California Supreme Court overturns death sentence of Calipatria Man

CALIPATRIA, Calif. (KYMA) - More than 25 years after the murders of a Calipatria police chief and a local business woman, the California Supreme Court overturned the conviction of the man sentenced to death in the case.

The court ruled juror bias may have affected the outcome, and now the case could be retried.

Back in April 1998, authorities say Omar Richard Deen shot and killed his mother Rachel Deen and then-Police Chief J. Leonard Speer of the Calipatria Police Department following an argument at his mother's equipment yard.

Investigators say Deen fled to Mexico, where he was captured the same day and later confessed.

During the trial, prosecutors argued the killings were planned and tied to financial disputes involving the family's estate.

Defense attorneys argued Deen suffered from severe mental illness, including schizophrenia, along with substance abuse.

A jury later convicted Deen of both murders and sentenced him to death.

But now, the California Supreme Court has reversed that decision, ruling the trial court made a critical mistake during the jury selection.

Justices found one juror had close ties to Chief Speer and law enforcement, had heard details about the case before trial, and expressed concerns about remaining impartial.

The high court ruled the juror should have been removed, and because that did not happen, the entire verdict must be thrown out.

The case will now return to the trial court, where prosecutors must decide whether to retry the case. If retried, it would reopen one of Imperial County's most high-profile murder cases.