Attorneys Want Murder Trial Moved

Arguing that publicity has ruined any chance that David Alvarez can receive a fair trial in Ventura County, attorneys for the murder defendant are asking a judge to move the trial to another venue.

The request comes before Superior Court Judge Rebecca Riley today and is one of several court briefs that must be resolved before the trial gets underway.

Alvarez, 23, has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and attempted rape in the December 1998 slaying of Oak View teen Kali Manley.

Prosecutors contend that Alvarez, an Ojai resident, strangled the 14-year-old girl during a sexual assault in the bedroom of a trailer owned by his family.

Manley’s naked body was found in a large drain pipe in the mountains above Ojai about a week after she was reported missing to authorities.

Alvarez’s trial is scheduled to begin next week with jury selection, but first the judge must address a series of motions filed by prosecutors and defense attorneys.

Among those briefs is a request by defense attorneys James Farley and Robert Schwartz to move the trial to a county where prospective jurors have not been exposed to “prejudicial publicity.”

In a 20-page brief, Farley argues that the media have tainted the local jury pool by reporting every twist and turn in the case during the last 13 months.

Manley’s reported disappearance on Dec. 20, 1998, galvanized the Ojai Valley community, prompting search parties and candlelight vigils, all of which were reported by the press, Farley states.

News coverage continued with the discovery of the girl’s body, her funeral and memorial service.

It went on with Alvarez’s arrest and a controversy that swirled over a decision by another lawyer to initially withhold information about Manley’s whereabouts.

The decision later led to proposed legislation by state Assemblyman Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks), which sought to remove the attorney-client privilege in cases where a crime victim is missing.

The bill, which was defeated, would have forced attorneys to notify police when they have information about a victim’s whereabouts.

“It is apparent,” Farley concludes, “that there is something about this case that has captured the interest and passion of the public.”

Farley also writes that although news reports have described Manley as an innocent young girl, they have demonized his client as a “bad seed” with a criminal record.

As a result, he says, there is a “reasonable likelihood” that his client will not be able to receive a fair trial by a jury made up of Ventura County residents.

State prosecutors have not yet responded to the motion.

The attorney general’s office took over the case months ago at the request of Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury, a friend of Alvarez’s parents. Bradbury feared an appearance of impropriety were he to handle the case.

Historically, requests for change of venue have been unsuccessful in Ventura County.

The issue was recently litigated in the separate trials of Diana Haun and Michael Dally, who were convicted of murder and conspiracy in the May 1996 slaying of Dally’s wife, Sherri.

The case involved similar circumstances in that Sherri Dally was reported missing and found weeks later after extensive searches involving members of the local community.

In that case, Farley and Schwartz represented Michael Dally and sought a change of venue. The public defender’s office did the same for Haun.

Ventura County prosecutors responded in a 57-page motion that included polling results conducted by a university professor. Those results found that 85% of people polled had heard of the murder case, but 55% could not recall specific facts.

Prosecutors argued that the publicity was not so pervasive as to taint the entire jury pool in a county with more than 700,000 residents.

Ultimately, the trial judge decided to bus jurors from neighboring Santa Barbara County to the Ventura courthouse to hear evidence in the case.

More recently, a request for a change of venue in the 1999 murder trial of Camarillo businessman Jose Vazquez was denied. Vazquez was convicted of murdering a Ventura restaurant owner.