San Diego : Penn Pleads Not Guilty in Officer’s Death

Sagon Penn, 23, charged with the March 31 shooting death of San Diego Police Officer Thomas Riggs and the woundings of Officer Donovan Jacobs and civilian ride-along Sarah Pena-Ruiz, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Monday in Superior Court.

Penn’s pretrial hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 9. His trial will begin Oct. 23. Thomas Penn said he was surprised that his son, who claims that he acted in self-defense because the officers were beating him, will have to stand trial.

“I didn’t think that it would go this far,” Penn told reporters outside the courtroom.

Defense attorney Robert E. Slatton said the delay between the arraignment and the trial was requested by both the prosecution and the defense to give each time to prepare its cases.

Asked how well he thinks his son will hold up in jail during the four months before his trial begins, Penn said, “I think it will affect me a lot more than it will affect him.”

Penn, who is black, has become the focal point of a growing dispute between San Diego Police and the black community. Although Thomas Penn said his son has a great deal of community support, he added that the money raised for his defense is not enough to pay legal costs for the expected lengthy trial.