Posted on: Thursday, June 3, 2004
Former Hawai'i resident faces second murder charge
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Jury selection has begun in the trial of a woman accused of murdering a local businessman with the help of her son.
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| Sante Kimes |
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy-Powell began preliminary questioning Tuesday of more than 60 prospective jurors, who were asked if they had heard anything about the case. Only two said they had.
Kennedy-Powell cited a made-for-television movie starring Mary Tyler Moore as Kimes and said the case had received "a fair amount of publicity."
Kimes, 69, and her son, Kenneth, are accused of killing David Kazdin. The body of the 63-year-old businessman was found in a trash bin near Los Angeles International Airport. Prosecutors contend that he was shot because he had discovered the mother and son had forged his name to get a $200,000 loan.
Kenneth Kimes, 28, pleaded guilty to Kazdin's murder and was given a life sentence. Prosecutors said he has agreed to testify against his mother.
In 2000, the two were convicted in New York of murdering 82-year-old Irene Silverman, whose body has not been found, and conspiring to steal her $7 million Manhattan townhouse and other possessions.
Sante Kimes was sentenced to 120 years in prison in that case and her son received a 125-year prison sentence.
