Youth Admits to Slaying; Man Freed
A man held on a murder charge for 14 months has been released because a teen-ager who pleaded guilty to nine deaths at a Buddhist temple admitted he participated in that killing too, authorities said.
George Peterson, 46, of Sanders, Ariz., was released even though at one point he claimed he had killed Alice Marie Cameron, 50, of Cave Creek. His lawyer said the confession had been coerced from the man, who has a history of mental illness.
Cameron was shot and killed at Mesquite Campground on the Verde River north of Phoenix on Oct. 18, 1991.
Peterson was released from jail this week after authorities corroborated a sworn statement from Alessandro (Alex) Garcia, 17, Maricopa County Atty. Rick Romley said.
In a plea bargain, Garcia pleaded guilty Wednesday to the Aug. 10, 1991, slayings of nine Buddhists at a temple west of Phoenix. In return, prosecutors said they would not seek the death penalty.
Garcia and co-defendant Jonathan Doody, 18, former high school classmates, were arrested Oct. 26, 1991, after ballistics tests linked the temple killings to a rifle belonging to a friend.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
