that really a problem? I don't. 33 years of practice, I don't know that I've ever seen a judge bang a gavel. Do they use those in New York?

[Janice Bilboer]

They use them in New York. That's. You know why? Because they carry them as, as their own sort of self defense. You know, you're on the subway, whip out your gavel, bang. It doesn't make a lot of noise, but, you know. Yeah, they do.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Well, John, I've loved hanging out with you. For our first episode of Positively Legal. Are we going to end? Hold on. Again, it's positively legal. I said that there has to be some spiritual nuggets throughout. And I would be remiss if I didn't talk about gratitude, my favorite topic, because not if, but when I'm dealing with challenges personally and professionally, I immediately shift to gratitude. What am I grateful for? And yeah, back in the day, I'd say I'm grateful for this, I'm grateful for that. Nowadays, I mean, I am pulling out my iPhone and I'm writing down in the notes section everything for which I'm most grateful. Several times throughout the day, before I go to sleep, I'll write the top five things for which I'm most grateful. And by the way, you'll make the list today, Jona, because again, it's been wonderful spending time with you, But I think that gratitude is the antidote to stinking thinking. So I ask all of you right now, what are you grateful for? And then keep going with it. You don't have to just pick one thing, keep going with it, and every day think about what you're grateful for. And I believe that that's the answer to all of our problems today. Jonna, what are you grateful for? Come on, you can.

[Janice Bilboer]

Well, I'm grateful for having spent this time with you. I'm grateful for this brand new show. I'm grateful for the MK True Crime Channel. I am grateful that I did not dribble soup on this shirt earlier today when I was rushing around cause that would have been a problem. And I'm gonna be grateful to be back here with you again next week.

[Mark Eiglarch]

Thank you Jonna. You're. You are wonderful. And we are especially grateful to Gabriela Vega, my dear client and dear friend, for spending time with us today. Jonna, thank you. And we are extremely grateful that we'll have new episodes dropping every Wednesday and you know where to find it. And we hope you have a wonderful week and we hope you choose to be happy. Thank you.

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