Defendant Wants Death Penalty if Convicted

A reputed hit man in the “Cotton Club” murder case told a judge Friday that if convicted at his upcoming trial, he plans to ask jurors to recommend the death penalty for him.

The reputed hired killer, Alex Marti, 30, asked Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Curtis Rappe for permission to act as his own attorney at his trial, which is scheduled to begin next week. The motion was denied.

The judge also denied motions to have Marti and his three co-defendants--Karen De Layne Greenberger, 43; William Mentzer, 40, and Robert Ulmer Lowe--tried separately.

Prosecutors have charged that Greenberger hired the three men to kill New York theatrical producer Roy Radin in 1983 because of a dispute over financing of the movie “The Cotton Club.”