In William Cottrell's trial, the jury never got to hear evidence about his Asperger's Syndrome. Judge R. Gary Klausner ruled that Asperger's could not be introduced at trial as a legal defense. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Klausner's ruling was a mistake and tossed out Cottrell's arson convictions, leaving only the conspiracy count. Last week Cottrell was re-sentenced to the original 100-month term for the conspiracy conviction, after prosecutors declined to retry the arson counts. One reason federal officials declined was because they did not want Asperger's Syndrome established as a viable legal defense.
Former Caltech graduate student William "Billy" Cottrell was re-sentenced to serve at least 18 more months in prison for participating in a vandalism spree in the San Gabriel Valley in 2003.
William Cottrell's (aka Billy Cottrell), a former Caltech physics student who was in prison for participating in firebombing 100 vehicles in the San Gabriel Valley (Duarte, Arcadia, West Covina) in 2003, will be resentenced. The federal court has dropped arson charges against him but he remains convicted on a conspiracy charge. He could be released or face more prison time.
This article puts the spotlight on Arcadia High School boys varsity cross country team, led by Ammar Moussa. The team has 14 members. The first seven are ranked second in the state and the CIF-Southern section. A photograph shows Zack Marriott, Esmond Wei, Nick Shar, Eric Garibay, Allen Leung, Sergio Gonzalez, William Tsai, Charlie Johansen and David Mejia.
San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership held its annual awards gala at Santa Anita Park. AeroVironment Inc. received the Green Technology Award. Harry Baldwin, a former San Gabriel councilman, recived the Community Service Award. The Majestic Realty Foundation received the Humanitarian Award. Other award recipients are listed.
A federal apeals court overturned William Cottrell's (aka Billy Cottrell), convictions on two counts of arson for his role in the 2003 torching of several sport utility vehicles (SUV) at San Gabriel Valley car dealers, attacks authorities blamed on a radical environmentalist group. The court ruled that the judge in his trial should have allowed testimony regarding Cottrell's Asperger's Syndrome, a disability that could have affected the jury's decision.
Senior citizens competed in the Senior Olympics powerlifting event held at the home gym of Arcadia personal trainer Harry Sneider as part of the California Senior Games Championships. The highlight of the games was seeing 89-year-old Eugene Mailin lift 140 pounds, winning gold in his weight division. Other participants named were 53-year-old Val Olotoa and 75-year-old Ernie Smith. Legendary competitor Beatrice Maullin died two weeks before the games began.