Conviction in Murder of Woman Is Overturned

The murder conviction of a man hired to participate in attacking a Sylmar law student with a caustic solution was overturned Tuesday by a federal appeals court, which said that police disregarded his request for a lawyer while he was being questioned.

The convicted murderer, Ricardo H. Robinson, 32, of Las Vegas, “unequivocally invoked his right to counsel,� Judge Stephen Reinhardt said in writing the majority opinion for the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Joining Reinhardt on the 2-1 vote was Judge William A. Norris.

Reinhardt said the decision turned on the fact that police continued to question Robinson after he declared: “I have to get me a good lawyer, man. Can I make a phone call?�

Dissenting Judge Stephen Trott, who described Robinson’s conduct as “unspeakable,� concluded that police provided him with “a full and fair opportunity� to request an attorney.

The attack 10 years ago on Patricia Worrell, an attractive, blue-eyed, 34-year-old blonde from Columbus, Ohio, turned into a sensational murder trial in Van Nuys Superior Court.

Robinson and a second defendant, Bobby Ray Savage, were accused of being hired by Worrell’s former fiance, Richard M. Gilman, the third defendant, to attack Worrell after their engagement had broken up.

According to the appellate court’s description of the murder, “Gilman decided on revenge� and hired a “hit man,� Savage, whom he contacted through a Las Vegas prostitute. Gilman paid Robinson $1,000 and Savage $750 to disfigure Worrell.

On the evening of Aug. 14, 1980, the county prosecutor told the jury, Robinson and Savage drove to Worrell’s Sylmar home, knocked on her door and threw lye in her face when she opened the door. The lye scarred her face and blinded her in one eye. Worrell lived for 10 days after the attack until residue from some of the lye she swallowed dissolved an artery, causing her to bleed to death.

The three defendants were convicted of first-degree murder, mayhem and assault with a caustic substance. Robinson was sentenced to 25 years to life.

In the majority opinion, Reinhardt cited rulings dating back to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1966 Miranda decision which said that police must halt questioning of a suspect who asks for a lawyer and cannot use evidence of any statements made under continued questioning.