A Santa Clara County judge denied a request by Antolin Garcia Torres to separate his 2009 attempted kidnapping cases from that of missing Morgan Hill teen Sierra LaMar.
Judge Vanessa Zecher filed a Sept. 20 order denying Garcia Torres’ earlier motion for severance of the two cases.
Garcia Torres, 24 of Morgan Hill, is accused of kidnapping and murdering Sierra March 16, 2012. Sierra was a 15-year-old sophomore at Sobrato High School at the time of her disappearance, and was last seen walking to a school bus stop near her home in north Morgan Hill.
Garcia Torres is also accused of attempted kidnapping in three incidents that took place in the parking lot of two Morgan Hill Safeway stores, according to police. In these incidents, police said Garcia Torres followed women to their parked cars at night on three separate occasions, forced his way into their vehicles when they opened the doors and assaulted them.
Garcia Torres remains in custody at Santa Clara County Jail without bail.
Prosecutors joined the Safeway cases to the Sierra case in February 2014. Defense attorneys for Garcia Torres argued that trying these two cases together allows the potential for “substantial prejudice” against the defendant, according to their motion for severance.
Zecher’s order, however, noted that the defendant and his attorneys had “not made a clear showing of prejudice to support the granting of the motion for severance.”
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office is seeking the death penalty for Garcia Torres on the charge that he murdered Sierra.
Garcia Torres’ next hearing is scheduled for Sept. 30 at the Hall of Justice in San Jose.
