Jury Chosen for Penn Trial in Death of Policeman

Attorneys for both sides agreed on a jury Thursday for the trial of accused police killer Sagon Penn. The trial is scheduled to begin Tuesday with opening arguments from the lawyers.

Defense attorney Milton Silverman and Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael Carpenter agreed on a jury that includes two blacks.

Penn, 24, who is black, is charged in the March 31, 1985, shooting death of San Diego Police Agent Thomas Riggs and the attempted murders of Agent Donovan Jacobs and Sara Pena-Ruiz, a civilian accompanying Riggs on patrol. All of the victims are white.

In addition to the two blacks, the jury panel includes a Guamanian, a Filipino and a woman with a Spanish surname. Among four alternate jurors are two blacks.

Silverman has argued that Penn acted in self-defense after he was beaten by Jacobs and Riggs. Penn’s truck, which carried seven passengers, was stopped in Encanto by Jacobs, who alleged that he was searching for an armed gang member. Penn pulled into a driveway and scuffled with Jacobs after refusing to produce a driver’s license.

According to several witnesses, the two officers hurled racial epithets at Penn as they attempted to subdue him. During the scuffle, Penn took Jacobs’ .38-caliber revolver from his holster and fired the shots that killed Riggs and wounded Jacobs and Pena-Ruiz.

After the jury was selected and excused for the day, San Diego Superior Court Judge Ben W. Hamrick listened as Silverman and Carpenter argued over a list of potential witnesses and whether Carpenter should stipulate to the jury that neither Penn nor the riders in his truck are gang members.

At one point Hamrick expressed concern that Jacobs’ expected testimony might prejudice Penn when he explains why he stopped the truck. Hamrick pointed out that Jacobs has told police investigators that he stopped the truck because he thought that Penn and the others were gang members.

“You don’t have any evidence that any occupant of the truck is a member of a gang?” Hamrick asked.

“That is correct,” Carpenter responded.

At that point Silverman argued that Carpenter should stipulate to the jury that Penn and the others are not gang members. But Carpenter refused and said that he would instead call police witnesses who would testify that Penn and the others are not affiliated with gangs.

“We have a stigma attached to the statement that Donovan Jacobs is going to testify to,” Hamrick said. “That description is highly prejudicial. . . . I don’t think it’s going to diminish your case to say, ‘As it turned out, no one in the truck is a member of a gang.’ ”

However, Carpenter said he would prefer that a police witness testify about Penn’s non-affiliation with a street gang.

Hamrick agreed but instructed Carpenter that “if there is any cloud over this at all, I want it cleared up. . . . I want it done before this jury.”