A judge on Tuesday ruled that DNA evidence that led to alleged Grim Sleeper serial killer Lonnie Franklin Jr. was lawfully obtained via plates and utensilsseized by a police officer who posed as a restaurant busboy.<\/p>\n
Appearing on the stand for the first time, Franklin testified that he was attending a birthday party that day in July 2010at John's Incredible Pizza in Buena Parkwith one of his employees and her three daughters when the DNA evidence was gathered. <\/p>\n
Days later on July 7, he was arrested by Los Angeles police. <\/p>\n
MAP: Grim Sleeper killings, 1985-2007 <\/p>\n
Franklin's attorneys, Seymour Amster and Louisa Pensanti, had argued that the busboy cleared their client's plates before he had finished first a pizza and then a chocolate cake and therefore were taken illegally. The attorneys also argued that Franklin had a reasonable expectation that his plates would be thrown into a pile with others, and so his DNA would never be able available for testing. <\/p>\n
\"I felt it would be mixed with the rest of the trash,\" Franklin said on the stand, drawing sighs of frustration from victims' families in the courtroom. <\/p>\n
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy rejected the defense's argument, calling it \"specious and ridiculous.\" She said she couldn't believe a reasonable person, not knowing he was under surveillance, would ever think about what happens to his leftovers and used plateware. <\/p>\n
MAP: Serial killers in South L.A. <\/p>\n
\"If he were really concerned about such things, he would not eat or he would take his trash with him,\" Kennedy said. <\/p>\n
Frustrated by their inability to find the Grim Sleeper, whose DNA was not in a law enforcement database, Los Angeles police asked the state to look for a DNA profile similar enough to be a possible relative of the killer. <\/p>\n
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\nGrim Sleeper: Judge allows DNA evidence gathered at restaurant<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"