Gathers Case

As a juror in the recent Hank Gathers case (“A Legacy on Court, in Court,” Oct. 6), it was evident to me almost from the first of the 15 days in Torrance Superior Court that, sadly, the responsibility for the death of the young basketball star ultimately rested with the victim himself.

Despite the legal maneuvering and plaintiff attorney Bruce Fagel’s worry that most of us “professed to know little about sports,” I knew enough to recognize early on that the case was fraught with greed on the part of many, that enormous pressure to win at all costs came from diverse directions and that the real offense in the case was the accusation against two young doctors who were only trying to help.

I was sorry to read that attorney Fagel believed his case suffered when it was moved from downtown to Torrance. I as a South Bay resident am quite proud that we have a person the caliber of Superior Court Judge J. Gary Hastings, whose deft judgments juggled the acrimony and whose quick “just answer yes or no” directions kept the trial on course.

MARY ANN KEATING

Redondo Beach