INDIO, Calif. – Prosecutors have dropped murder charges against two men who were accused of killing three members of a Southern California household whose bodies were found at a burning home.
The Riverside County district attorney's office on Friday dismissed charges against 26-year-old Robert Pape and 25-year-old Cristin Smith, citing legal issues that arose during grand jury proceedings against Pape.
The office declined to discuss the decision in greater detail and says the investigation continues.
The men were arrested earlier this year and charged with the 2006 murders of Pape's ex-girlfriend, 18-year-old Becky Friedli, her mother, Vicki Friedli, and her mother's boyfriend, Jon Hayward.
The teenager's body was found on fire in a wheelbarrow near the family's home in the rural community of Pinyon Pines. The other two victims' bodies were found inside.
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