A state appeals court panel Friday upheld the convictions of two men for the gang-related 2012 killing of a 17-year-old in the Whittier area.
A three-justice panel from California’s 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected Eudiel Eddie Lopez’s contention that his conviction was premised on his confession, which the defense argued was obtained in violation of his right to remain silent when he was questioned by Los Angeles County sheriff’s detectives.
In a 13-page ruling, the appellate court justices found that the evidence that Lopez shot Michael Soto was “overwhelming.”
Lopez was convicted in September 2014 of first-degree murder for the March 26, 2012, killing of Soto, who was approached near Painter Avenue and Mulberry Drive.
The appellate court panel also affirmed the conviction of Lopez’s co-defendant, Daniel Cesar Stopani, found guilty of second-degree murder.
Jurors found true gang allegations against the pair.
Stopani punched Soto and then Lopez shot the teenage boy several times, Deputy District Attorney Brock Lunsford said after the verdict.
Lopez had previously had a gang-related exchange with the victim a month before the killing, according to the prosecutor.
Surveillance video from a nearby store and a bus that was stopped across the street from the shooting showed Stopani walking north toward Soto and Lopez approaching the victim from behind on a skateboard to shoot him, and Stopani walking away while taking his shirt off after the shooting, according to the appellate court panel’s ruling.
Lopez was arrested several hours after the shooting, while Stopani was taken into custody in 2013.
Lopez was sentenced in September 2014 to 50 years to life in prison, while Stopani was sentenced to 40 years to life in state prison.
— City News Service