Judge denies youth bid for freedom

Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2000 | 9:34 a.m.

A 15-year-old boy charged with killing his father will remain in jail after his attorneys failed to convince a judge Monday that he would pose no danger to others if released.

Conan Pope was jailed for the second time last month after his indictment on charges he shot his father to death after an argument over dirty dishes.

His attorneys had gotten him released on house arrest prior to his indictment following an incident at the Clark County Detention Center where Pope allegedly engaged in a consensual sex act with a male inmate.

Pope will be held in a special isolation area at the center, pending an appeal by his attorneys to get him released again.

In Monday's hearing, a friend of Pope's testified that he did not fear Pope and never heard him making threats against others.

Conan Pope has said he was defending his 16-year-old sister, Desiree Pope, when he shot his father with a rifle.

Desiree Pope, his sister, has cast doubt on her brother's claim that he shot in self defense.

She said her father became enraged when he came home from work and saw dirty dishes in the sink. He smashed the dishes and sent the teens to their rooms.

Frank Pope had been convicted of beating and suffocating his 11-month-old daughter, Sandra, in 1962. He served four years in a Washington state prison for second-degree murder.