An L.A. County Superior Court judge Wednesday reduced the charge that stemmed from an alleged fight between a security guard and a tenant in Canyon Country, after a preliminary hearing last week.
Judge Robert Sanchez DuFour granted a defense motion to reduce the charge facing Kwame Felix Panthier from felony assault with a deadly weapon, to wit, a knife, to a brandishing a deadly weapon charge, which is a misdemeanor.
DuFour also dismissed the special allegation of the use of a weapon, which was based on the felony charge.
At a preliminary hearing, a judge hears the prosecution’s case, any affirmative defense, and then determines whether there’s enough potential evidence to prove guilt at a trial.
Panthier was charged Aug. 12, after his arrest by Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies four days earlier.
A security guard assigned to patrol Panthier’s apartment complex knocked on the defendant’s door around midnight Aug. 8 regarding a patrol check, after hearing loud music, according to a sworn statement from SCV Sheriff’s Station officials.
The alleged victim asked Panthier to turn his music down when Panthier answered the door with a 6- to 12-inch curved blade, according to a detective’s subsequent request to search Panthier’s apartment for the knife.
Panthier is due back in court Dec. 29.
