L.A. County District Attorney Jackie Lacey announced the arrest of Deonte Lee Murray, 36, in relation to the ambush shooting of two county deputies.
From Fox LA:
Deonte Lee Murray, 36, of Compton, is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday afternoon on two counts each of willful, deliberate and premeditated attempted murder of a peace officer and possession of a firearm by a felon, District Attorney Jackie Lacey said.Lacey expressed her best wishes to the injured deputies and said, “They became victims of a violent crime for one reason: They were doing their job and they were wearing a badge.”
The two deputies sustained wounds to the face and head on September 12 near the Compton Metro station. They received surgery and have left the hospital.
Police took Murray into custody on September 15 after a standoff in Lynwood on unrelated charges.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva said that they suspected him of an armed carjacking and not the shooting at that time:
Murray was previously charged with one felony count each of carjacking, second-degree robbery and assault with a semiautomatic firearm. The charges include allegations of association with a criminal street gang, discharging a rifle inflicting great bodily injury and personal use of an AR-15. He pleaded not guilty.Capt. Kent Wegener said Wednesday that Murray led investigators on a pursuit before his arrest, during which he threw a pistol from his car. He said a ballistic comparison revealed that the .40 caliber pistol was the same weapon used in the attack on the deputies, and it was linked to Murray through forensic testing. The gun was loaded with eight rounds, five rounds short of its full capacity, he said. And five rounds were fired at the two deputies.
Murray appeared in court on Wednesday:
At a court appearance Wednesday, Murray pleaded not guilty to the charges. Both his attorney, Jack Keenan, and the prosecutor, Jack Garden, asked that media requests for photographs and video footage of Murray in the courtroom be denied, citing the ongoing investigation and $300,000 reward for information.Judge Michael J. Shultz agreed.“His identity is a material issue in this case,” Shultz said, noting that it “would compromise the defense, the prosecution or both” to visually ID Murray at this time.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY