Rhea Mahbubani

Santa Cruz Homicide Suspect Freed From Jail Due to Lack of Evidence

A man arrested Sunday on suspicion of killing another man at Main Beach in Santa Cruz is out of jail because there isn't enough evidence to charge him, county prosecutors said Tuesday.

Kevin Callahan, 58, admitted to choking 52-year-old Steven Lee sometime Saturday but he also told prosecutors that Lee was alive when he left him.

Police arrested Callahan early in the morning Sunday when officers went to the beach at about 4:20 a.m. because someone called to report a death.

Officers saw Callahan sleeping about 100 feet from where Lee was lying near the volleyball courts on Main Beach, located at 108 Beach St.

Both men were allegedly homeless.

County prosecutors reviewed the evidence submitted by police officers and the autopsy findings by the coroner, however, found insufficient evidence to charge Callahan, according to prosecutors.

Early in the investigation, statements by witnesses and evidence collected at the beach led police to think that Callahan killed Lee in connection with an argument over alcohol.

Copyright BAYCN - Bay City News
Contact Us