Zylon Vest Worn By Killed California Officer Under Review
Updated: March 3rd, 2006 11:46 AM EDT
Story by 10News.com
The makers of body armor who are being sued by the widow of a slain Oceanside police officer will be able to view the vest worn by the officer when he was killed, a Vista Superior Court judge ruled Thursday.
Attorneys for Second Chance Body Armor, which made the Ultima II body armor worn by Officer Tony Zeppetella, and Toyobo Co., which manufactured the Zylon fiber inside the vest, said they want to see the position of a bullet hole and the condition of the material.
The 27-year-old officer was shot 13 times during a shootout with an ex-convict in Oceanside on June 13, 2003.
One of the bullets penetrated the body armor and caused a fatal wound, according to testimony in the criminal trial of Adrian Camacho, who was convicted of first-degree murder and, last month, sentenced to death.
A trial in the civil suit, in which Jamie Zeppetella alleges the companies knew that Zylon was ineffective, is scheduled for Aug. 4.
With the criminal trial over, the firms wanted a chance to examine the vest and the fiber inside.
Judge Joan Weber granted their motions, allowing them to view the vest and a mannequin that displays the entry and exit points of Zeppetella's wounds, on March 8. The session will not be open to the public or media.
The attorneys will be allowed to slit open the side of the vest and pull out a panel of material. The vest needs to remain somewhat intact while Camacho pursues his criminal appeals.
"At this point, we're just looking to see if (the bullet) passed through the fiber" instead of surrounding material, said John Griffin, a lawyer in Orange who represents Second Chance Body Armor.
Attorney Greg Emerson, who represents Jamie Zeppetella, said there's a hole in the officer's shirt, a hole in the vest with "an inch-and-a-half blob of Zylon sticking out" and an opening in his chest that all line up.
"It couldn't be any clearer that there's a hole in the vest that caused the fatal injury to Tony," Emerson said.
Second Chance, which was bought by Armor Holdings Inc. last year, and Toyobo, which is based in Japan, appear to be blaming each other for the vest's failure, Emerson said.
It was known by 2003 that Zylon deteriorated rapidly when exposed to light, heat and humidity, but Second Chance continued to sell vests that contained the fiber, the lawyer said.
Jamie Zeppetella wants to hold those responsible for her husband's death accountable and will press forward with the lawsuit, he said.
She settled with a distributor of the vest for $165,000 but declined to sue the Oceanside Police Department or the city of Oceanside, Emerson said.