Man Suspected of Slaying 7 Pleads Innocent
Richard Farley, accused in the shooting deaths of seven people at a Sunnyvale computer company, pleaded innocent Friday to multiple murder charges.
Farley, with his hands cuffed in front of him, appeared in Santa Clara County Municipal Court and calmly replied, “Yes,” when Judge Hugh Mullin asked if he understood the plea.
Farley, who surrendered to police five hours after he allegedly began the Feb. 16 bloody rampage at defense contractor ESL Inc., was charged with seven counts of murder, three counts of attempted murder and one count each of burglary and vandalism.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Alan Nudelman said he expects a “straightforward case” that will take less than 90 days to try. He said he will push for the death penalty, calling the killings “a massacre of innocents--the butchery of the best and the brightest that this community has to offer.”
The shooting spree allegedly was motivated by Farley’s obsession with Laura Black, an ESL engineer who for four years had spurned his relentless pursuit and returned his often threatening love letters unopened.
Black was one of four people injured in the attack and remained at home recovering from her shotgun wounds.
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