Hearing to withdraw plea in three deaths set Friday for Lanteigne in San Bernardino
A man who took a plea bargain that helped him avoid the death penalty -- and who now wants to back out of his guilty pleas in the three deaths -- is scheduled to appear in court Friday.
A hearing is expected to be held for Christopher Richard Lanteigne, 29, before Judge Brian McCarville in San Bernardino Superior Court.
A lawyer for Lanteigne announced his client's intentions in March, shortly before Lanteigne and co-defendant Camille Marie Vredenburg were to be sentenced.
The pair and a third man, Christopher Weaver, pleaded guilty as part of a package deal for their roles in a 2004 series of crimes extending from San Bernardino to the San Gorgonio Pass that left three men dead.
If McCarville allows Lanteigne to withdraw his guilty plea, the three defendants could go to trial on the charges. Prosecutors have stated they intend to seek the death penalty against Lanteigne and Weaver, if they are convicted at trial.
Lanteigne and Weaver pleaded guilty to three counts of murder on March 5 in the deaths of 42-year-old Scott Fisher of San Bernardino, Clayton McCobb, 44, of Ramona and Kareem Mohammed Radwan, 26, of Loma Linda. Vredenburg pleaded guilty the same day to two counts of voluntary manslaughter for her role in two of the deaths.
Weaver had asked to be sentenced right away and was sent to state prison
Under the plea bargain, Lanteigne is facing a sentence of life in prison without parole.
Legitimate grounds must exist to withdraw the guilty plea, according to Deputy District Attorney Lewis Cope. However, defense lawyer Arthur P. Katz earlier said his client may have those grounds.
Vredenburg is facing a six-year sentence with the plea bargain, and she has already served about four years.
Mr Cruz, i have been trying to find out Camille vredenburg's location for some time now. You see i am her ex-boyfriend the last person she was with before she got into this mess with Lanteigne . We were broken up but still seeing each other off and on. she used to call me up late at night and she always had this sense of fear in her voice because Lanteigne new we had been talking, and he would beat her for even mentioning my name. the last time i talked to her before all this happened with the murders, she called me from the hospital while i was at disneyland with my son and family. She was scared and crying because he beat her to the point of her needing stitches and he fractured her cheek bone. and she was telling me that she needed to get away from him that she feared for her own safety and that if she didnt do what she was told there would be hell to pay if you know what i mean. I guess what im trying to say is that it's not in her nature to inflict harm to others it was simply a case of "You better do it or else" and she didnt know where to turn but to me, and even then she never made mention to what he was doing out of fear for hers and my safety. I would like to get in touch with her if you can help me. In return i will tell you what i know about her and her family. thank you and god bless. Darin J. Waggoner