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| California Judge Frees Three-Strikes Inmate |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 02/10/2003 |
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A judge on January 31 dismissed charges against a janitor serving 70 years to life in a three-strikes robbery case after prosecutors said they lacked evidence to convict him at a new trial. Shackled and wearing a jail jumpsuit, Sason Kindle, 33, 'was smiling ear to ear' after the ruling, said Justin Brooks, executive director of the California Innocence Project, one of several lawyers who worked to free Kindle. 'He's been innocent all along,' Brooks said. Imprisoned since January 2000, Kindle was expected to be freed from the Los Angeles Men's Central Jail later in the day. He was not immediately available for comment but in a recent jailhouse telephone interview told the Los Angeles Times he was innocent. In a 2-1 decision, a state appeals court last year reversed Kindle's conviction on eight robbery counts and two charges of assault and sent the case back to Los Angeles County Superior Court for retrial. However, prosecutor Michael O'Gara asked Judge Lance Ito to dismiss the charges, saying there was insufficient evidence to convict Kindle a second time. 'We're not sure if he was or was not the person,' O'Gara said in a telephone interview later. 'What we can say is that we do not think that ... we could prove [it] beyond a reasonable doubt to 12 jurors.' The charges can be refiled if new evidence is found, he added. Kindle was a part-time janitor at an office supply store when it was robbed by a gunman of $15,000 cash and $7,000 in checks. During the 1999 holdup, the bandit -- who wore a wig, fake beard, sunglasses and a hat -- pistol-whipped the store manager and attacked a customer service manager, who suffered a broken ankle and other injuries. Kindle was identified by some store employees as possibly being the robber. He had a criminal record -- a 1988 conviction for assaulting a police officer and firing into an occupied vehicle. That made his conviction a third strike under California law. One of the key pieces of evidence presented at trial was a list found next to Kindle's bed with notations such as ''communication' with manager is very important!' and 'get the (money) no free rides!' |
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