Man charged with killing Airport policeman won't face death penalty

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LOS ANGELES (CNS) --  A Venice man charged with killing an Airport Police
officer near Los Angeles International Airport won't face the death penalty if convicted,
prosecutors announced today.

William Sadowski, 50, is accused in the April 29, 2005, slaying of Tommy Edward Scott, the
scott.jpg
first Airport Police officer to die in the line of duty.

Sadowski will face a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole if he is convicted of first-degree murder and the special circumstance allegations of murder of a
peace officer and murder during a carjacking.

"Mr. Sadowski, a former aerospace engineer, is severely mentally ill, and we believe that was
one factor in the District Attorney's decision not to seek death," Deputy Public Defender Irene
Nunez said outside court in downtown Los Angeles. "We're grateful to the District Attorney's Office for making this
difficult but correct decision."

She added that the defense wanted to express its sympathy to the officer's family and his
friends in and out of the law enforcement community.
Scott encountered Sadowski walking along Lincoln Boulevard and a struggle ensued, during
which the defendant allegedly gained control of Scott's police car and drove off. Scott died
when he was dragged along the driver's side of the car, which crashed into a fire
hydrant.

Sadowski then allegedly tried to steal a car from a woman and successfully carjacked another vehicle, before it also crashed.

In June, a judge determined that Sadowski was mentally competent to stand trial after
reviewing a report from a forensic neuropsychologist who was appointed to examine the
defendant.

Sadowski is due back at the downtown Los Angeles courthouse on Feb. 3 for trial, which could begin then or within a 30-day period. 

2 Comments

Pitiful said:

He wasnt ill enough to fight an officer and kill him. He wasnt ill enough to attempt then successfully carjack another vehicle.

Anonymous said:

Are you so sure about that?
Have you ever met the man?

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Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.

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