Slain Boy’s Mother Urges Swifter Justice

Kay Brenneman stood in front of the Old County Courthouse on Monday to criticize the justice system that once gave her a glimmer of hope.

Monday marked the 16th anniversary of her 12-year-old son’s murder, and Brenneman asked that the courts swiftly carry out the death sentence imposed on the man convicted of killing him.

Robert Jackson Thompson, who is on San Quentin’s death row, was sentenced in 1983 for the 1981 slaying of Benjamin Brenneman.

“The thing that got me is 16 years of waiting for justice,” said Brenneman, 52, of Anaheim, who was joined by Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton).

Thompson has not been executed because of the numerous state and federal appeals he has filed, according to officials.

Thompson’s attorneys were out of town and could not be reached for comment Monday.

But Thompson’s case now resides in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, said Dane Gillette, the capital case coordinator for the state attorney general.

“Unfortunately, it’s not unusual,” Gillette said of the time delay. “All too many of our cases are stuck in federal District Court.”

Benjamin was working as a newspaper carrier for the Orange County Register when he was molested and strangled. Thompson’s home was on Benjamin’s newspaper route in Anaheim.