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| Guilty pleas from Bolinas perpetrators |
Clark Merrefield
2008-08-14 |
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Five of the six defendants accused of attempted murder in the late-June beating of homeless Bolinas resident Ricky Green struck plea deals with county prosecutors yesterday and are eligible for significantly reduced sentences.
The sixth defendant, Lamont Elkins Jr., who faces up to ten years in prison, will stand trial on attempted murder and weapons charges. His preliminary hearing begins today.
Marin County Superior Court was filled nearly to capacity yesterday afternoon with supporters from both sides, as Thoren Manetta, 21, Ryan Lorne, 23 and Suraya (pronounced "Sah-day-ah") Khalil, 21, sat before Judge Paul M. Haakenson.
Manetta and Lorne both pleaded guilty to one felony count of assault by means likely to cause great bodily injury and to one misdemeanor account of destruction of evidence.
Khalil pleaded guilty to one count of being an accessory after the crime and to a misdemeanor assault charge.
All other charges against Manetta, Lorne and Khalil were dropped by the district attorney's office.
Lorne and Manetta face up to four years in state prison. If they receive a probationary sentence they may still get up to 18 months in Marin County Jail. They may also be liable for up to $20,000 each in fines and fees.
Khalil faces up to three years in state prison, or two years in county jail if she receives a probationary sentence. She may be responsible for up to $11,000 in fines and fees.
It was revealed during yesterday's session that Khalil was among the group that struck and kicked Green as he lay motionless on the ground at the end of Brighton Avenue in Bolinas on the night of June 23. After the fight was broken up by a passing motorist, Khalil took Manetta's clothing and hid it, before later revealing the garments to sheriffs.
"She's working really hard to come to grips with what she did," Robin Brennan, Khalil's lawyer, said yesterday. Khalil is taking an anger management course and is receiving counseling, Brennan added.
Attorneys for Lorne and Manetta asked Judge Haakenson to reduce their bail, arguing that the beating on Green was far less serious than initially thought.
"He seems to not have suffered any long-term ill effect," said Robert Casper, Manetta's attorney. "It appears he is walking around."
Attorney Jon Rankin noted that Lorne was forthcoming with police, that his employers at the Boardwalk Market in Tiburon are willing to take him back, and that he will stay out of Bolinas if so ordered.
"He virtually confessed to police," Rankin said.
Tom Brown, representing the county, argued against bail reduction on the grounds that the fight was lopsided and that long-term health repercussions still loom over Green.
Given the guilty pleas Judge Haakenson set bail for both at $100,000, down from $500,000 for Lorne and $1 million for Manetta. Khalil, whose bail was $75,000, posted bond last week.
The cases will now be reviewed by the parole department, which will issue sentencing recommendations.
Stefan Do, 16, and Tyrone Brendal, 17, originally pleaded not guilty to attempted murder in the Green beating, but both yesterday took a plea deal in Marin County Juvenile Court.
Court records state that on June 23 at about 11 p.m. Green was stabbed, hit in the head with skateboards and a flashlight, and kicked and jumped on, in a fight that left him with a fractured skull, brain swelling and multiple puncture wounds.
Green, 33, allegedly provoked the fight, saying "who wants a piece of Ricky?" with his arms outstretched as the group approached him.
The media and Bolinas residents have speculated that Green was perceived as an outsider in the community, having arrived there about a year ago after leaving behind a life in Petaluma and a job as a graphic designer with an architectural firm in Marin County. Bolinas is known as a closely-guarded community, but this level of aggression toward outsiders is rare.
Green's mother Gloria and her fiancée Gary Green sat next to Green's attorney, Haig Arsen Harris, Jr. in the front row of the gallery yesterday. Nearly everyone else in the courtroom appeared to be family and friends of Green or the defendants.
"Even still, my son takes a peaceful stance on this," Gloria Green told the Point Reyes Light last month. "He says he feels sorry for them and hopes they get the help they need."
The Green family would not comment any further until all charges are resolved, Harris said yesterday.
Elkins Jr., 19, followed Manetta, Lorne and Khalil in the courtroom. He entered without acknowledging the gallery, in contrast to an early-July court appearance during which he entered the room smiling and waving to friends. His preliminary hearing was today at 10:30 a.m.
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