Youth Who Killed His Mother Is Sent to CYA

Torran Lee Meier, the 17-year-old Canoga Park youth who killed his mother and attempted to kill his half brother, was sentenced Friday to the California Youth Authority, where officials can release him at anytime but must free him by his 25th birthday.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Darlene E. Schempp imposed a 12-year sentence, one year less than the maximum Meier could have received, but chose not to send him to state prison, concluding that he could be successfully rehabilitated in the youth system.

A spokesman for the CYA said that under such an arrangement, the length of the sentence is meaningless and Meier’s parole date will be at the discretion of the Youthful Offender Parole Board. Under state law, he cannot be held past the age of 25.

Meier was convicted by a jury in June of voluntary manslaughter in the October, 1985, death of his mother, attempted voluntary manslaughter in the attack on his 8-year-old half brother and two counts of conspiracy to commit voluntary manslaughter.

Verbal Abuse

Testimony revealed that Meier, who had suffered years of verbal abuse at the hands of his mother, enlisted help from two friends and that the three strangled Shirley A. Rizk, 34, in an attack lasting about 15 minutes.

When Meier’s half brother, Rory Rizk, wandered in on the slaying, the trio attempted to poison him, then placed him in a burning car with his mother’s body and pushed the vehicle over a Malibu cliff, according to testimony. Rory Rizk climbed to safety and flagged down a passing motorist.

Meier had been charged with murder and attempted murder in the incident, but the jury concluded that he suffered an emotional breakdown and was not capable of premeditation and malice.

At Friday’s sentencing hearing, attended by dozens of the teen-ager’s supporters, Meier’s attorney, Deputy Public Defender James H. Barnes, argued for the minimum sentence of four years. Barnes blamed the crimes on society’s failure to treat verbal abuse as a serious form of child abuse.

‘Very Bad Course’

Had school, police or social welfare officials recognized the severity of Meier’s problem and arranged for him to live elsewhere, he would not have resorted to such drastic measures, Barnes asserted.

“He took a very, very bad course in resolving the situation that he found himself in,” Barnes told the judge.

Barnes said Rizk had “stopped being a mother . . . and had become someone who dished out hate and derision.”

But Deputy Dist. Atty. Edward G. Feldman discounted the seriousness of the abuse, branding Rizk “a screamer and yeller.” He told the judge Friday that if the court system did not treat Meier harshly, other teen-agers would view a lenient sentence as permission to kill an offensive parent.

“Shirley Rizk didn’t die swiftly or easily,” the prosecutor said. “The crimes demonstrated a high degree of callousness, a high degree of viciousness, a high degree of cruelty.”

Urged Maximum Term

Feldman urged the maximum term of 13 years in state prison, with a stipulation that Meier would be housed in a Youth Authority facility. Under such a sentence, Meier would have been required to serve a minimum of five more years before CYA officials could free him, Feldman said.

Meier has been incarcerated since his October, 1985, arrest.

His two accused accomplices, who had no apparent reason for hostility toward Rizk, face more serious consequences.

Richard A. Parker, a 24-year-old transient, pleaded guilty last month to second-degree murder and attempted murder in the attacks and could be sentenced to a maximum of 22 years to life in state prison. His sentencing, which had been scheduled for Friday, was continued to Jan. 23.

Matthew A. Jay, 19, of Woodland Hills remains charged with murder, attempted murder and two counts of conspiracy to commit murder. He is scheduled for trial in January.