DNA evidence in Grim Sleeper case was taken legally, judge rules
By Paresh Dave,
Los Angeles Times
| 01. 07. 2014
A judge ruled Tuesday that DNA evidence that led to accused Grim Sleeper serial killer Lonnie Franklin Jr. was lawfully obtained from a pizza slice, cups and napkins seized by a police officer who posed as a restaurant busboy in 2010.
Appearing on the stand for the first time, Franklin testified that he was attending a birthday party July 5, 2010, at John's Incredible Pizza Co. in Buena Park when the DNA samples were taken.
Two days later, he was arrested by Los Angeles police.
Defense attorneys Seymour Amster and Louisa Pensanti had argued in pretrial hearings that the officer cleared Franklin's plates and utensils before he was finished and were therefore taken illegally. The attorneys also argued that Franklin had a reasonable expectation that his plates would be thrown into a pile with others, which would make it impossible for police to definitely prove which remnants belonged to him.
"I felt it would be mixed with the rest of the trash," Franklin said on the stand, drawing sighs of frustration from victims' families in the courtroom.
Los Angeles County...
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