Charges Dropped Against Man in 15-Year-Old Slaying Case

A judge dropped charges Thursday against a San Fernando man recently arrested in connection with a 15-year-old slaying.

Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Alan B. Haber dismissed a charge of involuntary manslaughter against Juvenal Camarena Mena, 51, of San Fernando, who had been arrested on suspicion of murder during a routine traffic stop.

Defense attorney Michael E. Plotkin asked that the case be dismissed because the law requires prosecutors to file involuntary manslaughter charges against a suspect within three years after a crime is committed.

Mena originally was charged with murder in the Jan. 12, 1974, shooting of Carlos Rodriguez Camacho, 32, during a drunken argument. That charge, which is not covered by statute of limitation laws, was reduced to involuntary manslaughter after Mena’s arrest in February because of a lack of evidence in the 15-year-old incident.

San Fernando police said Thursday that witnesses had identified Mena as the gunman, but that investigators were unable to locate him.

“We talked to numerous family members,” Detective David Harvey said. “Nobody knew where he was. After awhile, you can’t keep up with every arrest warrant ever issued.”

Owns Business

Plotkin said his client owns a house and a wrought-iron business in San Fernando, where he has lived for 15 years.

“They screwed up,” Plotkin said of the police. “They had 15 years to arrest him, and he was sitting right here in his house in San Fernando.”

Mena was arrested in Burbank in February after he was stopped for a traffic violation. But prosecutors said they were unable to locate witnesses to the shooting and could not pursue a murder charge against him.

According to court documents, witnesses told police that Mena and Camacho had been drinking at Camacho’s apartment when the two began arguing.

Mena left. But as he got into his car, Camacho came after him and they fought, a witness told police. The witness said he heard a gunshot before Mena drove off.

After his arrest, Mena told police he was afraid of what the victim might do, so he pulled out a shotgun and aimed it at Camacho. He said that he did not intend to kill Camacho, but that the victim grabbed the barrel of the gun and it went off.