Clint Gives Calmer Lawsuit Testimony

A soft-spoken Clint Eastwood took the witness stand Thursday in a disability-access suit filed against him and a hotel he owns.

In more than two hours of testimony, the actor-director said he wanted to make his hotel accessible to the disabled. But he said he was constrained by his need to preserve the property's historic character.

Eastwood harshly criticized the case in a congressional hearing in May, but he was calm as he told of spending millions to renovate Mission Ranch, a 150-year-old former dairy farm he bought in 1987.

“Because it is an old place, we had a certain obligation to the heritage and antique value, not just the (Americans with Disabilities Act),” Eastwood said.

Plaintiff Diane Zum Brunnen, who suffers from multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair, took the stand for the first time Wednesday. The Alameda woman is suing Eastwood for unspecified damages.

She claims the Hollywood legend violated the ADA by not making his Mission Ranch hotel in Carmel accessible to the handicapped in 1996.

Brunnen's lawyer, John Burris, argued that wheelchair-accessible rooms were twice as expensive as some non-accessible rooms and steps prevented access to the hotel's main office.

On Thursday, Burris asked Eastwood whether he developed any expertise in construction codes as mayor of Carmel from 1986 to 1988 and as a film director who had sets built.

Eastwood, 70, said he was familiar with building regulations, but by no means considered himself an expert. He said he delegated the details of the renovations of Mission Ranch to a contractor.

According to Burris, Eastwood spent $6.7 million on renovations to the hotel, but failed to improve wheelchair access which would have cost under $20,000.

“We were so busy restoring and repairing the place,” Eastwood said, explaining why the ramp wasn't added. “This is an ongoing process and it's an ongoing process today.”