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DEFENDANT SAYS HE
ACTED IN SELF-DEFENSE DEATH OF TRANSGENDER MAN DESCRIBED AS ACCIDENT
OCCURRING IN STRUGGLE If anyone had been watching when Kozi
Scott grappled with Manuel Reyes Eredia in Scott's
home a year ago and wondered who was winning, there would have been little
doubt that the 260-pound Eredia held the upper
hand. That's how Scott himself sized up the struggle between them,
which resulted in Eredia's death last January, and
for which Scott now faces murder and hate-crime charges in Santa Clara County
Superior Court. |
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Scott is accused of strangling Eredia,
19, during a scuffle in Scott's studio apartment on Scott faces a 15-year-to-life term in prison if convicted. ''She was pretty strong,'' Scott recalled on the witness stand
this week. ''By now, it was my opinion she was a man. He was way too strong
to be a woman,'' the 170-pound defendant testified. Scott and Eredia met earlier at a bus
stop on The Alameda and had gone together to Scott's place for an interlude
of drinks, talk and sex in the dimly lighted apartment. Authorities allege that Scott, who consumed copious amounts of
beer and hard liquor during the day, killed Eredia
in a rage with a ''sleeper hold'' after the victim refused to acknowledge his
gender. Victim upset by queries Under questioning by Deputy Public Defender Charlie Gillan, Scott, a closet bisexual, conceded he was
physically attracted to Eredia, whom he first
believed was a female. But during and after their intimacy, Scott said he
became suspicious and was convinced otherwise after Eredia
became upset when he challenged him. An argument quickly turned violent with both wrestling each
other around the room. When Eredia appeared to tire slightly,
Scott said, he managed to get an arm around his opponent's neck in a carotid
restraint, cutting off blood flow to the brain. Scott said he didn't know
exactly how long or how hard the pressure was applied, but that the hold
rendered Eredia unconscious. ''It didn't seem like a long time,'' he said. Eredia sank to the floor, Scott said, and he collapsed as
well. Scott claimed he did not know how long he was passed out, but
awoke to find Eredia was not breathing. ''I never thought she could die from a 'sleeper hold,' '' Scott
said. The realization Eredia was dead caused him to
vomit, he added. His immediate reaction was to phone someone for help. An acquaintance
of Scott's girlfriend advised Scott to hide the body but declined to assist
him and subsequently called police. On the stand, Scott said he ''panicked'' and was afraid to call
authorities himself. He never had been in such a situation before and didn't
know how to respond. Besides, Scott testified, he would be exposing his
bisexual orientation, which he wanted to keep secret. In cross-examination Wednesday, Deputy District Attorney Michael
Fletcher hammered away at Scott's defense. Scott had told investigators that
voices had urged him to ''choke that person, take that person's life.'' But Scott admitted under questioning that he has since learned
that the voices represented his own thoughts. Fletcher also pointed out that compared to the few scratches
Scott received in the struggle, Eredia sustained
cuts and bruises, including five blunt trauma injuries to the head. Scott eventually stuffed the victim's blanket-wrapped corpse
into the trunk of his father's car, which police found parked near the
defendant's home, Fletcher said. Prejudice not motive In an effort to refute the hate-crime allegation that Scott
killed Eredia over the victim's sexual orientation,
Gillan presented several witnesses in his client's
behalf. According to the testimony of family members, friends and former
co-workers, Scott never displayed prejudice or hostility toward homosexuals,
transgender people or any others with alternative lifestyles. A gay hotel employee testified that Scott was always ''very
polite'' to himand to numerous other gays with whom
the two men once worked. ''In your opinion, is he biased?'' asked Gillan.
''No, he is not,'' the man replied. While Scott was living on the street, he met many gays and
cross-dressers and ''got along with everybody,'' testified Ivanette Villareal, an older
sister. She also said that as children, she and her brother played
''pass-out'' games similar to the ''sleeper hold'' involved in Eredia's death. The trial, which is expected to conclude next week, continues
today before Judge John T. Ball. |
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Copyright (c) 2001 San Jose Mercury News |
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