Sentencing set for gang member who shot two Whittier officers, killing one, after killing another man

By TERRI VERMEULEN KEITH | City News Service

NORWALK — Sentencing is acceptable Wednesday for a pack subordinate convicted of opening occurrence connected 2 Whittier constabulary officers, sidesplitting 1 and wounding the other, on with sidesplitting a antheral successful East Los Angeles earlier the aforesaid morning.

Michael Christopher Mejia, 30, was recovered blameworthy Sept. 1 of 2 counts of first-degree execution and 1 number each of attempted murder, carjacking and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Jurors besides recovered existent the peculiar condition allegations of execution of a bid serviceman successful the show of his duties, execution for the intent of avoiding apprehension and aggregate murders. Jurors besides recovered existent pack and weapon allegations.

He is facing beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole.

Mejia was convicted for the Feb. 20, 2017, killings of Keith Boyer, a 53-year-old Whittier constabulary serviceman who was the archetypal serviceman successful the metropolis killed successful the enactment of work successful 37 years, and 47-year-old Roy Torres.

Mejia told authorities aft his apprehension that Torres was his cousin, but Torres’ relatives insisted that helium was not related to Mejia.

The attempted execution number progressive then-Whittier constabulary Officer Patrick Hazell, who was changeable successful the abdomen.

Over the objection of the 2 prosecutors successful the trial, the District Attorney’s Office dropped its bid to question the decease punishment against Mejia successful February. The reversal came conscionable implicit 2 months aft District Attorney George Gascon was sworn into office.

Gascon — who said helium had a “mandate from the public” — has vowed that the bureau volition nary longer prosecute the decease penalty.

Whittier Police Chief Aviv Bar opposed the determination by the District Attorney’s Office and had spoken against it astatine a Feb. 18 proceeding successful which helium asked for each of the applicable charges and penalties to stay successful place.

“… If you sat done the proceedings and if you listened to the facts, if you listened to the fishy himself talk astir sidesplitting Keith and trying to termination Patrick … conscionable the savagery of that act, I can’t deliberation of immoderate different condition that would not suffice this for a decease punishment lawsuit and the removal earlier the proceedings was incorrect and unfortunate, precise unfortunate,” the constabulary main told City News Service extracurricular tribunal aft the verdict was read.

“This is arbitrary due to the fact that if this happened successful Orange County, San Bernardino County, Riverside County, Ventura, San Diego, this would beryllium a decease punishment case,” Bar added. “It’s precise unsafe erstwhile you nonstop that connection successful the region that if you savagely execute a constabulary serviceman successful this region you’re not going to look the decease penalty.”

Boyer’s stepfather, Don Clark, said helium was “not existent happy” with Gascon’s directive to propulsion the decease punishment successful each pending cases.

“Because of 1 man’s decision, it was changed and I don’t deliberation that’s right. It wounded a batch of families,” helium said.

The officer’s aunt, Susan Reeder, said the household was “elated” with the verdict, but added, “Our lone regret was that the decease punishment was taken disconnected the table.”

In his closing argument, Deputy District Attorney Garrett Dameron urged jurors to clasp Mejia “accountable for the ruthless, inhumane slayer helium is.”

The authoritative said the 2 constabulary officers were responding to a three-vehicle postulation collision adjacent Colima Road and Mar Vista Street successful which Mejia had been involved, and that the 2 had nary thought that those would beryllium “the past moments” of Boyer’s life.

Dameron called the grounds “so strong,” telling jurors determination was “clear intent to termination the victims successful this case” and an “abundance of evidence” that Mejia premeditated the shootings.

The lawman territory lawyer told jurors that Mejia committed the crimes “to get attention” and wanted his look shown connected the evening newscasts.

Mejia’s lawyer urged the sheet to find his lawsuit blameworthy of the lesser transgression of second-degree execution for the killings. Defense lawyer Paul Cohen argued determination is “no denotation that helium (Mejia) planned these crimes up of time.”

Cohen told jurors determination shouldn’t beryllium immoderate uncertainty that Mejia was utilizing drugs successful the days starring up to the crimes, saying that voluntary intoxication is “key to this case.”

“It was each astir drugs and getting high,” Mejia’s lawyer said.

The defence lawyer said his lawsuit “wasn’t a vocation criminal” and disputed whether his lawsuit was adjacent an progressive pack subordinate astatine the time.

In his rebuttal argument, Deputy District Attorney Geoff Lewin said the “most damaging evidence” came from the suspect himself, whom helium said “admits to everything essentially.”

The authoritative countered that determination was nary grounds of a methamphetamine-induced psychosis successful which Mejia didn’t cognize what helium was doing astatine the clip of the crimes.

Lewin concluded his rebuttal statement by playing an audio signaling of Mejia telling investigators erstwhile asked if helium had thing to accidental to the Whittier Police Department that they should “train your guys better” and that helium didn’t consciousness sorry.

During the 48-minute interrogation successful a infirmary jailhouse ward 8 days aft the killings, Mejia initially told sheriff’s Detectives Dean Camarillo and Omar Miranda astir the killings, “I don’t retrieve doing nary of that.”

But helium aboriginal told the detectives, “I conjecture you guys person everything down — smoked my cousin, smoked the cop. … I mean, what other bash you guys want? I changeable different bull … He changeable me,” Mejia said during that interview.

In the interrogation archetypal played successful tribunal astatine a June 2017 proceeding successful which helium was ordered to basal trial, Mejia admitted being a pack subordinate and cause idiosyncratic and told the detectives, “I did it, I mean, I did it … some of ’em, each 3 of them had it coming,” adding that the “officer got excessively assertive with me.”

When asked by homicide investigators astir what happened with Torres, the suspect said that the unfortunate — whom helium described arsenic a “cool cousin” from his grandfather’s broadside — should person “kept his chemoreceptor clean” and that helium had “warned him.”

Outside tribunal aft the verdict, 1 of Torres’ cousins, Tiffany Garcia, described Mejia arsenic “an animal” who had “no remorse.”