Oakland – Leonard Jones, the defendant in a murder case that was previously thrown out due to the involvement of a detective facing perjury charges, has achieved two more legal victories. Court records reveal that Alameda County prosecutors dismissed charges of drug smuggling into jail and possessing a weapon in custody against Jones during a court hearing in May. These dismissals come after his murder case was dropped in December last year.
Despite these recent victories, Jones remains incarcerated, serving a 59-year prison term related to a separate shooting incident. He is currently seeking a resentencing to reduce his term and is awaiting a court date set for August 9, as per available records.
The cases against Jones were dismissed following an in-camera court hearing, which excluded the public and only involved Jones’ lawyer, the prosecution, and a judge, according to the minute order from both cases. Jones had initially been charged in connection with the shooting death of Donitra Henderson in April 2013. The murder case was dismissed in December 2023 “in the interest of justice,” as stated in the minute order.
Detective Phong Tran, who had investigated the homicide, has since been charged with perjury and witness tampering in murder cases. His involvement in Jones’ case likely contributed to the decision to dismiss the charges.
The remaining cases against Jones involved allegations of possessing a homemade knife while in Santa Rita Jail, where he shared a cell with another individual, and conspiring to smuggle drugs into the jail. In the drug case, Jones allegedly recruited a technician from Antioch who was sentenced to four days in jail after pleading no contest, according to records.
1 Response
In this post, it is mentioned that Leonard Jones, who was previously involved in a murder case that was dismissed because of a detective facing perjury charges, has recently won two more legal victories.
My insights:
1. The involvement of a detective facing perjury charges raises questions about the credibility of the evidence and investigation in Leonard Jones’ murder case. This could have potentially led to the dismissal of the case.
2. The fact that Leonard Jones has achieved two more legal victories suggests that there may be