Defendant Acting as Own Lawyer Wins Mistrial : Courts: Three others are convicted in the Bryant Family quadruple murder case. The 35-year-old admitted drug dealer will be retried.

A 35-year-old admitted drug dealer, who acted as his own lawyer during the Bryant Family quadruple murder case, won a mistrial Wednesday--after apparently convincing a single juror of his innocence.

Jon Preston Settle, accused of four counts of first-degree murder and a single count of attempted murder, told the jury during closing arguments, “I’m not going to argue the law because I’m no good in that area.”

But he’s not arguing with the results.

By winning a mistrial, Settle gains the right to a new trial in which he will be judged separately from the three other defendants. He also outperformed three prosecutors and a half-dozen seasoned criminal defense attorneys representing his co-defendants, who are now facing the death penalty.

When the trial began four months ago in Downtown Los Angeles, most of those involved thought Settle was making a mistake by representing himself. But Settle displayed an earnest courtroom manner, and his dual role offered him the best of both worlds.

As an attorney, he claimed the evidence implicated the others. As a witness, he denied he was even there when the shootings occurred.

And, as his own lawyer, Settle had the opportunity to address the jury personally, telling the panelists, “I wouldn’t ever participate in this type of crime. . . . I am innocent, and that’s just the way things are.”

There was no immediate comment from the nine lawyers involved in the mammoth case that grew out of four 1988 murders at a Lake View Terrace crack house. Judge Charles Horan has ordered them not to talk.

But the jury seemed to have few problems deciding the guilt of the other three defendants--Stan Bryant, 37; LeRoy Wheeler, 26, and Donald Franklin Smith, 37. They were convicted last week of committing multiple murders and face hearings next week to determine whether they should be executed for the Aug. 28, 1988, shooting deaths of a woman, a toddler and two drug-dealing rivals.

By Memorial Day, the jury had found Bryant, Wheeler and Smith guilty of first-degree murder in the slayings of former Bryant Family hit man Andre Armstrong, 31, and his partner, James Brown, 43.

Bryant and Wheeler also were convicted of first-degree murder in the deaths of Loretha Anderson, 23, and her daughter, Chemise English, 2, and the attempted murder of Carlos English, 1. Smith was convicted of second-degree murder in those slayings.

But the jury’s deliberations snagged since June 2 on Settle. The split was 11 to 1. According to a note last week from the jury room, the lone holdout had misgivings about sending Settle to the gas chamber. Shortly before 5 p.m. Wednesday, the judge declared the panel hopelessly deadlocked.

Settle will return to court June 28 to set a date for his next trial. Meanwhile his co-defendants will be battling to stay off Death Row.