The Region - News from July 1, 1986

San Diego Police Agent Donovan Jacobs, who was shot with his own gun while trying to make an arrest, said he is bitter that Sagon Penn, his alleged assailant, was cleared of murder and attempted murder charges. “In a nutshell, the jury has said it is OK to murder a police officer,” Jacobs said. Jacobs’ right arm is paralyzed from nerve damage sustained when Penn, 24, shot him in the neck at close range on March 31, 1985. Police Agent Thomas Riggs was killed when struck by three bullets fired by Penn, and civilian Sarah Pina-Ruiz, accompanying Riggs on his rounds, was shot twice and suffered minor wounds. Penn, a black man, maintained that the white officers subjected him to racial epithets and used excessive force and that he shot in self-defense, after being stopped for a traffic violation. A jury cleared Penn of the most serious charges in the case last week, and prosecutors have not decided whether he will be retried on those charges that the jury could not reach a verdict.