Arraignment postponed for 2 men charged in deadly 7-Eleven crime spree
The two men charged in the string of deadly 7-Eleven robberies across Southern California made their first court appearance Tuesday at a hearing that postponed their arraignment into August.
Malik Patt, 20, wore a blue medical face mask and a chartreuse Orange County jail jumpsuit, while 44-year-old Jason Payne sat bare-faced in a white T-shirt several feet away in the jury box of a courtroom in Santa Ana. Patt was being held without bail, but Payne's bail was set at $100,000.
Officials say the two Los Angeles men are neighbors and worked together as delivery people.
The two men have been charged in a string of deadly robberies at 7-Eleven stores and doughnut shops stretching from the Inland Empire to Orange County and into the San Fernando Valley. Two people were killed, one remains in grave condition, and at least three others were wounded in the crime spree.
Patt faces the most serious charges — three counts of murder for the killings of 7-Eleven store clerk Matt Hirsch, customer Matthew Rule, and an unidentified homeless man in North Hills; two counts of attempted murder, three counts of robbery, one count of carjacking and several enhancements that make him eligible for the death penalty.
"I get taken aback, quite frankly, when somebody of that age engages in this kind of violence, especially with no criminal history that we know of," Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. "Yeah, it's very, very shocking and very surprising to me."
Payne is considered to be an accomplice in the robberies, but not involved in the killings. However, he's still considered to be a major threat to public safety after he was found trying to buy ammunition with Patt, Deputy District Attorney Seton Hunt said.
"The fact that he is with a person who murdered three people and committed other acts of violence against others, and Mr. Payne was involved with the robberies, two of which resulted in death, and he is with that same person, Mr. Patt, attempting to purchase ammunition after the fact shows that he poses an additional danger to the public," Hunt said.
Their arraignment hearing was delayed until Aug. 18.