pokerface
05-23-2003, 06:24 AM
Court: Bank Robber Had Gun, Wasn't 'Armed'
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court has tossed out the armed bank robbery conviction of a Los Angeles man after finding that -- while he admitted being armed and robbing the bank -- he did not mean to show his gun to a teller while demanding money.
Deshon Rene Odom carried a loaded revolver in the waistband of his pants while he and an accomplice robbed a Los Angeles-area bank in 1996, but he did not brandish the weapon or even mention it to employees.
A manager noticed the gun only when Odom raised his jacket to stuff away a pillowcase full of stolen cash.
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said Tuesday in a written ruling that that Odom should have been convicted of unarmed bank robbery -- which carries a lesser prison term -- instead of armed robbery. The court ordered a Los Angeles federal judge to sentence Odom again.
Odom's attorney, Maria Stratton, said the ruling would not likely change his sentence, because he was also convicted of two other charges. But she said her client "didn't commit an armed robbery" and should not have been convicted of one.
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A federal appeals court has tossed out the armed bank robbery conviction of a Los Angeles man after finding that -- while he admitted being armed and robbing the bank -- he did not mean to show his gun to a teller while demanding money.
Deshon Rene Odom carried a loaded revolver in the waistband of his pants while he and an accomplice robbed a Los Angeles-area bank in 1996, but he did not brandish the weapon or even mention it to employees.
A manager noticed the gun only when Odom raised his jacket to stuff away a pillowcase full of stolen cash.
The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said Tuesday in a written ruling that that Odom should have been convicted of unarmed bank robbery -- which carries a lesser prison term -- instead of armed robbery. The court ordered a Los Angeles federal judge to sentence Odom again.
Odom's attorney, Maria Stratton, said the ruling would not likely change his sentence, because he was also convicted of two other charges. But she said her client "didn't commit an armed robbery" and should not have been convicted of one.