PAULA CORBIN JONES

The former Arkansas state employee whose charge of sexual harassment against President Clinton started it all, Paula Corbin Jones, has been living for the last five years in Long Beach with her husband, Steve, and their two young sons--helped financially by conservative supporters such as her spokeswoman, activist Susan Carpenter-McMillan.

The 32-year-old Jones was a surprise face in the crowd when Clinton went to Little Rock, Ark., last month to console those who had suffered tornado damage.

Apparently “some of her friends talked her into going down there,” but Jones now regrets having done so because she believes it conveyed the wrong impression, Carpenter-McMillan says, adding that all Jones wants now is to return home permanently to Arkansas with her family and buy a little house.

Last fall, Clinton’s lawyers agreed to settle Jones’ lawsuit for $850,000--but offered no apology from the president over the alleged sexual incident in a Little Rock hotel room on May 9, 1991, when Clinton was governor and Jones was a state clerical worker.

Jones’ suit was dismissed in district court, but she then appealed; the appeals court had not ruled when the suit was settled.

It was during a pretrial deposition in Jones’ lawsuit on Jan. 17, 1998, that Clinton was asked whether he had ever had sexual relations with White House intern Monica S. Lewinsky. He denied it.

Despite the settlement, Jones’ financial picture remains rocky; she has $3 million in legal debts, and hasn’t figured out how she’s going to pay those bills.

While Jones has no specific plans once she gets back to Arkansas, Carpenter-McMillan says, “she’s like a celebrity there--everybody loves her.”