Ventura County District Attorney Office Wants Brandon McInerney Murder Case Retried; Decision Likely Made Earlier October

The Ventura County District Attorney's Office said Friday that it wants to have the Brandon McInerney murder case retried. The Ventura County Star reports that a decision will be made in the coming weeks to determine whether to amend the charges or to continue with the murder and hate crime charges. "The district attorney still believes that this is a first-degree murder with a lying in wait special allegation," said Jim Ellison, chief assistant district attorney. Including the special allegation of lying in wait makes it mandatory that the murder case is held in adult court, not juvenile court as McInerney's lawyers have sought, Ellison said. "Our policy has long been that we charge the defendant with the crimes and special allegations that define their conduct," he said. They will meet with jurors as well as Larry King's family as they make a decision on how to proceed, he said. An October 5 hearing has been set. McInerney, 17, was charged with murder and a hate crime after the 2008 shooting of Larry King, 15 in an Oxnard classroom. McInerney was 14 at the time of the shooting. On Thursday, McInerney's nine-week trial ended in a mistrial because of a hung jury. The jury split with seven members wanted to convict him of manslaughter, and five wanting to convict him of murder.