Ventura County

Ventura Man Who's Spent Decade Behind Bars Expected to Have Conviction Overturned

Ignacio Ixta Jr. was 21 in December 2010 when he was convicted of attempted murder in Ventura County and sentenced to 34 years to life in prison.

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Rich Pedroncelli/AP

A Southern California man who has spent years behind bars for an alleged gang shooting is expected to have his conviction reversed this month, according to a law school project that pursues claims of innocence.

Ignacio Ixta Jr. was 21 in December 2010 when he was convicted of attempted murder in Ventura County and sentenced to 34 years to life in prison, the Loyola Project for the Innocent at LMU Loyola Law School said in a statement Friday.

Ixta’s parents, Alma Ixta and Ignacio Ixta Sr., spent a decade fighting to prove their son was wrongly convicted of shooting Miguel Cortez in Oxnard on Dec. 3, 2009.

With the help of attorneys and investigators it was learned that evidence that undermined the prosecution’s theory of the crime and indicated that someone else was the shooter was not disclosed to the defense before the trial, the Loyola Project said.

Ixta filed a Superior Court petition and the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office’s Conviction Integrity Unit agreed in a filing last month that he is entitled to a reversal of his conviction, the project said.

Ixta, who has been incarcerated at Pelican Bay State Prison, is expected to have his conviction reversed at an April 12 hearing and be made eligible for release.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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