Death Ordered For Cop Killer Whose Case Was Spotlighted By Local Lawmaker

A bill proposed by , that would have made battery of a peace officer a "strikeable" felony offense was knocked down last April.

It was introduced by Jeffries after the killing of Riverside Police Officer Ryan Bonaminio on Nov. 7, 2010.

and a U.S. Army war veteran – he was shot and killed by a previous felon, Earl Ellis Green.

The killer’s past crimes included battery of a peace officer.

Jeffries' office contended that had AB 60 been law, Green would not have been free to commit Bonaminio's murder.

Fast forward to a little over a year later, and there may some condolence for those who supported Jeffries' bill.

Today, a Riverside County jury decided Green should receive the death penalty for Bonaminio’s murder.

The eight-man, four-woman jury deliberated for about 3 1/2 hours before making their decision. Jurors heard about two weeks of evidence during the penalty phase of the trial before reaching today’s decision.

On May 11, the same jury found 46-year-old Green guilty of one count of first-degree murder.

Jurors also found true two special circumstances: the murder of a law enforcement officer and murder to avoid imminent arrest. Green also was found guilty of one count of vehicle theft with a previous conviction for vehicle theft and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Sentencing is scheduled for June 25.

“We are pleased with this verdict and the hard work done by this jury,” DA Paul Zellerbach said in a released statement today. “This case is a perfect example – the murder of a peace officer in the line of duty – (of) why we need the death penalty and why it needs to be carried out.”

According to the DA’s office, on the night of Nov. 7, 2010, Bonaminio pulled over a big-rig tractor that was involved in a hit-and-run traffic collision on Highway 60. The officer stopped the vehicle on Market Street in Riverside and the driver, later identified as Green, ran into Fairmount Park, up an embankment.

Green attacked Bonaminio then shot and killed him with the officer’s service weapon.

During the subsequent murder investigation, a fingerprint was located inside the stolen big-rig. That fingerprint belonged to Green, who was on parole. Further investigation led law enforcement officers to Green’s location and he was arrested on Nov. 9, 2010, in the parking lot of a Target store on Arlington Avenue in Riverside.

Bonaminio was born and raised in Riverside and graduated from Riverside’s Ramona High School in 2000.