Conviction overturned in 2012 kidnapping and killing of Sierra LaMar

SAN JOSE — An appellate court has overturned the conviction for the man imprisoned for life in the 2012 disappearance and presumed killing of Sierra LaMar, a crime that captivated the region in part because the 15-year-old victim’s body has never been found.

Antolin Garcia Torres, 34, convinced a judicial panel from the 6th District Court of Appeal that consolidating three attempted kidnapping allegations — reported three years before Sierra’s disappearance from a bus stop in unincorporated Morgan Hill — into the murder trial prejudiced a jury.

The appellate ruling was released Friday. The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office has the option to appeal the decision to the California Supreme Court. If that were to be denied, it could decide to re-file the lone murder charge for Sierra, but would not be able to cite the prior kidnapping allegations, which prosecutors presented during the 2017 trial as a “training ground” for the primary murder accusation.

“In any retrial … based on our finding of insufficient evidence of willful, deliberate, and premeditated murder or a specific intent to kill, the prosecution is barred from relying on those theories,” the ruling states.

In response to an inquiry from this news organization, the district attorney’s office did not comment on its next steps, but suggested that the case is not settled.

“We just received the opinion and are digesting it,” the statement reads. “However, we will never stop seeking justice for Sierra.”

Garcia Torres’ appellate attorney, Danalynn Pritz, could not be immediately reached for comment Friday afternoon. Messages left for LaMar’s family were also not immediately returned.

The teen disappeared on her way to a bus stop near her home March 16, 2012, and her body has never been found even after more than 750 volunteers spent years routinely conducting searches in the area for her remains.

Garcia Torres was convicted on the strength of DNA traces of Sierra reputedly found in his car, and a strand of hair found on a piece of rope in the trunk, as well as the discovery of his DNA on Sierra’s pants that were found abandoned in a field. He claimed they never met, and that he had been on a short fishing trip the morning of the disappearance.

Garcia Torres is currently serving a life without parole term in Corcoran State Prison. He is expected to remain there until prosecutors have exhausted or ceased their efforts to appeal or re-try the case.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.