Judge notes his criminal history, victim’s tragic death
A local mechanic was sentenced to 10 years in state prison Friday for fatally shooting a homeless man last July.
Two dozen friends, relatives and colleagues of Michael Ward Bell, 54, attended the sentencing hearing at the LAX Courthouse. Many more supporters wrote letters to the court in an effort to have Bell released on probation.
Bell, who claimed self defense in the trial, told Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Steven Van Sicklen that he understood the severity of what happened.
“Words can never compensate for a person’s life taken away,” said Bell, who held back tears throughout the two-hour hearing. “I can only hope and pray that the lord has a comfortable place for Mr. Watson... I’d like to blame Mr. Watson for what happened but I can’t and I’m not going to.”
A jury in June found Bell guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the death of Andre Watson, a homeless man with a history of violence and mental illness. Bell faced a sentence as light as probation or as long as 16 years.
Bell shot Watson six times last year outside of BT Automotive, the Pico Boulevard auto repair shop he managed. He claimed in the trial that Watson, who spent nearly the entire day outside of his shop, approached him with a box cutter.
In issuing the 10-year sentence, Judge Van Sicklen noted that Bell had a criminal history and said Bell, the son of a Santa Monica Police Department officer, should have been accustomed to dealing with transients because they are so prevalent in Santa Monica.
Bell has had 22 contacts with the law, including eight driving under the influence arrests, two burglaries, two violent acts against police officers and two concealed weapons offenses.
John Raphling, Bell’s attorney, said all but one of those — a DUI arrest — happened during a rough time in Bell’s youth, after he served two tours of duty in Vietnam with the Marine Corps., earning the purple heart for an injury he sustained in combat.
On the day of the shooting, Bell said Watson had made a gesture indicating he wanted to slash Bell’s throat. After two heated arguments, Bell returned to his shop to close for the day, take a shower and have a drink. While sitting in his office, Bell heard a knock on the door and went to see who it was, according to court testimony.
Watson was standing outside with a box cutter. When Bell went to lock the bay door of the building he heard a noise in the dark and panicked. He grabbed his.357 Magnum which was stored in a filing cabinet drawer and ran into the street looking for Bell.
Bell walked more than 50 feet down the street and stopped at a plastic bag that held Watson’s belongings. Watson then walked up from behind and said, “F--k, a f--king gun” and jumped on Bell’s back, according to court testimony. That’s when Bell unleashed six rounds into Watson, fatally wounding him.
3FC,“Mr. Bell went back to his office and he sat there. He did not call the police and he did not call an ambulance,” Judge Van Sicklen said, adding that one witness testified Bell said, “Rot in hell, baby” as he walked away. “He left Mr. Watson to bleed to death — in agony.”
Judge Van Sicklen chose not to give Bell the maximum sentence. He acknowledged Bell’s hard work, and his commitment to family and friends and said those balanced out the other factors.
Bell, who has been in custody since the shooting, will be eligible for parole in a little less than seven years because of time served and good behavior credits.
Twelve supporters of Bell spoke to the judge before he made his ruling. They described Bell as a well-liked and exceptionally talented mechanic who hand-built engines for movie stars, housewives and SMPD Police Chief James T. Butts, Jr.
Some of the people that spoke had known Bell for 30 years. Others, such as Tom Bergman, of Signal Hill, his former cell mate, had known him for only a few months.
One supporter, Steven Conner, of Oakdale, an aviation company manager, said Bell helped him through a rough time in his teenage years. Conner credited Bell with launching him into a career in aviation and said the work has since taken him around the world.
“Mike, we love you,” he said, holding back tears. “And regardless of today’s decision, we’re behind you.”
Three family members of Watson’s, who fled his Chicago home at the age of 23 saying he could no longer burden his family with his severe schizophrenia, addressed the judge last month. They said Watson was a sick man but he didn’t deserve to die and asked for the maximum possible sentence.
Watson had an IQ of nearly 140. Before being diagnosed with schizophrenia at 17 years old he had been an altar boy, boy scout and a skilled guitar player, family members said.
Joanne Glass-Watson, his mother, returned to court Friday and cried silently throughout the hearing. Bell and several of his friends addressed her directly to express their sorrow for Watson’s death.
After the hearing, Glass-Watson said she felt the ruling was fair even though it fell short of the 16-year maximum.
She met with Bell’s supporters in front of the courthouse and even hitched a ride back to her hotel from Dan Hanrahan, an old friend of Bell’s who drives a classic pickup truck with a hand-built engine, one that Bell had a special talent and passion for.
“This whole thing, it’s just a tragedy,” Hanrahan said, shaking his head. “Nobody wins.”
Dan Hanrahan
Friend of Michael Bell
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Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 23, 2003. Read the original PDF.