There’s some funny business in Steve Garvey’s taxes, aside from the fact that he owes several hundred thousand, as his property taxes are being paid by some nebulous group with the name “Sisters in Christ.”

Now that former LA Dodger and Republican candidate Steve Garvey is heading for the November Senate election against Rep. Adam Schiff, the press is starting to go skeleton-hunting in Garvey’s closets. And they are finding skeletons! The Sacramento Bee reported in late March that Garvey still owes several hundred thousand dollars in unpaid taxes, and has had a number of tax liens filed against him. Digging further into the case, the Bee reported Friday that very oddly, the property taxes on Garvey’s Palm Desert home are being paid by some organization called Sisters in Christ.

We should note that there is a very legitimate religious charity organization called Sisters in Christ, based in Florida, which does bible studies and runs programs to support women. This is a different Sisters in Christ, it’s an LLC based in Utah, which does not appear to have any other activities outside of paying Steve Garvey’s property taxes. Oh, and one of its officers is Garvey’s sister-in-law Shaunna Hood.

It is possible that Sisters in Christ LLC actually owns Garvey’s Palm  Desert house. Per the Sacramento Bee, Garvey’s wife’s mother Marilyn Smythe transferred the deed for the home to Sisters in Christ in 2006. I’m no accountant, but this smells like it’s got “tax dodge” written all over it.

As we see even here in SF, LLCs are a commonly used method of hiding the real property owner’s identity.

And the Sacramento Bee also dug up this 2014 “Coldwell Banker Home Field Advantage” segment in which Garvey discusses the property in question. “This house was originally owned by [Garvey’s wife] Candace’s mom,” he says. “We bought it from her.”

And as mentioned earlier, Garvey has shit-ton of unpaid tax debt. The Bee reported in March that Garvey’s financial disclosures show he’s somewhere between $350,000 and $750,000 behind in both state and federal taxes. (Most of that is federal taxes, but state taxes account for $100,000-$250,000 of his tax debt.) After the Bee broke that story, a red-faced Garvey told Fox News that “We have been taking this very seriously, have always filed our taxes on time, and we have been working diligently with our accountant and the IRS to resolve this debt by the end of the year.”

Add to the strangeness of Garvey’s campaign, which the Chronicle dubs as a “remain-in-bubble-wrap campaign,” that Garvey is refusing to attend the California GOP convention this weekend in Burlingame. It is highly unusual that a statewide candidate would duck such an event with a guaranteed friendly crowd. Heck, even South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is going to be there, and she’s got unflattering headlines all over the news lately for shooting a puppy.

Related: It's Going to Be Schiff v. Garvey In November's Senate Race [SFist]

Image: PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 05: Republican Senate candidate Steve Garvey, a former Los Angeles Dodgers baseball player, tosses a baseball to supporters at his election night watch party on March 5, 2024 in Palm Desert, California. Garvey and Democratic Senate candidate U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) are projected to win the ‘jungle primary’ for a California U.S. Senate seat. Democrats and Republicans are voting in 15 states on Super Tuesday. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)