MW5M
03-09-2006, 10:40 AM
Deputy Pleads Not Guilty in Taped Shooting
By GREG RISLING, AP
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (March 9) - A sheriff's deputy pleaded not guilty Wednesday to attempted voluntary manslaughter in the videotaped shooting of an unarmed man who had been riding in a car pursued by the deputy.
The car's driver separately pleaded not guilty to felony evading and misdemeanor driving under the influence.
Facing the first charge ever filed against a peace officer in San Bernardino County for an on-duty shooting, Deputy Ivory J. Webb, 45, spoke only briefly with Judge Michael A. Smith to waive his right to speedy proceedings.
Defense attorney Michael Schwartz argued for a low bail of $50,000 on grounds that Webb was neither a threat to the community nor a flight risk. But the judge set bail at $100,000, which Webb posted after being booked.
On Jan. 29, Webb was videotaped shooting Air Force Senior Airman Elio Carrion, 21, three times.
The shadowy nighttime recording made by a resident showed Carrion on the ground by the passenger door of a Corvette that crashed after a pursuit in Chino, 45 miles east of Los Angeles. Carrion appeared to obey a command to "Get up" when the deputy fired. Carrion was hit in the chest, shoulder and left thigh, but survived.
Webb, who faces up to 18 1/2 years in prison if convicted, left court with his attorney without speaking to reporters.
The Corvette's driver, Luis Escobedo, 21, appeared later before the same judge to enter his pleas.
Smith reduced Escobedo's bail from $50,000 to $25,000 and ordered him to go to a sheriff's station for booking no later than Friday.
Prosecutors said in court that Escobedo was driving without a license during the chase and has another DUI case pending in the county.
Escobedo's attorney, Antonio Rodriguez, said outside court that his client was "sad" and "sorry."
"There are a lot of victims in this case," Rodriguez said. "But he's not the one who caused what happened."
Rodriguez also said Escobedo was "someone who definitely was at the wrong place at the wrong time."
The attorney would not comment on whether Escobedo would be a prosecution witness in the deputy's case.
Rodriguez identified Escobedo as a construction worker and close friend of Carrion, who is assigned to a security unit at Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, La.
03-09-06 04:16 EST
By GREG RISLING, AP
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (March 9) - A sheriff's deputy pleaded not guilty Wednesday to attempted voluntary manslaughter in the videotaped shooting of an unarmed man who had been riding in a car pursued by the deputy.
The car's driver separately pleaded not guilty to felony evading and misdemeanor driving under the influence.
Facing the first charge ever filed against a peace officer in San Bernardino County for an on-duty shooting, Deputy Ivory J. Webb, 45, spoke only briefly with Judge Michael A. Smith to waive his right to speedy proceedings.
Defense attorney Michael Schwartz argued for a low bail of $50,000 on grounds that Webb was neither a threat to the community nor a flight risk. But the judge set bail at $100,000, which Webb posted after being booked.
On Jan. 29, Webb was videotaped shooting Air Force Senior Airman Elio Carrion, 21, three times.
The shadowy nighttime recording made by a resident showed Carrion on the ground by the passenger door of a Corvette that crashed after a pursuit in Chino, 45 miles east of Los Angeles. Carrion appeared to obey a command to "Get up" when the deputy fired. Carrion was hit in the chest, shoulder and left thigh, but survived.
Webb, who faces up to 18 1/2 years in prison if convicted, left court with his attorney without speaking to reporters.
The Corvette's driver, Luis Escobedo, 21, appeared later before the same judge to enter his pleas.
Smith reduced Escobedo's bail from $50,000 to $25,000 and ordered him to go to a sheriff's station for booking no later than Friday.
Prosecutors said in court that Escobedo was driving without a license during the chase and has another DUI case pending in the county.
Escobedo's attorney, Antonio Rodriguez, said outside court that his client was "sad" and "sorry."
"There are a lot of victims in this case," Rodriguez said. "But he's not the one who caused what happened."
Rodriguez also said Escobedo was "someone who definitely was at the wrong place at the wrong time."
The attorney would not comment on whether Escobedo would be a prosecution witness in the deputy's case.
Rodriguez identified Escobedo as a construction worker and close friend of Carrion, who is assigned to a security unit at Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, La.
03-09-06 04:16 EST