The Region : Robber’s Murder Conviction Reversed

The murder conviction of a robber who was found guilty of killing a young Vietnamese immigrant to take his van for use as a getaway vehicle in the largest bank robbery in Los Angeles history has been overturned by a federal appeals court. While it sent the case of 24-year-old Gregory Lewis back to Los Angeles U.S. District Judge Harry L. Hupp for retrial on the charge of killing to avoid apprehension for bank larceny, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the conviction of Lewis for conspiracy, bank larceny and receipt of firearms. The appellate jurists agreed with Lewis that his trial for the slaying of 22-year-old Tuong Truong on Oct. 28, 1983, should have been separated from the other charges because information about his burglary record and the fact that he had lied under oath to obtain a gun surfaced in court, possibly prejudicing the jury. The bank robbery netted $228,000.