Legal Commentary

L.A. Murder Case Dismissed, Cop Gave False Testimony

By Jeralyn

For the seocnd time in three months, a case was dropped in LA due to false tesimony by a police officer. The latest, dismissed yesterday, involved a detective. Saul Edy, the defendnat, spent three years in jail.

Det. David Friedrich, with Los Angeles Police Department radio recordings that contradicted Friedrich's account of a stakeout.

The proseuctor's explanation:

I believe this officer did the best he could, but unfortunately mistakes were made and we lacked confidence in the persuasiveness of our case," Yglecias said. "We still have a belief in Eady's guilt, which made for an agonizing decision."

The defense lawyer's explanation: [More...]

Greg Apt, Eady's attorney, was far more critical, accusing Friedrich in court of lying on the stand.

"I expect that there will be shades of the truth told in a trial," Apt said in an interview. "But we rely on certain foundational things -- that someone is not going to tell a straight-out lie. This is very frustrating and disturbing."

The second case dismisses was a drug case:

bq.Guillermo Alarcon Jr., a grocery store worker who was exonerated of drug possession charges last month after his lawyer turned up a security tape that contradicted the LAPD officers' account.

Congrats to Public Defender Greg Apt who made the lie come to light.Now, how does California repay Mr. Eddy for the 3 years in hell he spent inside the LAX jail?

Full post as published by TalkLeft on August 19, 2008 (boomark / email).