Trial to Begin for Pasadena Man Accused of Gruesome Attacks

A 75-year-old former U.S. Marine and Pasadena police officer is scheduled to stand trial Wednesday for slashing a woman’s throat, killing his own two dogs and attempting to rob a woman of her dog in a strange and bloody rampage nearly three years ago, officials said.

Jury selection in the case of Lance Anthony Semkus is set to begin in the Pasadena branch of Los Angeles County Superior Court, according to the  Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office and court records.

He faces charges of attempted murder, mayhem and attempted robbery, as well as two counts of animal cruelty in connection with the bizarre string of crimes, which Pasadena police said unfolded on the afternoon of Oct. 23, 2017.

Semkus tried to snatch a dog from a young woman in a pet store in the 3300 block of Sierra Madre Villa Avenue, police said at the time. She and the animal broke free after bystanders intervened and the suspect fled.

“Later on the same day, the defendant allegedly approached another woman and slashed her throat,” District Attorney’s Office spokesman Ricardo Santiago said in a written statement.

Semkus showed up in the 600 block of South Arroyo Parkway less than two hours later, where he attacked another young woman with a knife without any apparent provocation or reason, Pasadena police Lt. Mark Goodman said at the time.

The woman suffered major injuries, resulting in the charges of both attempted murder and mayhem.

Mayhem is defined under California law as when a person “unlawfully and maliciously deprives a human being of a member of his body, or disables, disfigures, or renders it useless, or cuts or disables the tongue, or puts out an eye, or slits the nose, ear, or lip.”

Investigators found and arrested Semkus within an hour or so of the stabbing, according to police and booking records.

Officers then checked his home and discovered his two dogs had been killed, officials said

Semkus served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1962 to 1966, according to federal records. He went on to become a police officer in Pasadena, where he worked from 1967 to 1971, then joined the Burbank Police Department, where he worked from 1974 to 1977, Pasadena and Burbank city officials said.

If convicted as charged, Semkus could face up to 32 years to life in state prison.

Bail remained set at $10 million Tuesday.