Resident urges Pasadena council to reopen 1976 jail death, cites forensic questions

Eric Sanchez, a resident speaking during public comment at the May 6 Pasadena City Council meeting, asked the council to reopen the 1976 in-custody death of 19-year-old Danny (Danny) Stevens, saying he found “glaring contradictions” in police reports and the autopsy and urging further investigation.

Sanchez said the case file lacks booking photographs and that crime-scene photos “never show” the ligature clearly. He described the autopsy finding that a ligature mark “completely surrounded his neck” and said that, in his view, the wound placement and evidence such as the body’s posture were inconsistent with a suicidal hanging. Sanchez called for officials to reconstruct elements of the scene, saying: “The chief medical examiner’s ruling cannot be trusted, especially without autopsy photos.” He also told the council, “Justice delayed is not justice denied.”

Another commenter, identified in the record as Richard Mac, reiterated concerns about inconsistent descriptions in police reports and questioned changes between reported clothing at booking and what appears in later photos. Mac said he and others have pursued the matter with federal authorities and public channels and asked the city to reopen the investigation.

The public comment speakers made specific factual assertions about people named in historical reports and about handling of evidence; they asked the council to direct staff or law enforcement to reexamine records and evidence and to preserve and produce photographic and booking records. No city action or motion to reopen the case was recorded during the meeting.

Council members did not announce any formal investigation or directive on the council floor in response to the comments. The speakers named particular past officers and a funeral-home transfer they said broke chain of custody; those claims were presented as allegations by the commenters and were not confirmed by the council during the meeting.

Background: The speakers referred to an incident they said occurred in 1976 involving a 19-year-old identified in public comment as Danny Stevens and described the location as the original Pasadena City Jail. They also cited contact with outside agencies; the transcript and speakers referenced the “chief medical examiner” and that the speakers had contacted the FBI and the Department of Justice. The council record at the meeting contained only the public comment and no recorded motion or staff report reopening or investigating the case.

The speakers provided a website address during comment for supporting material; no city staff presented an evidentiary or investigative response on the record during the May 6 meeting.