In a decisive blow to both legal injustice and political hypocrisy, the Oregon Supreme Court has upheld a $3.2 million judgment against Elkside Development LLC and Barnett Resorts, LLC—entities controlled by Josephine County Commissioner Chris Barnett and his wife, Stefani Barnett. The ruling confirms a sweeping verdict for breach of contract and financial elder abuse tied to their 2017 acquisition of Osprey Point RV Resort in Lakeside, Oregon, where they stripped vulnerable seniors of their lifetime camping rights in defiance of legally binding agreements.
It is the latest and most damning chapter in a scandal Barnett tried to bury, going so far as to sue this newspaper for $100,000 in 2024 for reporting on the very case that has now been vindicated in Oregon’s highest court.
While Barnett campaigned on values of transparency and accountability, his real-life record—now permanently etched in court precedent—tells a different story. It is one of deception, exploitation, and calculated abuse of legal and political power. What began as a property transaction has become a defining case of how those in office can use their position to mislead, manipulate, and silence the very public they claim to serve.
Osprey Point RV Resort was no ordinary property. For nearly two decades, it served as a second home—and in some cases, a primary residence—for dozens of retirees, many of them over 65 years old. Between 1999 and 2016, 71 individuals purchased what were called “lifetime” membership camping contracts. For an upfront fee of roughly $6,000 and a modest annual payment of $325, members received year-round access to the resort for up to 36 weeks per year.
These weren’t just vacation packages. They were contractual lifelines that included discounts on moorage and storage, fee freezes for life, and usage rights for family members. For many, it was an affordable retirement plan rooted in community and stability.
When the Barnetts purchased the park in 2017 for $1.995 million—a discounted price that explicitly reflected the existence of those memberships—they received full legal disclosure. They reviewed contracts. They saw signed documents. They even requested all existing agreements to discuss with their attorney.
They knew what they were buying.
And they destroyed it anyway.
Just months after the sale closed, the Barnetts launched an aggressive campaign to void the very contracts they had agreed to inherit. Members received letters declaring their agreements null and void. Some were told they’d now be paying full nightly rates. Others were denied reservations outright. In one particularly egregious move, the Barnetts enforced specific clauses from the supposedly “invalid” contracts when it benefited them—attempting to evict members for alleged violations.
It was hypocrisy, plain and brutal. Promises made to retirees were shredded, all while the Barnetts cashed in on a reduced purchase price negotiated on the basis of those very obligations.
The plaintiffs, many of them elderly and dependent on the park as housing, fought back.
The case—Adelsperger v. Elkside Development LLC—went to trial. The jury needed little convincing. They awarded $500,000 for breach of contract and $900,000 for elder abuse. The trial court then applied Oregon’s elder abuse statute, which allows for treble damages, bringing the total to $3.2 million.
The Barnetts appealed, arguing that the contracts were unenforceable because they hadn’t been recorded with the county. The Court of Appeals partially agreed—reversing the elder abuse ruling while upholding the breach of contract claim.
But that reprieve didn’t last.
In a sharply worded 2025 opinion, the Oregon Supreme Court reinstated the elder abuse judgment and affirmed that the contracts were valid, enforceable, and legally binding. The Court ruled that the agreements constituted “servitudes”—land-use obligations that run with the property—and that Barnett and his company had knowingly and willfully disregarded them.
The message was clear: honoring contracts and protecting vulnerable seniors is not optional. Not even for a county commissioner.
Rather than take accountability, Chris Barnett spent his 2024 election campaign spinning the narrative. He called the case “baseless.” He claimed this newspaper was waging a political witch hunt. He painted himself as the victim.
Then he filed a defamation lawsuit against the Grants Pass Tribune for $100,000, accusing us of publishing false information about the case.
Now that the Oregon Supreme Court has affirmed every fact we reported, we ask again: What exactly did Barnett think was misleading? The verdict? The contract disclosures he received and reviewed? The eviction notices to elderly residents? The legal classification of financial elder abuse?
Chris Barnett lied to the public. He lied about the case. And he tried to sue the press into silence. None of it worked.
We were right then. And we are still right now.
Barnett sold himself to voters as a straight-talking conservative businessman. He warned about “government abuse” and “corrupt elites.” But the truth is, he became the very thing he warned against. In court, he argued technicalities while seniors faced homelessness. He claimed ignorance while bank records and contracts proved otherwise.
He exploited the elderly for financial gain, then tried to silence those who called him out.
Some of the plaintiffs in this case are now in their 80s. They spent nearly eight years battling a man with more resources, more power, and more arrogance than most elected officials dare to show. They won. But the victory came at a cost—emotional, financial, and personal.
The pressure is mounting for Barnett to resign. Community members across Josephine County have called for his immediate removal, demanding that taxpayers not be saddled with the costs of a recall. Others are pushing for a formal ethics investigation, pointing to Oregon statutes that prohibit public service by individuals guilty of financial misconduct or abuse against vulnerable populations.
Despite the ruling, Barnett has remained defiant. His social media remains active, filled with “fake news” jabs and tone-deaf self-promotion. No apology has been issued. No resignation has been offered. Only more spin.
But this time, the public isn’t buying it.
This is no longer a matter of political rivalry or campaign strategy. It’s a question of basic human decency and legal accountability. When an elected official is proven in court to have financially abused senior citizens and manipulated legal contracts to his advantage, he forfeits any claim to public trust.
Chris Barnett is not a victim. He is not a martyr. He is not misunderstood.
He is liable. He is dishonest. And he is unfit to serve.
The people of Josephine County deserve leaders who respect the law, not just when it’s convenient, but always. Leaders who honor contracts, protect the vulnerable, and tell the truth—even when it’s hard.