Murder Conviction Upheld
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Dec. 13, 2003
A state appeals court has upheld the first-degree murder conviction of an alleged Stockton gang member who shot and killed a prominent Contra Costa plastic surgeon during a home-invasion robbery.
In its decision Wednesday, the three-judge panel agreed to uphold Soknoeun Nem's June 2002 conviction, rejecting defense claims that the trial court had misled the jury about the laws of self-defense.
Nem, 25, argued that he had sought to end the escalating violence inside Kim Fang's Alamo house in January 2000, saying he fired only in self-defense.
The justices of the 1st District Court of Appeals in San Francisco dismissed the argument. Nem's attorney, Stephen Bedrick, did not return a call for comment Friday.
"There is no evidence that the appellant attempted to withdraw before he shot Dr. Kim Fang," the appeals court ruled. "Indeed, when Dr. Fang appeared on the scene, the appellant responded by shooting him twice in the back."
Nem was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole by a Contra Costa Superior Court judge in August 2002.
The shootout Jan. 4, 2000, started when Nem and an accomplice invaded Fang's house in an exclusive Alamo neighborhood as the family prepared for dinner.
The men, wearing ski masks, barged in waving handguns in an attempted robbery.
Fang, who was retired and collected guns, shot dead Mesa Kasem while descending a staircase. But Nem shot Fang, who died at a hospital that night.
Wounded in the melee was Fang's wife, Winnie, her brother and the family's nanny. Two children were also at home.
The family subdued Nem by clobbering him with cooking pans, then tied him up until police arrived.
In June 2002, a jury found Nem guilty of murder during an attempted robbery and burglary, a crime for which he became eligible for the death penalty.
Instead, Judge Richard Arnason sentenced him to life without parole.
Contra Costa Newspapers
Dec. 13, 2003
A state appeals court has upheld the first-degree murder conviction of an alleged Stockton gang member who shot and killed a prominent Contra Costa plastic surgeon during a home-invasion robbery.
In its decision Wednesday, the three-judge panel agreed to uphold Soknoeun Nem's June 2002 conviction, rejecting defense claims that the trial court had misled the jury about the laws of self-defense.
Nem, 25, argued that he had sought to end the escalating violence inside Kim Fang's Alamo house in January 2000, saying he fired only in self-defense.
The justices of the 1st District Court of Appeals in San Francisco dismissed the argument. Nem's attorney, Stephen Bedrick, did not return a call for comment Friday.
"There is no evidence that the appellant attempted to withdraw before he shot Dr. Kim Fang," the appeals court ruled. "Indeed, when Dr. Fang appeared on the scene, the appellant responded by shooting him twice in the back."
Nem was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole by a Contra Costa Superior Court judge in August 2002.
The shootout Jan. 4, 2000, started when Nem and an accomplice invaded Fang's house in an exclusive Alamo neighborhood as the family prepared for dinner.
The men, wearing ski masks, barged in waving handguns in an attempted robbery.
Fang, who was retired and collected guns, shot dead Mesa Kasem while descending a staircase. But Nem shot Fang, who died at a hospital that night.
Wounded in the melee was Fang's wife, Winnie, her brother and the family's nanny. Two children were also at home.
The family subdued Nem by clobbering him with cooking pans, then tied him up until police arrived.
In June 2002, a jury found Nem guilty of murder during an attempted robbery and burglary, a crime for which he became eligible for the death penalty.
Instead, Judge Richard Arnason sentenced him to life without parole.
posted by Corey at 8:31 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home