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Santa Clarita Bank Robbery Trial Should Have Jury By Next Week

A Santa Clarita bank robbery that took place in September 2012 should have a jury by the middle of next week, a prosecutor said Monday.


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Jury selection is set to begin next week for the trial of three suspected gang members from Los Angeles accused of robbing a Canyon Country Bank of America branch, according to an official with the District Attorney’s Office.This photo, courtesy of NBC Los Angeles, was taken at the end of a police pursuit after the robbery of a bank in Canyon Country in September 2012

“(Both sides) did a couple motions, but everything’s been put over for monday until jury selection,” said Moira Curry, who’s handling the prosecution in Los Angeles County Superior Court in San Fernando.

Defense attorneys for Phillip Ely, 30, Lavelle Mosley, 23, and Terion Lamarr Collins, 26, three alleged members of the Rolling 40s Crips gang accused in the September 2012 armed robbery of Canyon Country bank, sought a change-of-venue motion, which was denied Monday.

Curry also successfully argued to have the jury consider evidence of a past conviction for Collins, who received probation for a takeover robbery of United Commercial Bank in Rosemead on March 5, 2010.

The crime is similar to the one he’s accused of perpetrating at the BofA branch on Soledad Canyon Road more than a year ago.

In the 2010 case, Judge Teri Schwartz sentenced Collins to probation in a Pasadena courthouse against an objection from the District Attorney’s Office.

In the defendants’ most recent case, the three men allegedly entered a Bank of America on Soledad Canyon Road around 10 a.m., armed and with their faces covered, jumped over the bank’s teller counter and demanded money from the frightened tellers, according to court documents.

Mosley was convicted of possession of rock cocaine with intent to sell, in furtherance of a criminal street gang in 2012. He received probation and was sentenced to drug rehabilitation.

A similar gang allegation is alleged in the bank robbery, as a longtime LAPD officer testified at a preliminary hearing, alleging the three suspects were tied to the Rolling 40s Crips.

The area where the suspects allegedly were found throwing money out of a car, at Vermont Boulevard and Vernon Street in Los Angeles, was three blocks from Mosley’s previous arrest.

The bank robbery drew attention from media outlets throughout Southern California, because the incident culminated in a televised car chase with Sheriff’s Station deputies.

Four men robbed a bank around 10 a.m., led Sheriff’s Department deputies on a chase from Canyon Country to downtown Los Angeles and then threw cash from the car, bringing midday traffic to a grinding halt.

Related article: Bank Robbery Suspects’ Past Given To Court In Canyon Country Case

The three are accused of seven felony counts, including second degree robbery, kidnapping to commit another crime, unlawfully taking a vehicle and evading an officer against traffic, according to a criminal complaint.

A fourth suspect escaped the vehicle during the pursuit while it coursed through the 210 Freeway in Sylmar.

The hourlong chase ended when the suspects were trapped by traffic on a busy residential street by cars and throngs of people who ran to scoop up cash thrown out the fleeing vehicle.

Judge David Gelfound found back in March that there was enough evidence linking the suspects to the Canyon Country robberyto prompt the defendants to stand trial.

Even without that charge though, due to their past records, Collins is facing a maximum of 42 years, and Ely and Mosley are facing at least 20-plus years, Curry said.

All three suspects are being held on more than $1million bail.

 


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Santa Clarita Bank Robbery Trial Should Have Jury By Next Week

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.