LOS ANGELES -- Attorneys for two teenagers accused of murdering one youth's mother will not be allowed to introduce evidence linking the killing to the slasher movie "Scream," a judge ruled.
Superior Court Judge John J. Cheroske gave no explanation for the ruling in his court order released Monday. Prosecutors and defense lawyers were forbidden from discussing the case with the media."The court orders that any and all 'Scream' evidence is excluded from this trial," the judge's order said. "The court orders that this case is not to be referred to as the 'Scream' murder case."
The judge on Monday also summoned a panel of prospective jurors and began the process of choosing two separate juries for the defendants, cousins Mario Salvador Padilla, 17, and Samuel Jeremias Ramirez, 16.
They are being tried as adults in the slaying of Padilla's mother, Gina Castillo, 37, who managed to call 911 after she was stabbed. The judge said the transcript of the woman's dying words, allegedly declaring that her son, Mario, had killed her, would be admitted as evidence.
After the January 1998 killing, the boys allegedly confessed and said their actions were inspired by the horror movies "Scream" and "Scream II."
"They admitted to homicide investigators that they killed the mother after getting the idea from the movies," said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Sgt. Robert Stoneman said at the time.
The case had been seen as an important factor in the current national dialogue regarding teen violence and the influence of violent movies on youngsters.
But the judge sought to limit access by barring TV cameras from the trial and clamping a gag order on all participants, instructing them not to talk to reporters. He also ordered that transcripts of all proceedings, including the preliminary hearing in the case, be sealed.
Last week, Padilla pleaded no contest to a charge of making terrorist threats against a classmate, but he was not sentenced pending resolution of the slaying case.
The judge agreed to dismiss so-called special circumstance allegations against Ramirez, which means the younger defendant is not eligible for the death penalty.