San Diego

A San Diego Superior Court judge became a prosecution witness Monday when he testified that a temporary restraining order sought by Sagon Penn against his former girlfriend was altered after the judge had signed it.

Judge Wesley Mason told Municipal Judge Patricia Cowett that Penn, 28, met with him in chambers Aug. 17 when Penn acted as his own attorney and won an order prohibiting Penn’s former girlfriend from contacting him.

After signing the temporary restraining order against Donna Parks, the judge said later that day he noticed that someone had written that Parks must not contact Maurice Bell, her new boyfriend.

“The name Maurice Bell did not appear when I first saw the documents,” Mason testified.

Mason said he would not have signed such a document.

Cowett ordered Penn to stand trial on two felony counts of submitting a false court document and to a misdemeanor battery charge involving an incident with Bell.

Penn, who posted $15,000 bail several weeks ago following his arrest in the courthouse, was ordered to return to court Oct. 1 for setting a trial date.

Penn was acquitted in two trials in 1986 and 1987 of murder, manslaughter, attempted murder and assault in the 1985 shootings of San Diego Police Officer Thomas Riggs, who was killed, and the wounding of officer Donovan Jacobs and civilian ride-along Sarah Pina-Ruiz. Penn, who is black, had claimed the shootings were sparked by racial comments by Jacobs, who is white.

Penn’s attorney, Jeff Thoma, told the court Monday that Penn has changed his name to Meecee Parks.