A former Los Angeles Police officer and Marine accused of fatally shooting a man following a fistfight in a Pomona bar and then fleeing to Mexico pleaded not guilty Friday to murder and other charges.
Henry Solis, 27, also is charged with one count of assault with a firearm and an allegation that he personally discharged a handgun.
He remains jailed in lieu of $10 million bail pending his next appearance in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom Aug. 28, when a date is scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial.
Solis could face a potential life prison term if convicted.
He allegedly killed Salome Rodriguez Jr., 23, on March 13 while he was off-duty and a probationary officer in the LAPD’s Devonshire Division in the San Fernando Valley. He was fired by the department soon after becoming a fugitive.
Police said Solis and Rodriguez got into a fight in a bar, and the confrontation spilled into the street and ended with gunfire.
Solis then became the subject of an extensive manhunt. His father, Victor, drove Solis out of state and later told federal authorities that he had simply dropped his son off at a Texas bus stop. The pair, however, were caught on surveillance video walking across the Mexico border.
Solis was arrested May 26 by Mexican authorities in the border city of Juarez and deported to the United States.
Solis had been staying with relatives in the Juarez area prior to his arrest, FBI officials said. Special Agent Scott Garriola said Solis was “moved from one house to another” to help him avoid capture.
Victor Solis, 53, was convicted by a federal jury in El Paso of lying to the FBI about helping his son escape. He is facing up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
—City News Service