THOUSAND OAKS : Man Pleads Guilty in Assault on Agent

A Thousand Oaks man has pleaded guilty to a racially motivated assault on a black Secret Service agent in a bar in December.

Larry Robert Hall, 52, entered the surprise plea Tuesday as his two-week trial was coming to a close, Deputy Dist. Atty. Isa Sawasaki said.

Hall, who is white, was charged with assault and violating the civil rights of James Carter, a 43-year-old Thousand Oaks resident. Carter testified that Hall made disparaging remarks about blacks and about the changing racial makeup of Thousand Oaks before threatening Carter with a knife at Shady’s bar on East Thousand Oaks Boulevard early Dec. 18.

Carter, a Secret Service agent assigned to the Los Angeles office, was off-duty at the time of the confrontation. He testified that he was forced to draw his service revolver to protect himself.

Carter’s testimony was corroborated by the bartender at Shady’s.

Sawasaki said Hall pleaded guilty to assaulting Carter and admitted a special allegation that the incident was motivated by race.

Hall faces a maximum sentence of seven years in prison, Sawasaki said. Because of the racial aspect of the incident, Hall must be sentenced to prison unless the judge finds that this is a special case that warrants probation, the prosecutor said.

Superior Court Judge James M. McNally scheduled sentencing for Aug. 26.