O'Connell Won't Face Retrial for South Pas Man's Murder

A Pasadena judge Monday dismissed a murder charge against a man who served more than 25 years in prison for a killing he insisted he did not commit.

Frank O'Connell, now 54, was convicted in 1985 for the shooting death of South Pas man Jay French, an apartment complex maintenance man, one year earlier. He was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, with a judge at the time saying the evidence against him was overwhelming.

In April, however, a judge overturned O'Connell's conviction after the prosecution witness who picked O'Connell out of a lineup recanted, saying he never really had a good look at the gunman on Jan. 5, 1984, on State Street in South Pasadena.

The witness, Daniel Druecker, also contended that he had been pressured by investigators. The judge also said sheriff's investigators had failed to disclose evidence of another possible suspect who was allegedly suspected of trying to kill French four years earlier.

A judge threw out the murder charge Monday, although prosecutors said they reserved the right to re-file the case if they found sufficient evidence to do so.

See the attached video to hear what O'Connell had to say about his innocence. 

—City News Service

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