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Trial ordered for suspect in fatal Trader Joe's shooting

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Damian Dovarganes/AP
FILE - In this July 24, 2018, file photo, Gene Evin Atkins appears in Los Angeles Superior court in Los Angeles. Atkins, who authorities say engaged in a gunfight with Los Angeles police at a Trader Joe’s supermarket that ended with the death of an assistant store manager, has been found competent to stand trial for murder. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Lisa B. Lench on Monday, Ma 3, 2021, set a July 22 pretrial hearing for Atkins, CBS 2 News reported. Atkins, 31, has pleaded both not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity in the 2018 death of Melyda Corado. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)
Gene Evin Atkins
Posted at 10:54 AM, May 05, 2021
and last updated 2021-05-05 13:54:09-04

LOS ANGELES (AP) — A man who engaged in a gunfight with Los Angeles police at a Trader Joe’s supermarket that ended with the death of an assistant store manager has been found competent to stand trial for murder.

A judge on Monday set a July 22 pretrial hearing for Gene Evin Atkins.

The 31-year-old has pleaded both not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity in the 2018 death of Melyda Corado.

Atkins is charged Corado’s killing, even though she was struck by a police bullet.

Prosecutors found two police officers acted lawfully when they returned Atkins’ gunfire.

Copyright 2021 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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