Sagon Penn Arrested on Attempted Murder Count

Sagon Penn, twice acquitted in the shooting of two San Diego policemen and a civilian ride-along in a racially charged case that sharply divided the community, was arrested Wednesday morning on suspicion of attempted murder.

Penn, 27, was taken into custody without incident by two police officers responding to a domestic disturbance call. Penn allegedly had tried to strangle the boyfriend of Donna Parks, Penn’s former girlfriend.

Penn was held in the downtown County Jail, where he was booked on suspicion of attempted murder, burglary and misdemeanor vandalism.

The incident was the latest of several in which police have responded to disturbance calls involving Penn and Parks. After his release from jail in the police shooting case, Penn lived with Parks and is the father of Parks’ baby daughter.

Parks has frequently been the subject of Penn’s conversations in media interviews in which Penn has expressed intense love for the 25-year-old woman and told how she helped him through the ordeal of two trials and his attempts to return his life to normal.

“I can’t tell you the exact number, but there’s been close to half a dozen incidents involving Sagon Penn recently, but none of them have resulted in charges,” said police spokesman Dave Cohen. “They were close a couple of times, but nothing came of those other cases.”

According to police, Wednesday’s altercation began about 5:30 a.m., when Roger Worshin, 28, of Los Angeles was leaving Parks’ apartment in the 4500 block of Idaho Street and allegedly was confronted by Penn.

“Penn forced Worshin back into the apartment and during a fight began strangling Worshin with both hands,” police spokesman Bill Robinson said.

Penn twice stood trial--and both times was acquitted--in the March, 1985, killing of Police Agent Thomas Riggs and the wounding of Agent Donovan Jacobs and civilian ride-along Sarah Pina-Ruiz.