Politics & Government
Truck Driver Charged with Murder Due in Court
A status hearing on the two-year-old case of Marcos Costa, charged with double murder in a 2009 Angeles Crest Higway accident, is due back in court today.
The truck driver charged with murder after the brakes on his big rig failed, and careened out of control, is due in Los Angeles Superior Court in Pasadena Monday afternoon for a status hearing.
Marcos Costa is charged with two counts of murder, vehicular manslaughter and felony reckless driving in connection with the Apr. 1, 2009 accident that killed Angel and Angelina Posca of Palmdale.
On that day, Costa's rig barreled down Angeles Crest Highway toward Foothill Boulevard and rammed multiple vehicles before crashing into the old Flintridge Bookstore & Coffeehouse. The has since relocated up the block.
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The collision injured several people and killed Angel Posca and his 12-year-old daughter, Angelina, of Palmdale.
A grand jury indicted Costa for murder in June 2009, but L.A. Superior Court Judge Lisa Lench dismissed those charges, only to have them reinstated after an appellate court ruling. Costa spent nearly two years in Los Angeles County Jail, but was released on bail in March.
Find out what's happening in La Cañada Flintridgewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Costa’s court-appointed private attorney, Edward Murphy, has said that he's never seen a case like this and called the murder charges bogus.
“I represent a lot of Crips and Bloods, in real murders, but this … . Well, I aim to fight very hard in this case,’’ the veteran attorney has told Patch.
Costa, a native of Brazil who speaks Portuguese and is aided by a Spanish translator in court, represented himself for several months. He still represents himself in a civil suit against the state of California, California Department of Transportation, the County of Los Angeles and the His complaint alleges negligence and dangerous condition of public property--the same complaint made by several victims and victims' family members.
Deputy District Attorney Carolina Lugo and Murphy expect the trial, which could begin June 20, to last three to four weeks, if testimony runs all day; partial days of testimony could drag the trial into five or six weeks.
Check back with LCF Patch for news from this morning's proceedings.
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