Change Of Venue Denied In Sierra LaMar Case
SAN JOSE (CBS SF) – A Santa Clara County judge denied a change or venue motion Thursday in the murder trial of the man accused of killing Morgan Hill teenager Sierra LaMar.
Judge Vanessa Zecher heard oral arguments on Tuesday by defense attorneys for 25-year-old Antolin Garcia-Torres, but was not convinced that the trial should be moved out of Santa Clara County.
In a one-page ruling, the judge wrote: "The court has read and considered the moving and responsive pleadings with respect to the Motion for Change of Venue filed on behalf of the defendant. The court also considered the evidence presented at the time of the hearing on the motion as well as comments and arguments of counsel."
"The court does not find that there is a reasonable likelihood that the defendant would be unable to receive a fair trial in Santa Clara County."
Sierra, whose body hasn't been found, was last seen on the morning of March 16, 2012 leaving her home in unincorporated Morgan Hill but never caught her bus to go to school.
The attorney's arguments were based on testimony heard for three consecutive days last week from Edward Bronson, a professor emeritus at California State University, Chico, who said the trial should be held in another jurisdiction.
He was brought in as a defense witness to discuss his research on a survey of 300 county residents about the case and more than 100 news articles in the past four years since Sierra's disappearance.
Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Dana Veazey argued that no matter where the trial is heard, Sierra will be considered a "universal daughter" and was a child, which will affect jurors wherever the trial is heard.
Veazey added that Bronson's survey wasn't conducted in neighboring counties to test the salience levels compared to Santa Clara County.