Man whose rampage led to fatal police shooting will face second murder trial

LOS ANGELES (CN) — Prosecutors announced on Friday that they will retry Gene Evin Atkins, the man whose rampage led to a deadly police shootout in 2018 outside a Trader Joe’s in Silver Lake, for second-degree murder.

Earlier this month, a jury convicted Atkins of two counts of attempted murder for shooting his grandmother and 17-year-old girlfriend, as well as more than 30 other counts for leading police on a perilous car chase and taking dozens of hostages inside the supermarket.

But they deadlocked on the most serious murder charge, which stems from the death of Melyda Corado, a 27-year-old assistant manager.

Corado was killed by a stray bullet fired by police officers, who were returning fire to Atkins. Atkins was shooting at them as he fled from his crashed car into Trader Joe’s. Prosecutors argued that Corado’s death was the “natural and probable consequence” of Atkins’ actions. Ten out of twelve jurors agreed, but two didn’t, forcing a mistrial on one count.

Even though Atkins faces a likely sentence of life in prison for the two attempted murder convictions, prosecutors will retry Atkins on just the murder charge.

“The victims, particularly the father of Melyda, requested that we retry it,” said Deputy District Attorney Ben Schwartz after a brief hearing. “I think he wants some kind of closure. That’s one of the main reasons.”

Schwartz told the judge that this second trial — now scheduled to start on Aug. 3 — would be much shorter than the first. It would omit a number of witnesses who testified about the car chase and the long standoff at Trader Joe’s, during which Atkins used customers and employees as human shields.

Atkins was rarely present throughout his first trial, often refusing to leave his downtown LA jail cell, though he did appear for his hearing on Friday.

“Mr. Atkins, are you going to come to trial this time?” Superior Court Judge Lisa Lench asked the defendant.

“I’m not sure,” Atkins mumbled after a few seconds.

“It would really be in your benefit to come, but it’s up to you,” Lench said. “I don’t think it’s going to impress the jury to have an empty chair.”

Initially, Atkins had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, telling the court in 2019 that “I was sent here by Jesus” and “I’m a prophet sent to correct the wrong."

He later dropped that claim — and in 2021, he was found mentally competent to stand trial. He mostly represented himself in pretrial hearings but eventually settled on a defense attorney, Errol Cook. During the two-week trial, Cook did not present an opening statement or call any witnesses.

During closing arguments, Cook admitted that his client was likely guilty of some if not most of the criminal counts filed against him. But he argued that he was not guilty of murder, and that Corado’s death was the LAPD’s fault.

“To transfer blame, something is unfair about that,” Cook said. “Criminal conduct should not cause extreme reckless behaviors by law enforcement.”

Schwartz said that during the new trial, he would again call Leah Williams, Atkins’ former girlfriend. Atkins shot Williams right after he shot his grandmother, whom he’d lived with since he was 7.

“Prior to shooting me, he was saying a lot of wacky things,” Williams testified. “Like, crazy things. He said, ‘If I can’t have you, no one can.’ He was ’tired of chasing me.’ I know there’s more.”

“He said ‘you left me here with these people.’ I don’t know what that means at all," she added.

“Something is scrambled in that brain,” Cook argued. “Something snapped."

In his own closing argument, Schwartz told the jury, “These were not the decisions of a madman."

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