LAGUNA HILLS
Two teens charged with the December beating of a Laguna Hills resident who nearly lost his eyesight appeared in court Wednesday, but their preliminary hearing was delayed until next month.
Nathan M. Cooper, 19, of Aliso Viejo was charged with assault with a deadly weapon--his hands and feet--and Joshua R. Jarrett, 19, of Lake Forest was charged with assault likely to produce great bodily injury.
They were arrested in late March after three months of interviews with more than 150 eyewitnesses who attended a late-night party in Nellie Gail on Dec. 28.
The victim, a 19-year-old UC Santa Cruz freshman, was confronted outside the party and circled by a group of men who knocked him unconscious with punches and several kicks to the head, said Sgt. John Smiertelny of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department, who supervised the investigation.
Cooper and Nathan will face a preliminary hearing June 13 in South Justice Center in Laguna Niguel.
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