Druggie drifters said to kill rashly amid dream of starting pot farm

FILE - This undated combination of file photos provided by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office show, from left, Sean Michael Angold, Lila Scott Allgood, and Morrison Haze Lampley. The three young transients accused of robbing and killing two people in Northern California have pleaded not guilty to murder charges in a Marin County Superior courtroom Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015, in San Rafael, Calif. The three were arrested in Portland, Ore. (Multnomah County Sheriff's Office/Portland Police via AP, File) less FILE - This undated combination of file photos provided by the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office show, from left, Sean Michael Angold, Lila Scott Allgood, and Morrison Haze Lampley. The three young transients ... more Photo: Associated Press Photo: Associated Press Image 1 of / 48 Caption Close Druggie drifters said to kill rashly amid dream of starting pot farm 1 / 48 Back to Gallery

One of three young drifters linked to a savage crime spree took the witness stand Tuesday to say the drug-addled group had selected its two killing victims — the first in San Francisco and the second in Marin County — almost randomly while dreaming of moving to Oregon to start a pot farm.

They chose 23-year-old Canadian backpacker Audrey Carey because “she was foreign and possibly had money,” and they initially intended to rob her but not kill her, said Sean Michael Angold, referring to the young woman who was found dead Oct. 3 in Golden Gate Park amid the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival.

Two days later, the three chose to kill a hiker in Fairfax, 67-year-old Steve Carter, because they wanted his station wagon for their journey north, Angold said. He said they followed Carter as he walked his Doberman pinscher, Coco — and when they could not find him, waited for him to return.

“We decided we were going to shoot the individual for the car keys,” Angold said of Carter, a respected tantric yoga instructor.

Angold, 25, appeared at a preliminary hearing after admitting to second-degree murder in a plea bargain in Marin County Superior Court. He testified for the prosecution in its double-murder case against his former co-defendants, Lila Scott Alligood, 19, and Morrison Haze Lampley, 24. A judge will decide Friday whether to send the case to a jury trial.

Angold’s chilling testimony filled in many details of crimes that horrified the Bay Area, but his memory was clouded by admitted drug use and his answers were riddled with gaps in time and contradictions with earlier testimony.

Attorneys for Alligood and Lampley seized on the inconsistencies, while suggesting Angold’s testimony was compromised by the deal he struck for a possible sentence of 15 years to life in prison, rather than life without parole.

When Amy Morton, Alligood’s attorney, asked Angold about his drug use, he answered that he had “been on a run of meth” for about a week before he met up with the defendants.

Chief Public Defender David Brown, Lampley’s attorney, established that Angold has a history of lying to police. Angold admitted that during questioning soon after the killings, he pretended he didn’t know Carey was dead.

“I said a lot of things that day that weren’t true,” Angold said.

Angold testified that the spree began on a San Francisco street near Coit Tower, where the three pulled on the door handles of parked cars, testing to see if any were left unlocked. They found one: a Ford F-150 that held a .40-caliber Smith and Wesson handgun and ammunition in a camouflage pouch in the console.

Investigators said the gun theft occurred either late Sept. 30 or in the early hours of Oct. 1. Lampley and Alligood — who referred to each other as husband and wife — had joined Angold in San Francisco about a week before, Angold said.

He said he and Lampley, the alleged ringleader of the group, had the gun when they crossed paths with Carey about a day later near one of the windmills at the edge of Golden Gate Park and Ocean Beach. They had been smoking crystal meth, which Angold said he had sold throughout the city. Carey, who was on her first solo backpacking trip in the United States, asked to join them, and together they drank beer and smoked weed, Angold said.

The group stayed together, getting pizza and returning to Ocean Beach. During this time, Angold said, he and Lampley came up with a plan to rob Carey — an idea that Alligood later agreed to. At about sunset, they went into the bushes by the windmill and continued smoking pot and cigarettes.

“We were just kicking and talking,” Angold said. “I left to take a leak. When I came back, Ms. Alligood had jumped across the circle and tackled her.”

Angold said he ran to Carey’s feet as Lampley held her shoulders and Alligood tried to bind her hands. When Alligood was unsuccessful, she threw the rope to Angold, who tied it around Carey’s legs to keep her from chasing them, he said.

“I see Mr. Lampley reach back for the pouch,” Angold said. “I heard Mr. Lampley say, ‘Shut up, bitch, or I’ll kill you.’ She said, ‘Just kill me then.’ Then I heard a pop. I didn’t know what was going on. (Lampley) said, ‘She’s dead, dude. Don’t worry about it.’”

Angold said he then separated from his friends and went to Berkeley, but found them again at Fisherman’s Wharf. He said he stole a bike and a bottle of whiskey and they rode across the Golden Gate Bridge, doing some heroin and speed along the way. They spent the night at the vista point, where Angold said he sold tourists LSD and took some himself.

In Sausalito, Angold said he stole another bicycle before the group followed a trail to Fairfax. They tried unsuccessfully to hitchhike from a turnout, Angold said, when there was a “group consensus” to shoot somebody for a car.

At that point, Carter pulled into the turnout in his silver Volkswagen Jetta station wagon. He “looked at us like we were crazy,” Angold said, then drove to another turnout to park. He said Alligood was the one who decided Carter would be a good target, partially because of his age, and they followed him to his trail.

When Carter was found, his dog was also wounded, and he was still clutching the leash. Lampley, Angold and Alligood were arrested two days later outside a Portland, Ore., soup kitchen after authorities tracked them with the station wagon’s GPS device.

Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @vivianho