Man Gets 13 Years, Then Gets Married
A San Fernando gang member who pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter was sentenced to 13 years in prison Wednesday--and then got married.
Hours after San Fernando Superior Court Judge John H. Major sentenced Alfonso Tapia, 20, he officiated at Tapia’s wedding to the man’s girlfriend of eight years.
For the record:
12:00 a.m. Oct. 12, 1990 For the Record
Los Angeles Times Friday October 12, 1990 Valley Edition Metro Part B Page 4 Column 6 Zones Desk 1 inches; 34 words Type of Material: Correction
Manslaughter sentence--An article Thursday incorrectly reported that Alfonso Tapia, a San Fernando gang member, was sentenced to prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter. In fact, he had pleaded no contest to the charge.
In a plea bargain last month, Tapia pleaded no contest to charges stemming from the Jan. 20, 1989, death of Miguel Jiminez, 15, of San Fernando. Prosecutors had charged Tapia with murder, but agreed to the reduced charge because Jiminez may have started the fight that resulted in his death.
The case had a curious beginning when a frantic witness reported the fight to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department station in Santa Clarita but his call was not taken seriously. Deputy Jim Greene told caller Jim Finilla to “have a nice day” before hanging up on him. The handling of the call triggered criticism from Sheriff Sherman Block and led to a series of safeguards to prevent similar mistakes.
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