SANTA ANA, Calif., April 23 (UPI) -- A California appeals court Friday ordered murder charges dropped against the accused killer of off-road racing mogul Mickey Thompson and his wife, Trudy.
The Orange County Register said the 4th District Court of Appeals in Santa Ana ruled Orange County did not have jurisdiction in the case since the 1988 slayings occurred in neighboring Los Angeles County.
The ruling ordered a lower court judge to drop the charges against Michael Goodwin, Thompson's former business partner who has been in jail for two years.
Thompson was the impresario behind the development of stadium motocross racing and was locked in a protracted and bitter legal battle with Goodwin at the time he and his wife were gunned down in the driveway of their Bradbury home.
Orange County prosecutors told the Register they must decide whether or not to appeal to the California Supreme Court or turn the case over to L.A. County.
