I know that we're going to (theoretically) execute the defendant, which provides some measure of (theoretical) justice. But are we really so incompetent that we couldn't have stopped the second of these murders?
"The prosecution’s theory of the case was that defendant, accompanied by Tinajero, killed Sanchez in the early morning hours of March 7, 2002, by running him over with a car. Defendant was charged with Sanchez’s murder. Tinajero then testified at defendant’s trial, pursuant to a grant of immunity from prosecution. That trial resulted in a mistrial after defendant’s attorney fell ill. Defendant and Tinajero were both housed at the Men’s Central Jail in Los Angeles as defendant awaited retrial. On April 20, 2004, defendant — who was supposed to be kept away from Tinajero — gained access to Tinajero’s cell and choked him to death."
Not exactly a stunning advertisement for what it's like to be an informant for the Los Angeles Police Department, eh?
