Jury Acquits Ip of 1st-Degree Murder, Then Deadlocks

Roger Sing Ip was acquitted Thursday of first-degree murder in the shooting death of a teen-ager, but a mistrial was declared after jurors deadlocked--7-5 for acquittal--when they considered convicting him of second-degree murder.

Ip, 33, admitted shooting Kurt Von Yokes, 15, after a minor traffic altercation in Pacific Beach but said the gun he was holding discharged accidentally. Defense attorney William R. Fletcher said the acquittal and mistrial showed that jurors believed Ip when he testified he never intended to shoot Yokes.

In his closing argument, Fletcher urged jurors to acquit Ip, but suggested that, if he was found guilty, it should be of involuntary manslaughter.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Gregg McClain said he was disappointed with the verdict.

“I have no idea what their (jury) thinking was,” said McClain, who added that he expects that Ip will face a second trial.

The jury deliberated five days before telling Superior Court Judge Herbert Exarhos that they were deadlocked on a second-degree murder conviction. McClain said jurors also could have convicted Ip of voluntary or involuntary manslaughter but did not get that far in their deliberations because of the deadlock.

Exarhos scheduled a hearing for Aug. 8, when prosecutors are expected to announce their intention to try Ip again. If he is tried a second time, the most serious charge of which Ip could be convicted is second-degree murder.

Ip remains in custody without bail, but Fletcher is expected to argue at next month’s hearing that he should be granted bail.

Yokes and Michael Endsley, 20, were riding in a car driven by Debbie Lichty, 19, when it nearly collided with an Isuzu Trooper driven by Ip at about midnight June 29, 1989. Ip testified Lichty and Endsley directed obscene gestures and disparaging comments at him after the traffic incident.

Ip, formerly a part-owner of the China Inn restaurant in Pacific Beach, testified that he made a U-turn and followed the three to a Pacific Beach neighborhood where the shooting occurred. He said he wanted to talk to the youths about the disrespect they had shown him during the incident.

Inside the Trooper, Ip was carrying the night’s receipts and a handgun to protect himself against robbery. He testified that he panicked when Endsley approached him, fearing the 6-foot-4, 240-pound man would steal the restaurant’s receipts.

According to Ip, he took the bank deposit bag and handgun in the right hand, and, with the same hand attempted to put his vehicle into gear. The Trooper stalled, causing the vehicle to lurch forward and the gun to discharge accidentally, Ip testified.

Only one shot was fired, and Yokes, who also had gotten out of Lichty’s vehicle and was standing nearby, was mortally wounded.

Yokes’ parents, Robert and Joan Yokes, have filed a civil lawsuit, asking for $5 million in damages from Ip. On Thursday, attorney John Moot, who is representing the family in the civil lawsuit, said the couple were disappointed by the verdict.

“They hoped for a verdict on first-degree murder,” Moot said. “The trial was very difficult, but they strongly support the district attorney in retrying the case on second-degree murder and hope that, in a second trial, justice will be done.”

Fletcher said that Ip was “believable” on the witness stand, and that the jury recognized the “genuine remorse” he has over the shooting.

“No verdict is going to bring Mr. Yokes back. His (Ip’s) feelings of remorse for Mr. Yokes will never go away,” Fletcher said. “ . . . I have never had a client who has been more remorseful.”