Trial Stopped; Actions of Prosecutor Criticized

A judge has halted the trial of two defendants in a 1998 West Hills double slaying to investigate why a deputy district attorney did not provide the defense with original interview notes of a key witness.

After learning that Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael Duarte had given defense attorneys revised versions of interview notes taken by a law clerk, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Terry A. Green suspended the trial of Kenneth Leighton, 37, and Randall Williams, 36. They face possible death sentences if convicted.

The wording of the original notes was more detailed and contained statements that could have helped the defense refute the testimony of a key prosecution witness, the judge said.

Witness Mark Jablanski testified during the ongoing four-month trial that Leighton bragged he had contracted the killing of Jamie Navaroli and April Mahoney, both of whom were supposed to testify against Leighton in a burglary case.

Duarte told the judge that some of the information contained in the original notes was privileged “work product” or irrelevant to the case. The judge, however, said that, on the face of it, there appeared to be a clear violation of discovery laws.

The judge said his most pressing concern is to determine how to remedy the situation before jurors hear closing arguments in the case. He has asked the jurors to return to the downtown Los Angeles courtroom Monday.

Green also promised defense attorneys that Duarte would face a contempt hearing at a later date. “Trust me,” he said, “there are consequences for that kind of behavior.”

This is the second time Duarte has been publicly criticized for his handling of discovery in a murder case. Last year, a judge granted a mistrial in the murder trial of Olympic boxer Henry Tillman after he found that Duarte had failed to fully disclose the criminal record of a police informant who agreed to testify against Tillman.

The judge in the Tillman case cited prosecutorial misconduct as grounds for the mistrial, but stopped short of accusing Duarte of deliberate deception. Tillman later pleaded guilty to attempted murder and voluntary manslaughter.

In the current case, the judge said he is considering telling jurors to ignore all of Jablanski’s testimony, or giving the defense the opportunity to again question the witness with the benefit of the original notes. He is also considering telling the jurors about Duarte’s behavior.

The problem surfaced on Monday after Jennifer Blair, a law clerk for the district attorney’s office, complained to Duarte’s supervisor, Pat Dixon, that Duarte had asked her to rewrite her notes. Dixon then notified the judge.

Blair, who had accompanied Duarte to the jail for the interview with Jablanski, said her conscience had bothered her for months.