Driver Wants to Rescind Plea in AU Student Death
By Peter Slevin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 3, 1999 1:11 PM
Shane S. DeLeon, the D.C. carpenter who pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the January hit-and-run death of American University rollerblader Matthew Odell, contends he is innocent and wants to withdraw his plea.
In court on Sept. 2, DeLeon was "very upset, confused and disoriented," wrote the two public defenders who represented him that day. "While Mr. DeLeon ultimately pled guilty, he remained unconvinced of his guilt."
The lawyers, Renee Raymond and Jennifer Lanoff, have asked D.C. Superior Court Judge Patricia A. Wynn to allow them to withdraw from the case, which is set for sentencing on Nov. 12. If Wynn grants their request, the judge would appoint a new lawyer to address this latest twist.
DeLeon, who is being held without bond, is not seeking to withdraw his guilty plea to a felony escape charge that stems from his decision to flee a District halfway house. He faces as many as five years in prison on that charge.
Originally charged with second-degree murder in the Jan. 28 death of Odell, who was rollerblading with a friend on Nebraska Avenue NW, DeLeon pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of involuntary manslaughter, punishable by 10 to 30 years in prison.
A witness told police that DeLeon, who lost his Maryland driver's license after two 1994 drunk-driving convictions, drank four large draft beers at Babe's Billiards, a Wisconsin Avenue pool hall, on Jan. 28. Police said he was using a D.C. driver's license when he climbed behind the wheel of a white 1998 Ford Ranger, on his way to a house he shared on MacArthur Boulevard NW.
As it made its way along Nebraska Avenue, the Ranger did not stop after hitting Odell, 18. DeLeon reportedly told a witness later that he thought he had struck a trash bag. Police who inspected the Ranger said hair taken from the windshield contained Odell's DNA.
DeLeon backed away from a guilty plea to involuntary manslaughter once before. Then, the day he pleaded guilty, he first said he was speeding, but had consumed only one beer: "I wasn't impaired that night, your honor."
After a recess, he said he had more than one beer, but less than four. He acknowledged to Wynn that he had put people in danger by drinking and driving. After the hearing, Raymond and Lanoff asked for a short delay in sentencing, in order to await results of a psychiatric evaluation.
A second-degree murder conviction requires a judge or jury to find that a suspect acted with conscious disregard of a risk of death or injury. With his guilty plea to involuntary manslaughter, DeLeon was admitting that he deviated from "a reasonable standard of care" and caused Odell's death.
In a motion filed with Wynn, the defense lawyers said DeLeon has "expressed disbelief" that his actions might add up to involuntary manslaughter. They said DeLeon has "limited experience with the criminal justice system."
The lawyers also mentioned "another factor" that "became known to the defense after the plea," but she said it will be revealed only in secret to Wynn. "Mr. DeLeon's firm desire to withdraw his guilty plea came on the heels of this recent discovery."
Raymond, reached yesterday by telephone, said she could not discuss the details of the request. The U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment.
© 1999 The Washington Post (online edition)
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