Man Guilty in Slaying at Movie Theater

A jury Wednesday found a South Gate man guilty in the murder for hire of a popular Fairfax district silent movie theater owner.

Christian Rodriguez, 21, faces a possible death sentence because the 1997 murder of 74-year-old Lawrence Austin involved special circumstances of lying in wait and murder for financial gain.

Rodriguez also was convicted of the attempted murder of the theater’s 19-year-old concession worker, attempted robbery and commercial burglary.

A second Los Angeles Superior Court jury Wednesday continued deliberating the case against the man accused of plotting the murder.

James Vansickle, a 38-year-old projectionist who had a turbulent seven-year business and personal relationship with Austin, faces the same charges as Rodriguez.

Vansickle allegedly gave Rodriguez a handgun, promised him $25,000 to kill Austin and an additional $5,000 to kill the concession worker to make the contract killing look like a robbery.

Vansickle’s lawyers and the prosecuting attorneys agreed to Wednesday’s reading of the Rodriguez verdict, which was reached last Thursday but sealed because of the Vansickle jury’s continuing deliberations.

Rodriguez will be sentenced Monday.

Austin’s Showcase Silent Movie theater was the nation’s only theater devoted solely to silent films. Police said Vansickle wanted to kill Austin to gain control of the theater and its valuable old films.

Authorities said Austin’s will listed Vansickle as the sole beneficiary of his estate, valued at more than $1 million.