Lawyer says mechanic shot out of self defense
The trial of a local businessman who is accused of murder is scheduled to begin next month.
Michael Ward Bell, 54, of Los Angeles, is accused of allegedly shooting and killing Andre Watson, an African-American transient, in front of his Pico Boulevard auto repair shop last July.
Lawyers for both sides agreed on Tuesday to start selecting jurors on June 4 at the Airport Courthouse, where the trial will be held.
Ward is in custody at the Men’s Central Jail in downtown Los Angeles on $2 million bail.
Bell’s trial was originally slated to begin Tuesday but was delayed because of conflicting attorney schedules.
John Raphling, Ward’s public defender, said the case is a simple matter of self defense.
“The man is innocent,” he said. “He was attacked, he was threatened — and he defended himself.”
Mark Burnley, the deputy district attorney prosecuting the case, could not be reached Tuesday for comment.
But Christine Johnston, the deputy district attorney first assigned to the case, has said Bell methodically fired six bullets at Watson, with four shots actually hitting him.
“The man is innocent. He was attacked, he was threatened — and he defended himself.” — — JOHN RAPHLING Public defender
One bullet grazed his knee, while two other bullets entered through his hip and the back of his thigh. The fourth bullet went through Watson’s calf, said Santa Monica Police Detective Virginia Obendain, in January at Bell’s preliminary hearing.
The shooting occurred at 8:24 p.m. on Monday, July 1, 2002. Bell allegedly pulled a.357 Smith & Wesson revolver on Watson, who local merchants said had spent most of the afternoon hanging out on the street in front of BT Automotive, Bell’s auto repair shop located on the 2600 block of Pico Boulevard.
Joseph Beedle, of Santa Monica, testified in at the preliminary hearing that he watched Bell allegedly fire the shots at Watson as he lay curled up on the sidewalk.
Beedle watched from across the street, where he was sitting in a parked car with his family.
479,A military police officer by profession, Beedle said he anticipated he would be questioned by police and therefore took note of every detail.
He said Bell allegedly fired the first shot and walked closer to Watson before firing the next round. Before each shot, Bell cocked the.357’s hammer and took deliberate aim, Beedle said at the preliminary trial.
Bell had reportedly stayed late waiting for a customer to pick up his car, which he did at about 8 p.m. He was arrested in the BT parking lot about 30 minutes later after police were called after someone reported shots being fired in the area.
Authorities found a box cutter and a half empty bottle of alcohol on Watson, Obendain said.
Raphling has implied Watson suffered from a serious mental health condition and said the two were fighting before the incident.
Shortly before the incident, Watson was released from prison after allegedly attacking two women with knives, Raphling said at the January hearing.
- John Raphling, public defender
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 14, 2003. Read the original PDF.