THOUSAND OAKS : I.D. of Bullets in Nurse’s Shooting Due

While 19-year-old Mark Scott Thornton continues to deny any involvement in the shooting death of Westlake nurse Kellie O’Sullivan, Ventura County sheriff’s officials said Tuesday that they might be able to tell as early as today whether the bullets retrieved from O’Sullivan’s decomposed body match the gun found on the suspect.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Oscar Fuller said firearms experts worked all day Tuesday to see if the bullets matched the .38-caliber snub-nosed revolver taken from Thornton when he was arrested at the Circus Circus Hotel and Casino in Reno on Sept. 19.

O’Sullivan’s body was found Sunday in a heavily wooded gully in the Santa Monica Mountains. She had last been seen Sept. 14.

Meanwhile, Thornton appeared in Ventura County Juvenile Court on Tuesday, although no charges were filed against him in connection with O’Sullivan’s death or with the kidnaping of his 16-year-old ex-girlfriend, Stephanie Campbell.

Thornton was booked into the Ventura County Jail on Sunday on suspicion of kidnaping and assault with a deadly weapon for allegedly abducting Stephanie and firing at the girl’s mother before he drove away the same day O’Sullivan disappeared.

The suspect’s court appearance Tuesday was on a charge that he violated probation stemming from a juvenile burglary conviction. Deputy Dist. Atty. Patricia J. Kelliher, who handles felony juvenile matters, said the probation hearing was continued until after prosecutors decide whether to charge Thornton in connection with the kidnaping and O’Sullivan cases.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Peter D. Kossoris said any new charges probably would not be filed until next week.

Also Tuesday, Ventura County Supervisor Maria VanderKolk adjourned the board’s meeting in memory of O’Sullivan.