Judge Rules Out Murder Charge in Burglar’s Death
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A judge ruled Monday that a Reseda man accused of recruiting young boys into a burglary ring cannot be tried for murder in the death of one of the youths that allegedly occurred during a break-in.
A prosecutor vowed to promptly refile the second-degree murder charge in Superior Court against Julio Grassano, 23, saying: “This was murder, not an accident.”
Van Nuys Municipal Court Judge Robert Swasey said that Grassano can be tried for child endangerment and burglary, but cannot be held to answer for murder in the death of 13-year-old Donald K. Saravia. The boy was fatally injured April 10 when glass from a window at a shop he had broken into fell on his neck and sliced open one of his carotid arteries, authorities said.
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