Dept. of Justice Responds to Turner Complaint

The Department of Justice has responded to a complaint filed by the family of Matthew Turner, who alleges that the Highland Park teenager was falsely convicied for a 2008 Marmion Way murder due to official misconduct.

Wayne Turner made allegations of misconduct by the Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office and the judge who presided over the summer of 2010 trial that ended with his son receiving a 90-years-to-life sentence for the killing of Adrian Betancor.

In a response to Turner's complaint, sent Jan. 4, the Justice Department states that complaints about California judges and prosecutors fall out of their jurisdiction.

"There is no prosecutable violation of federal criminal civil rights statutes," the letter states. "The Department of Justice does not have the authority to intervene in state or local courts or give assistance to persons who have complaints about prosecutors or trial judges."

According to police reports, Betancor was killed on the 5700 block of Marmion Way in a drive-by style shooting. Witnesses said the driver of the vehicle pulled up to Betancor and 19-year-old Joey Chavez and asked them "Where they were from." The driver then fired on the two teens, killing Betancor and hospitalizing Chavez.

In Turner's appeal to the Los Angeles County Superior Court, filed in July of 2011, he alleges that prosecuting attorney Andrea Pott withheld information about the payment and relocation of two of the prosecution's witnesses during the trial.

Turner also alleges that Judge Bob S. Bowers Jr.--who presided over the case--was biased against his son due to his affiliation with a local gang.

The Justice Department letter does, however, indicate an interest in looking into Turner's allegations of misconduct by LAPD Detective Lisa Governo.

Turner alleges that Governo declined to tell the court that a key witness told her that he had "never seen Matthew Turner" before and that he was "the wrong guy."

In the letter, the Justice Department requested more information about Governo's alleged misconduct, stating that there is a precedent for investigating such behavior.

Officer Karen Rayner of LAPD's Media Relations Office declined to comment on Turner's allegations, as they are currently being investigated by the internal affairs division.

"We do not comment on ongoing investigations," Rayner said.

A .pdf of the Justice Department response can be downloaded from the media box on the right.

Turner said he did not feel deterred by the Justice Department's response regarding alleged attorney and judge misconduct.

"It's positive, because they're asking for me information," he said. "They're not just closing the door on me."