THOUSAND OAKS : Teen-Ager Cleared of Assault Charge

A Thousand Oaks teen-ager who was arrested twice in one week in connection with two separate gang-related incidents will not be charged in one of the cases, his lawyer said Tuesday.

Attorney Richard T. Ferko said Acting Ventura County Superior Court Judge Herbert Curtis III dismissed an assault charge against 18-year-old Brady Willmon. The charge was dropped after a Ventura County prosecutor said his office decided against pursuing the case against Willmon, Ferko said.

Willmon, a former Westlake High School football player, still faces a charge of conspiracy for allegedly engaging in a series of street fights on Wendy Drive on April 14. The fights--which allegedly included gunfire--involved three different gangs and occurred within 30 minutes of each other, police said.

While free on bail in that incident, Willmon was rearrested seven days later and charged with bursting into a Thousand Oaks boy’s home and beating him.

But Willmon’s attorney has contended that his client was at his own house when the alleged attack was to have occurred. Prosecutors dropped the charge related to the attack because they did not have enough evidence against Willmon, Ferko said.

Deputy Dist. Atty. John A. Vanarelli, who is prosecuting the case, could not be reached for comment.

“There was a question that an assault even took place,” Ferko said. “This victim said that he was hit with a baseball bat, stabbed with knives, beaten with fists and kicked. But he didn’t have any injuries.”