State Supreme Court Won't Review Case of Man Convicted in Fatal Grad Party Shooting

The California Supreme Court refused the defense's latest request today to consider the case against a man convicted in the 1994 shooting deaths of two teenagers at a San Marino graduation party, CNS reported Wednesday.    

The court denied review of the case against Cuong Phan, who was convicted along with three others--including the two gunmen--for the June 4, 1994 slayings of 15-year-old David Hang and 18-year-old Dennis Buan.   

Phan's conviction has been maintained by the 2nd District Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court.

Last December, a three-justice panel from California's 2nd District Court of Appeal turned down Phan's claim that the prosecution used its peremptory challenges in a discriminatory manner to remove black jurors from the panel that heard the case against him.   

In a 15-page ruling, the appellate court justices noted, “the record amply demonstrates race-neutral reasons for excusing the four prospective African-American jurors in question.”   

The prosecution theorized that the shooting--which also left seven others wounded--was in retaliation for a gang member's killing by a rival Asian gang six months earlier, and that the four mistakenly believed that members of the rival gang were at the home, according to the appellate court panel's ruling.

San Marino Patch will report on any further developments in this case.