The District Attorney’s Office announced Monday it dropped murder charges against a woman who allegedly accompanied two men to a restaurant in Montebello, where the men were fatally shot by the eatery’s owner during a robbery.
In an amended complaint, Toni Danielle Lopez, 21, was charged instead with one count of attempted murder, two counts of second-degree robbery and one count of receiving stolen property.
Lopez had originally been charged with two counts of murder under the “provocative act doctrine,” under which a person can be held responsible for the death of another person during a criminal act. According to the District Attorney’s Office, “further legal research determined the provocative act doctrine does not apply to this case.”
Lopez was allegedly with Kevin Fierro and Roger Soriano when the two men carjacked a Toyota Camry in the 3600 block of West Whittier Boulevard on July 17.
The three drove to a nearby restaurant in Montebello shortly after midnight, where Fierro and Soriano grabbed several items from the owner, prosecutors contend.
Soriano allegedly pointed a gun at the man and shot him once, and the restaurant owner returned fire and killed Soriano.
Fierro tried to run away, but was shot once by the restaurant owner and died about a block away, according to prosecutors.
Lopez allegedly waited in a car outside the scene of the shooting and drove away. She was arrested July 21.
If convicted as charged, she faces 15 years to life in prison, according to the District Attorney’s Office. She is scheduled to be arraigned on the amended charges Aug. 6.
—City News Service