CANOGA PARK : Man Convicted in Slaying of Youth
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A Los Angeles man was convicted of second-degree murder Wednesday for shooting a 17-year-old gang member to death in a dispute over pickup basketball games at Canoga Park High School.
Sidney Cooper, 21, faces 20 years to life in prison after his conviction by a Van Nuys Superior Court jury in the Oct. 7, 1991, murder of Alan Martinez of Canoga Park.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Shellie Samuels said that Cooper and Martinez were members of rival gangs, both based in Canoga Park, that feuded over nighttime use of the school’s outdoor courts.
She said that Cooper killed Martinez with five shots from a pistol after stalking the victim’s neighborhood seeking revenge for a friend’s stabbing at the courts.
Judge Michael Harwin set sentencing for Oct. 22.
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