Neighbor: boyfriend counted down before shot was heard in Hermosa Beach alleged murder
A Torrance Superior Court Judge refused to reduce the charges against a Hermosa Beach man accused of murdering his girlfriend on New Year’s Eve. David Abbott will be arraigned next month after Judge Mark Arnold declined a motion to reduce the charges to manslaughter based on Abbott’s blood-alcohol level at the time of the incident. Abbott’s attorney, George Bird Jr., said his client will enter a “not guilty” plea on Nov. 8, and a trial will be set for next year. As is customary for defense attorneys in preliminary hearings, Bird did not present any witnesses on Thursday. David Abbot and Samantha Sproson. Deputy District Attorney Ann Lee presented several witnesses, including a neighbor who testified that he heard Abbott threatened to kill Samantha Sproson before counting down to zero twice. The neighbor said the common walls at the Seahorse Apartments on Manhattan Avenue are thin enough to hear conversation, and he was awakened by Abbott and Sproson talking loudly before 5 a.m. on Dec. 31, 2011. “The first thing I heard was Dave asking Samantha for his clip,” the neighbor said. Sproson responded to Abbott’s repeated inquiries that she did not know where the gun clip was located…
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