A pretrial hearing took place Wednesday for three men accused of killing an Oakland police officer in the line of duty late last year, and murder charges against a fourth suspect were dropped.
Officer Tuan Le was shot and killed responding to a burglary call at a cannabis dispensary in the early morning hours of Dec. 29, 2023.
An Alameda County judge found that prosecutors presented enough evidence to show that the accused men -- Mark Sanders, Sebron Russell and Allen Starr Brown -- "knew or should have known" that Le was a peace officer engaged in his duties at the time of his killing.
The judge on Wednesday dropped the murder charge against a fourth defendant, Marquis Cooper, after finding Cooper did not participate in Le's slaying. Cooper still faces three counts of second- degree burglary and will be prosecuted separately.
Also on Wednesday, lawyers for the three murder defendants were granted more time to prepare for trial.
At least one of the murder defendants, Sanders, faces a possible sentence of life without the possibility of parole, based on the court’s finding. Russell was on probation at the time of his arrest.
Just months before Le’s slaying, Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price dismissed previous charges against Russell, court documents show. Those charges included kidnapping to commit a robbery or sex crime and special allegations for use of a firearm.
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In Le's killing, Russell faces murder charges with a special allegation of felony murder and three counts of second-degree burglary.
In January, Oakland police and other law enforcement agencies paid a tribute to Le, who was shot in the head and died at a hospital just hours after responding to a burglary at a cannabis dispensary. He was 36 years old.
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Le was the first Oakland police officer killed in nearly 15 years.
