Filed under: News, Race and Civil Rights
Lonnie Franklin Jr., the suspected "Grim Sleeper" charged with the murder of 10 women over a 20-year span, pleaded not guilty this week.
Since Franklin was charged using a controversial DNA technique, which implicated him through the use of a relative's DNA, Franklin's not guilty plea before a Los Angeles judge was expected.
While prosecutors will be putting the former mechanic on trial, Franklin's attorney, Louisa Pensanti, who has volunteered her services in the case, will likely put the "familial DNA" technique on trial.
The killer in the case was given the name the Grim Sleeper, because police said Franklin took a 14-year break between his murders.
Police went after Franklin, after his son was arrested on unrelated charges. When the son's DNA was taken and checked against samples taken from one of the Grim Sleeper's victims, it showed close similarities - though it wasn't a match.
It was close enough, however, to bring family members of the son under scrutiny. Police secretly got DNA samples from Franklin at a restaurant; his DNA ended up matching the sample taken from a Grim Sleeper victim.
Prosecutors will likely not have an easy time trying this unusual case. Pensanti can also attack the government's case by questioning how and why her client took such a long gap in his killing spree.
All it takes is reasonable doubt on the part of one juror to set Franklin free, and we all know that reasonable doubt is often within easy reach for juries in Southern California.
It will be interesting to see how this one plays out.