NORTHRIDGE : Ex-Officers Appeal Slaying Conviction

Attorneys for two former Los Angeles police officers convicted of the contract slaying of a Northridge businessman argued to an appeal court Thursday that the pair should get a new trial because jurors deliberated outside court.

The attorneys for Robert A. Von Villas, 48, of Simi Valley, and Richard H. Ford, 51, of Northridge, contend that in addition to improperly discussing the case in small groups, at least some jurors were aware that the former Devonshire Division officers already had been convicted in another case.

The Van Nuys Superior Court jury found the pair guilty in 1989 of the slaying of businessman Thomas Weed, 52, who disappeared in 1983 and has never been found.

Judge Darlene E. Schempp banned all mention at the trial of Von Villas’ and Ford’s earlier conviction on charges they attempted to murder Granada Hills exotic dancer Joan Loguercio in 1983 to collect a $100,000 life insurance policy and of robbing a Northridge jewelry store in 1982.

Schempp conducted a hearing on the jury misconduct allegations three years ago and denied the new trial motion.

The California Court of Appeal in Los Angeles is expected to decide on the motion in about four months, said Deputy Atty. Gen. Paul C. Ament.

The prime witness against the pair at the trial was Weed’s ex-wife, Janie E. Ogilvie, who said she gave the officers $20,000 to kill her former spouse.

In return for her testimony, Ogilvie was permitted to plead guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 15 years to life. Von Villas and Ford are serving life without the possibility of parole.