Orozco homicide: State Supreme Court considering Proposition 21 arguments

January 02, 2002
Santa Paula News

The California State Supreme Court is considering arguments against a voter initiative that imposed stronger penalties for teenagers who commit crimes.

By Peggy KellySanta Paula TimesThe California State Supreme Court is considering arguments against a voter initiative that imposed stronger penalties for teenagers who commit crimes.Proposition 21 was passed by 62 percent of voters in March 2000, opening the way for stiffer penalties for juvenile offenders: one of the first test cases of the law was centered around a Santa Paula homicide, the Nov. 7, 2000 slaying of Jeanne Marie Orozco, 21.The accused killer, Isaac David Lara, was 17 at the time of the murder; he is awaiting trial, scheduled for March 5, on the homicide as well as charges related to the wounding of Orozco’s companion, Shane Joseph Longoria, 23 of Fillmore. Bail for Lara, who has a extensive juvenile criminal background and had not met Orozco or Longoria until the night of the murder, remains at $1.25 million; he is incarcerated at Ventura County Jail.
During the December hearing before the State Supreme Court, opponents of Prop. 21 claimed that the law is unconstitutional; lawyers opposed to the law contend that the so-called juvenile justice measure violates a ban on initiatives that cover more than one subject. The initiative changed the juvenile court system, created a gang registration system and expanded the three-strikes sentencing law, which increased penalties for repeat offenders.Opponents also argued that the law improperly gave prosecutors, instead of judges, the right to decide whether or not teenagers facing certain serious charges should be tried and punished as adults. This latter argument was unsuccessfully used by Lara’s attorney in Ventura County in an attempt to keep Lara’s case in juvenile court.Earlier this year, a State Court of Appeal in San Diego said the provision regarding prosecutors instead of judges deciding whether or not juveniles can be tried as adults supplanted the power of judges to decide punishment; in the wake of that decision, Ventura County prosecutors took five such cases to Juvenile Court so a judge could determine whether the teens were fit to be tried as adults. Lara was among those returned to adult court for trial.The State Supreme Court is expected to return their decision by March 2002.



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