Update
Judge Moves Taped Beating Trial
Tue Aug 13, 3:21 PM ET
By ROBERT JABLON, Associated Press Writer
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) - The trial of two white police officers indicted in the videotaped beating of a black teenager will be moved from Inglewood to another city, a judge ruled Tuesday.
Community activists said the move to Torrance — not a change of venue because both cities are in the same judicial district — was intended to thwart a conviction of the officers.
They compared Torrance, which is 60 percent white, to Simi Valley, the suburban area where four white officers were acquitted in the beating of Rodney King. Inglewood is 19 percent white.
On the July 6 videotape, Officer Jeremy J. Morse was seen slamming 16-year-old Donovan Jackson down on a police car and then punching him on the jaw.
Morse is charged with assault by a peace officer under the color of authority and Officer Bijan Darvish is charged with filing a false report.
Superior Court Judge Rodney G. Forneret referred the case to Torrance at the request of defense attorneys. The attorneys gave no reason for challenging Inglewood as the site of the trial.
Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, said most felony case from Inglewood are routinely heard in Torrance.
A pretrial hearing was set for Aug. 21, with a tentative trial date of Oct. 15.
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