Valleywide : Jury Recommends Life in Prison for Hanson

A jury has recommended life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a co-founder of a sportswear company convicted of killing a North Hollywood bookkeeper in a murder-for-insurance scheme.

The Los Angeles County Superior Court jury deliberated about 20 minutes before making its recommendation Tuesday in the case of Melvin Hanson.

Hanson and John Hawkins, 32, co-founders of the Just Sweats chain, were charged with murdering Ellis Greene in 1988 and later identifying him as Hanson to collect on a $1.45-million life insurance policy.

Hanson was found guilty of murder Aug. 9, but the jury deadlocked on a murder charge against Hawkins. Hawkins, however, was found guilty along with Hanson of conspiracy.

Superior Court Judge Paul G. Flynn has scheduled a Sept. 13 sentencing hearing for the two.

Prosecutors had sought the death penalty during the penalty phase against Hanson, which began Monday. It was continued to Tuesday to allow defense attorney Henry Hall more time to prepare his closing remarks.

A third defendant in the case, Glendale neurologist Richard Boggs, was found guilty of murder in 1990 and is serving a life sentence.

The defense conceded during the trial that Hanson and Hawkins tried an insurance scam but argued they had nothing to do with Greene’s death. They said they paid Boggs $50,000 for Greene’s body, thinking he got it from a hospital or morgue.

Prosecutors said that after collecting the insurance, Hanson moved to Florida and underwent plastic surgery to change his face before leaving for the Caribbean and Mexico. He was arrested by customs agents as he returned to the United States from Mexico in 1989.

Hawkins traveled in Europe and evaded authorities until an ex-girlfriend turned him in in 1991.