Prosecution Rests in Ormsby Murder, Kidnapping Case

Ventura County prosecutors rested their case Monday in the trial of a 20-year-old Hawthorne man accused of participating in a 1996 torture and murder.

Matthew Ormsby, who is 20 now and was 16 at the time, is accused of helping two men he knew through a circle of drug users torture and burn alive 29-year-old Anthony Guest of Redondo Beach, whose remains were found in Ventura County.

After a week of testimony, prosecutors rested their side of the case Monday afternoon.

Defense attorney Alan Saltzman then launched his case by calling an expert who testified about the effects of methamphetamine use.

According to earlier court testimony, the victim and the assailants knew each other through a loose-knit group of methamphetamine users and were taking drugs on the night of the slaying.

Prosecutors say Billy Davis, now 23, and Spencer Brasure, now 30, kidnapped Guest at gunpoint on Sept. 13, 1996, because they thought he had stolen property from them.

Guest was held captive for several hours at Davis’ house in Lawndale while Brasure tortured him in a makeshift electric chair, burned his face with a torch and stapled wood to his head, according to court testimony.

Prosecutors say Ormsby, who is being tried as an adult, arrived at the house and joined in the attack by punching Guest and stomping on him.

Ormsby also allegedly helped Brasure and Davis transport Guest to a remote campground at the Hungry Valley Recreational Area in northern Ventura County, where Guest was doused with gasoline and set on fire.

Guest’s remains were later found by two camp workers, touching off a lengthy criminal investigation and leading to the prosecution of all three men.

Davis and Brasure, both of the Los Angeles area, were separately convicted of first-degree murder in 1998 and 1999. Davis was given life in prison, and Brasure was sentenced to death.

Ormsby was arrested last fall after prosecutors uncovered additional evidence that they say shows he also participated in the killing. He faces charges of murder, torture and kidnapping, as well as special allegations that could send him to prison for life without parole.

Saltzman did not give an opening statement at the trial, and has declined to comment on charges his client faces.

Testimony is scheduled to resume today, and the case could go to the jury as early as this afternoon.