Tustin : Statement by Lavera Ruled Admissible

Superior Court Judge Michael Byrne ruled Tuesday in Los Angeles that a statement made by Todd Lavera shortly after his arrest may be submitted as evidence in his trial for the slaying of a Tustin church elder and another man.

In the six-page statement, Lavera, 24, admitted that he was with two other men when David Eugene Thompson, 30, an elder at the Greater Zion Apostolic Church, and Leopoldo Salgado, 48, of Los Angeles, were shot to death the night of April 9, 1987.

Lavera took the stand to deny that he had made the statement to Los Angeles police detectives. But Byrne denied a defense motion that the confession be thrown out.

Lavera is charged with both murders, although prosecutors concede that he did not fire the fatal shot in either. He is being tried for murder under a state law stipulating that people who participate in a robbery that leads to a death can be charged with the killing.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Mark Arnold said if the suspect is convicted, he would ask that Lavera be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Thompson and his wife had been in South Central Los Angeles for a church meeting when they stopped at a gas station to make a telephone call. Police said Thompson was making the call when he was robbed and shot to death.

Jury selection in Lavera’s trial was expected to be completed later this week. Opening arguments are scheduled next week.