Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty for Panah : Violence: Attorney for Woodland Hills man accused of murdering 8-year-old Nicole Parker assails the decision.

The attorney defending a Woodland Hills man accused of murdering an 8-year-old girl, whose body was found in the man’s closet, on Monday assailed a decision by prosecutors to seek the death penalty against his client.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Peter S. Berman announced his plans to seek capital punishment for Hooman Ashkan Panah, 22, during a hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court. Panah has pleaded not guilty to seven charges, including murder, kidnaping and sodomy in the Nov. 20 death of Nicole Parker.

Panah’s attorney, Robert Sheahen, described the prosecutor’s decision as “insidious” and “evil” during an interview after the hearing. Sheahen has said he will present a psychological defense.

“You have people in this county with lengthy criminal records who are basically horrible criminals who are not subject to the death penalty,” Sheahen said. “For this young man with no criminal record and a history of mental hospitalization, it’s outrageous.”

Berman disagreed, noting the nature of the crime and saying he views Panah’s “history of mental illness” differently than Sheahen. Berman said a committee of senior prosecutors reviewed the case and agreed with his recommendation to pursue the death penalty.

Police found Nicole Parker’s nude body in a suitcase hidden in Panah’s bedroom closet under a pile of clothes on Nov. 21, one day after dozens of volunteers searched for her after she disappeared from the courtyard of the Ventura Boulevard apartment complex where her father and Panah lived.

A grand jury also charged Panah, who on Monday was clad in a blue jail jumper with his hair in a ponytail, with four special-circumstance allegations, including murder in conjunction with kidnaping, sodomy, child molestation and oral copulation.

If convicted of any of the special circumstances, Panah could face death or life imprisonment without parole.

A May 27 trial-setting date has been scheduled, when reports by two court-appointed psychologists assigned to evaluate Panah should be complete.

Berman said a plea agreement in the case is possible, but unlikely.

“I’m not that sure they’re going to make us an offer we’ll entertain. . . . This is a very serious case,” he said.

If a plea agreement is not reached by the May 27 hearing, the case is scheduled to be sent back to Van Nuys Superior Courthouse for trial.