Update: Preliminary Hearing Marathon for Pair Accused of Shooting Ariz. Boy

Updated at 5:20 p.m. Jan. 31, 2012

A preliminary hearing began Friday in the case of two young men accused of shooting an Arizona tourist, 16, in La Mesa. It will resume at 10 a.m. Wednesday at the San Diego County Courthouse, 220 W. Broadway, according to authorities.

Original story from Jan. 3:

The pair accused of shooting a 16-year-old Arizona tourist in La Mesa last June were in Superior Court on Tuesday morning, but their preliminary hearing was delayed about three weeks.

Alvaro Regalado, with a shaved head, and Juan Arriero, with a full head of dark hair, stood inside a protective booth in Judge Timothy Walsh’s courtroom in downtown San Diego.

The pair, both 20, face life in prison if convicted of robbery, attempted murder and other charges related to a crime a spree that included the head-grazing of Zach Lamb of Paradise Valley, AZ, who suffered a scalp wound June 27 near the Chico Club on El Cajon Boulevard.   

The preliminary hearing was postponed until 1:15 p.m. Jan. 27 because Arriero got a new lawyer—Manuel Ramirez of San Diego.  A preliminary hearing determines whether enough evidence exists to hold a trial.

Deputy District Attorney Christine Israel told a judge last year that the defendants went on a robbery spree with a shotgun and a pistol, holding up seven people in five robberies, including one in which Lamb was shot in La Mesa.

Israel said the youth was recovering well. The prosecutor said Regalado is accused separately in a June carjacking, and Arriero is accused of trying to hide the shotgun.

City News Service contributed to this report.