Local News in Brief : Deadlock in Murder Trial
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For the fourth time, a jury has deadlocked on murder charges against Harles E. Hamilton, 29, accused in the 1984 slaying of an elderly Altadena couple.
Pasadena Superior Court Judge Coleman A. Swart declared a mistrial and dismissed the jury Friday. The jury’s final vote favored acquittal by 10 to 2.
“In all likelihood this case will never be resolved,” Swart said.
David and Bertha Goldman, both in their 70s, were found beaten to death in their living room. Hamitlon’s attorneys acknowledge that the day after the murders he sold items stolen from the Goldmans but said the evidence against him was circumstantial. No fingerprints were found at the scene and authorities could produce no witnesses.
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