Criminal
Dec. 14, 2021
DA chooses not to retry murder case for ‘policy considerations’?
In 1997 defendant Kenji Howard was convicted of murder of Arkett Mejia, attempted murder of Travon Johnson and two others, and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Recently, the conviction was overturned because of "new" evidence, essentially a statement by his co-defendant who has nothing to lose.





Kathleen Cady
Kathy Cady began her career as a prosecutor in 1989 and retired in 2019. She is one of several former prosecutors who are providing pro bono assistance to crime victims in response to Gascón's policies.
In 1997 defendant Kenji Howard was convicted of murder of Arkett Mejia, attempted murder of Travon Johnson and two others, and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Recently, the conviction was overturned because of "new" evidence, essentially a statement by his co-defendant who has nothing to lose. On December 2, the Los Angeles district attorney's office announced that they would not retry the defendant because of policy considerations and resource constraints.
For only $95 a month (the price of 2 article purchases)
Receive unlimited article access and full access to our archives,
Daily Appellate Report, award winning columns, and our
Verdicts and Settlements.
Or
$795 for an entire year!
Or access this article for $45
(Purchase provides 7-day access to this article. Printing, posting or downloading is not allowed.)
Already a subscriber?
Sign In