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BEEN FILED NOW AND THE FRUSTRATION SOME VICTIMS ARE FEELIN >> I AM, AGAIN, REALLY ANGRY THAT HE IS CONTROLLING THE NARRATIVE. BRANDI: THESE ARE THE COURT DOCUMENTS MAKING JENNIFER CAROLE UPSET. HER DAD AND STEPMOTHER, LYMA AND CHARLENE SMITH OF VENTURA, WERE JUST TWO OF 12 MURDER VICTIMS TIED TO JOSEPH DEANGELO. IT WAS HER STEPMOTHER’S DNA THAT LED TO HIS ARREST NEARLY FOUR DECADES AFTER THEIR MURDER ONE OF THE MOTIONS FILED MONDAY BY THE DEFENSE ULTIMATELY AS THE COURT TO DISMISS CHARGES DEANGELO FACES OUTSIDE OF SACRAMENTO COUNTY. ALTHOUGH NOT INVOLVED IN THE CASE, WE WENT TO SACRAMENTO DEFENSE ATTORNEY JOHNNY GRIFFIN TO GET A PERSPECTIVE. >> THE CONSTITUTION SAYS YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO BE TRIED BY A JURY OF YOUR PEERS IN YOUR COMMUNIT SO, MR. DEANGELO IS CHARGED IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY FOR CRIMES COMMITTED IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY, BUT THEN THEY ALSO CHARGED HIM FOR CRIMES COMMITTED IN FIVE OTHER COUNTIES AND THE DEFENSE ARGUMENT IS THAT HE CAN’T BE TIRED IN THIS COUNTY FOR THOSE CRIMES BECAUSE THOSE JURORS AREN’T IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY SO HE HAS A RIGHT TO HAVE A JURY FROM THOSE COUNTIES. BRANDI: IN THAT SAME FILLING, THE DEFENSE ADDED A FOOTNOTE THAT DEANGLELO WOULD BE WILLING TO TAKE A PLEA IF THE DEATH PENALTY WAS OFF THE TABL GRIFFIN SAYS PLEA NEGOTIATIONS HAPPEN ALL THE TIME. THAT’S NOT UNUSUAL, BUT SOMETHING ELSE DID STRIKE HIM. >> WHAT’S ODD HERE IS THAT THE MADE THOSE NEGOTIATIONS PUBLIC AND WHAT MAKES IT EVEN MOR CURIOUS TO ME, THAT AFFECTS THE JURY POOL. BECAUSE IF THEY DON’T REACH AN AGREEMENT AND THE CASE GOES TRIAL, THAT JURY IS GOING TO KNOW, HEY, DIDN’T THIS GUY ALREADY OFFER TO PLEAD GUILTY. BRANDI: HE SAYS MAKING THE PLEA DISCUSSIONS PUBLIC COULD BE A DEFENSE STRATEGY >> IT COULD ALSO AS A TACTIC HELP THE DEFENSE IN THAT THEY MAY TAKE THE POSITION WE NEED A CHANGE OF VENUE. BRANDI: WHATEVER THE REASON, CAROLE DOESN’T LIKE IT. >> IT’S ABSOLUTELY UNACCEPTABLE. THIS SHOULD BE SOMETHING THAT HAS BEEN DISCUSSED WITH THE SURVIVORS AND THE PEOPLE WITH CHARGES PENDING BEFORE ANYTHING GOT MADE PUBLIC. BRANDI: GRIFFIN QUESTIONS ONE OTHER FILING BY THE PROSECUTION ASKING FOR MORE DNA FROM DEANGELO >> ARE THEY IMPLIANTLY SAYING THERE WAS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THE FIRST SAMPLE? BRANDI: GRIFFIN TOLD KCRA THE MOTIONS THEMSELVES ARE TYPICAL IN CAPITOL CASES, BUT HE WONDERS WHY THEY WEREN’T FILED BEFORE NOW. IT’S NOT CLEAR WHEN THESE MOTIONS WILL BE HEARD BEFORE A JU

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The defense team for the man suspected to be the East Area Rapist said their client would plead guilty if it means the death penalty is taken off the table.The daughter of a victim said the latest court filing makes her angry. Joseph DeAngelo, 74, faces 26 counts, the most serious of those being murder. Prosecutors say those crimes spanned six counties between 1975 and 1986.DeAngelo was arrested in April 2018 when officials say DNA evidence from a relative linked DeAngelo to the decades-old cases.This week, several motions were filed in the case.The defense wants charges dismissed, arguing DeAngelo should face trial for his charges in the county where the crimes occurred and should face a jury of peers in that county.Meanwhile, the prosecution is asking for more DNA evidence to be gathered from DeAngelo.“I am, again, really angry that he is controlling the narrative,” said Jennifer Carole.Her dad and stepmother, Lyman and Charlene Smith, of Ventura, were two of 12 murder victims tied to DeAngelo. It was her stepmother's DNA that led to his arrest nearly four decades after their murders.KCRA sat down with defense expert and Sacramento lawyer Johnny Griffin to discuss what the filings mean.According to court records, DeAngelo has a hearing in Sacramento County slated for March 12. Griffin said he would be surprised if the recent filings are resolved by then.Q: Is there anything about the recent filings that stand out to you?Griffin: Generally speaking, attorneys every day will try to reach an agreement both from the prosecution side and the defense side. What’s odd here is that they made those negotiations public. What makes it even more curious to me that affects the jury pool, because if they don’t reach an agreement and the case goes to trial that jury is going to know, "Hey didn’t this guy already offer to plead guilty?" I assume that the defense has a strategic and tactical reason for putting that language in the footnote. But, it could cut both ways. interesting thing happen here. The defense -- it’s my understanding -- that they contacted the victim’s family in advance. I think that was a wise move. It shows their due diligence because that will help give them insight when they are engaging in these discussions they can say, "We’ve already spoken with your victims, they’re fine with it. Why aren’t you?"Q: Who does it help or hurt when you talk about the jury pool and potential impact?Q: Can you explain the motion to dismiss?Griffin: What they’re basically saying, in laymen’s terms, is that the constitution says you have a right to be tried by a jury of your peers in your community. So, Mr. DeAngelo is charged in Sacramento County for crimes committed in Sacramento County, but then they also charged him for crimes committed in five other counties. The defense argument is that he can’t be tried in this county for those crimes because those jurors aren’t in Sacramento County. So, he has a right to have a jury from those counties.Q: Should these filings have come up before now?Q: Are the motions typical?Griffin: I think the motions themselves are typical for this type of case because when you’re dealing with a capital case, you do anything and everything because a person’s life, not just his liberty but his or her life, is at stake. So, you file any and all motions that you feel are relevant and factually supported and legally supported.