NEW ORLEANS – Prosecutors again dropped charges against a man accused of shooting Ray Davies, co-founder and longtime lead singer of The Kinks, during a holdup in the French Quarter — and for the same reason: Davies wasn't in court.
Davies, who was shot in the leg Jan. 4, 2004, when he chased the man who had just taken a friend's pocketbook, said prosecutors notified him only a few days ago that trial was scheduled Thursday. He just didn't have time to get to New Orleans from London, he told The Times-Picayune on Thursday.
"I am very disappointed with the way this case has been handled," Davies said. "I intend to pursue it further."
It was the second time Orleans Parish District Attorney Eddie Jordan's office had dismissed armed robbery and aggravated battery charges against Jerome Barra, 28, because Davies wasn't in court.
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The first was in 2005. That time, prosecutors reserved the right to resume prosecution. This time, they closed the case.
Jordan's spokesman Dalton Savwoir would only say that Davies' absence made it impossible to continue. Court records show that prosecutors, the defense and Judge Calvin Johnson agreed on the trial date May 17.
Davies and his brother, Dave Davies, founded The Kinks in London in 1963. In the United States, the rock band reached the charts with hit songs such as "You Really Got Me" and "Lola." The Kinks were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
Ray Davies often visits New Orleans, where his friends include musicians and bartenders.
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