The attorney for a former Dehesa Elementary School teacher said he will be asking for dismissal of all child molestation charges following the Sept. 15 mistrial after jurors deadlocked with most in favor of acquittal.
The nine women, three man jury discussed the case for over 30 hours over seven days in the five-week trial of Robert Noel Anderson, 59, before telling El Cajon Superior Court Judge Laura Halgren that further deliberations would not help.
The attorney for a former Dehesa Elementary School teacher said he will be asking for dismissal of all child molestation charges following the Sept. 15 mistrial after jurors deadlocked with most in favor of acquittal.
The nine women, three man jury discussed the case for over 30 hours over seven days in the five-week trial of Robert Noel Anderson, 59, before telling El Cajon Superior Court Judge Laura Halgren that further deliberations would not help.
The jury acquitted Anderson of one felony count involving one girl, but deadlocked 8-4 and 9-3 on the remaining 11 charges involving eight girls, all of whom are now adults. Anderson denied fondling any of the girls in his classroom at 4612 Dehesa Road in 2003-2006.
Anderson’s attorney asked for Anderson to have bail reduced from $800,000 to $100,000, but Halgren refused, saying she was not the trial judge and was filling in for Judge Lantz Lewis.
The next hearing is set for Oct. 9 and Anderson’s attorney, Kerry Armstrong, said Saturday he would ask for outright dismissal or a reduction in bail if the District Attorney’s office seeks a retrial. Anderson remains in jail following his Sept. 11, 2014 arrest.
Prosecutor Chantal De Mauregne said, “It is too early to decide what we will do with the case” shortly after Halgren declared a mistrial. She added, “We will certainly re-evaluate it and make an informed decision in time.”
Jurors re-heard testimony from several girls and a sheriff’s detective during deliberations. The trial lasted longer than expected. One chief problem was the age of the case, as people tried to recall things that may have happened 10 years ago.
Anderson’s chair and desk could not be located and even photos of both items had disappeared over the years. Anderson resigned as a teacher in 2006.
Teenagers plead guilty to felony assaults against homeless man in Santee
Two East County teen-agers have pleaded guilty to charges involving the death of a homeless man in Santee while three others are awaiting a Nov. 9 trial.
Cassidy Rowin, 19, pleaded guilty Sept. 14 to voluntary manslaughter in the death of Stephen Lee Hissom, 55, who died from a beating that occurred Nov. 29, 2014 in the 9300 block of Mission Gorge Road. Rowin faces a maximum 6-year term in prison.
Brian Mitchell Kish, 19, pleaded guilty to felony assault and could receive a maximum sentence of seven years in prison. El Cajon Superior Court Judge Herbert Exarhos set sentencing of Rowin for Dec. 16 and Kish for Dec. 2.
Danny Swan III, 20, Sarah Michelle Baillie, 19, and Tyler Scott Dare, 19, have pleaded not guilty. The five were ordered May 19 to stand trial for murder following a preliminary hearing in which Hissom’s friend testified about the alleged beating. The defendants all remain in jail.
