Kelly Thomas Case Will Go to Jury Trial, Judge Rules!


The two officers charged with the death of Kelly Thomas will have to answer for their actions at trial. Orange County Superior Court Judge Walter Schwarm rendered his decision at 2:30 p.m. following a three-day preliminary hearing. Referring to the felony charges faced by both Manuel Ramos (second degree murder and involuntary manslaughter) and Jay Cicinelli, (involuntary manslaughter and excessive use of force), Schwarm ruled there was enough evidence to believe “Mr. Ramos and Mr. Cicinelli are responsible for those felonies as charged.”

]

Both men were allowed to remain free on bond and ordered to report back to Department C5 for a hearing on May 22 at 8:30 a.m. Judge Schwarm's decision involved consideration of  testimony from the pathologist who conducted Thomas's autopsy as well as statements from the officers involved. Most dramatic however, was the public
viewing of videotape of the beating, which was captured by a city camera near the
Fullerton Transportation Center. In it, a confused and terrified Thomas is swarmed by six
officers, Tazed and pummeled. His voice is clearly heard begging for
help as his life slips away.

Be sure to read this week's Moxley
Confidential
for in depth coverage of the entire hearing,
available on newsracks tomorrow or at ocweekly.com tonight.

Follow OC Weekly on Twitter @ocweekly or on Facebook!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *