Jury Probe of Tagger’s Slaying Is Rejected : Courts: Prosecutors condemn statements by gunman but turn down plea by Latino lawyers, who say they will seek federal civil rights charges.

Prosecutors Wednesday rejected a plea from an organization of Latino attorneys seeking a grand jury investigation into the shooting death of an 18-year-old tagger, and the activists said they will ask federal authorities to bring civil rights charges against the gunman.

Dist. Atty. Gil Garcetti added, however, that he also wanted to harshly condemn comments made by the gunman, William Masters II.

Last week, prosecutors declined to file murder or manslaughter charges against Masters, 35, of Sun Valley, who shot two taggers who he said threatened him as they tried to rob him.

Members of the Mexican American Bar Assn. said Masters should be charged because the Los Angeles County coroner’s office determined that the dead youth, Cesar Rene Arce, was shot in the back.

“That indicates that he was removing himself from any alleged confrontation with Masters,” attorney Luis Carrillo said. “That’s why (Masters) should be prosecuted for manslaughter at the very least.”

Although there apparently were no uninvolved witnesses, police have said that Arce apparently swiveled away just as Masters fired, and the location of the wound did not rule out the conclusion that Masters felt justifiably endangered when he shot Arce, of Arleta, and a companion, David Hillo, 20, of North Hollywood.

Masters was unavailable for comment Wednesday but said in an interview Friday that Hillo cried, “Look out!” as Masters pulled a .380 semiautomatic pistol from a fanny pack, possibly causing Arce to flinch away.

A spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office said Masters and Hillo agreed in interviews shortly after the incident that Arce was within arm’s length of Masters when Masters fired. Hillo told reporters last week that he was about 10 feet from Masters, but Carrillo said Wednesday that Hillo now says he was 20 to 30 feet away.

The Latino lawyers also argued that in light of Masters’ comments after he was released from custody last week--referring to Arce and Hillo as “skinhead Mexicans”--the district attorney’s refusal to prosecute Masters will only add to Los Angeles’ racial troubles.

“These are the sort of situations that create what happened after the Rodney King verdict,” said Evangeline Ordaz, an attorney and professor of Chicano studies at CSUN. Days of destructive riots followed a Simi Valley jury’s acquittal of the Los Angeles officers who were videotaped beating King.

Arce and Hillo were spray-painting columns supporting the Hollywood Freeway on Arleta Avenue about 1 a.m. on Jan. 31 when Masters happened by and jotted down their car’s license plate number. The taggers demanded that he turn over the paper.

Masters said that after he gave up the paper, the two tried to rob him, which Hillo has denied.

Hillo agrees with Masters that he was holding a screwdriver, but he said he did not intend to use it as a weapon. Masters shot Hillo in the buttock, and Hillo was released from a hospital after brief treatment.

The six Latino attorneys met with Deputy Dist. Atty. Bob Cohen for about 30 minutes Wednesday morning. In addition to urging the grand jury investigation, they also asked for all documents pertaining to the case and asked the district attorney’s office to take a stand on Masters’ controversial comments since his release.

“I do not believe there’s any new evidence that’s been presented to us that would warrant us reopening our investigation or submitting it to the grand jury,” Garcetti said later.

“I will tell you that I would harshly, and do harshly, condemn the individual that was responsible for this shooting given his comments,” he said.

In the interview last week, Masters said the shooting was not racially motivated and emphasized that Latinos are among the scores of people who have contacted him to praise his act.

Carrillo called Masters’ reference to “Mexican skinheads” a “very racist statement.”

If necessary, the attorneys said, they will take the case to federal authorities.

“If local officials don’t (file charges), that’s what the federal government is for,” attorney Humberto Guizar said.

Masters may still face misdemeanor charges for not having a permit to carry his gun. In addition, the district attorney’s office is considering whether to charge Hillo with attempted robbery, which could lead to his being charged with Arce’s murder. Under California law, those who take part in a criminal act that leads to a killing, even of an accomplice, can be found guilty of murder.