LAKE COUNTY — Contra Costa County has been included in the discussion about where the Renato Hughes murder trial will be heard. The discussion is marked by disagreement as it continues in Lake County Superior Courts.
“Judge (Arthur) Mann was contacted by the AOC (Judicial Council of California, Administrative Office of the Courts), and they”re including Contra Costa County in the mix as long as case could go there after late march,” Lake County District Attorney Jon Hopkins said Tuesday.
Former San Francisco resident Renato Hughes, 23, is charged under the Provocative Act doctrine for the deaths of two companions, who were shot in the back Dec. 7, 2005 as they fled the Clearlake Park home of Shannon Edmonds.
The clause holds co-conspirators responsible in the commission of a felony if the action was likely to provoke deadly resistance.
Retired Superior Court Judge William A. McKinstry granted a court venue change Nov. 15 at Hughes” San Francisco defense attorney Stuart Hanlon”s second request. The change was granted after a jury was seated following a nearly three-weeks selection process that involved interviewing potential jurors regarding racial bias and knowledge of the case. The AOC contacted six counties regarding the change in December 2007, including Alameda, Fresno, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and San Joaquin. According to Hanlon, Mann said in a Jan. 4 hearing that the choices are narrowed to Contra Costa, Los Angeles and San Diego. “I would prefer L.A., but given the expense to everyone ? including the taxpayers of Lake County, who would be paying my expenses and my client”s, since he”s out of money ? I would prefer Contra Costa. It has a large urban population,” Hanlon said.
“The concern I have is that Contra Costa County is within the media circle of San Francisco, and they”ve in my opinion had a lot more publicity there in the Bay Area than Lake County had,” Hopkins said. “The other concern I have is that some of the demonstrators on our steps during the final steps of our jury selection process were from Richmond.”
Leaders from several California branches of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) ? including the Richmond chapter ? held a press conference on the steps of the Lake County courthouse Nov. 14.
“The NAACP is a statewide organization, and that is not a reason,” Hanlon said Tuesday regarding Hopkins” comments. “He was ridiculous,” Hanlon said of Hopkins” comments. “For him to say the media in Lake County was not biased but then to say the media in Contra Costa was, was duplicitous at best.”
The venue determination will continue in a Jan. 22 court date.
Contact Tiffany Revelle at trevelle@record-bee.com
