GENTRYS TO STAY JAILED; $1 MILLION BAIL UPHELD FOR COUPLE ACCUSED OF KILLING DAUGHTER.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

A Superior Court judge refused Friday to reduce bail for Kathleen and Michael Gentry or dismiss charges against the Lake Los Angeles couple, accused of starving their handicapped 15-year-old daughter to death.

After hearing from prosecutors and defense attorneys, Superior Court Judge John Fisher with no comment denied defense motions to drop charges of murder, conspiracy and child abuse against the Gentrys or to reduce their bail to $10,000 or less.

Defense attorney Pat Thomason, who is representing Michael Gentry, said Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Ray Rodriguez should not have been allowed to testify during the preliminary hearing about the specifics of Lindsay's illness, because his medical knowledge was insufficient.

Thomason also said Lindsay's health was precarious since birth.

``She was born premature weighing only 3 pounds and 10 ounces,'' said Thomason. ``She had water on her brain. She had to undergo a blood transfusion immediately after birth then be put on a respirator.''

Lindsay suffered from congenital myotonic dystrophy, a hereditary disease characterized by the wasting of muscles. She inherited the condition from her mother, who has a milder form of the disease.

Lindsay died Feb. 6, 1996, at age 15, weighing less that 50 pounds. Her death certificate listed pneumonia and marasmus - progressive emaciation caused by a lack of food - as contributing factors.

Detectives didn't suspect any wrongdoing in her death until they received a tip from a person close to the family.

Kathleen and Michael Gentry were arrested in 1998, following what investigators characterized as a complex two-year investigation. Michael Gentry is being held on $1 million bail and Kathleen at $500,000 bail.

During Friday hearing, Thomason requested the couple be released on their written promise to appear for hearings, or on a minimal bail of $10,000.

In his argument, Thomason said the couple has family and community ties, pointing to supporters who nearly filled the courtroom. One person yelled ``Yeah'' when Thomason requested bail be removed.

``They are standing 100 percent behind the Gentrys,'' Thomason added.

The couples' supporters were upset by the judge's refusal to reduce bail.

``There's no justice in America. This is a plain abuse of power,'' family friend Greg Rollins said outside court. ``This is real upsetting. You can see how many people were in the courtroom. It's just disgusting.''

Dean Stokka, a Lake Los Angeles resident who has known the Gentrys for eight years, said the Gentrys' bail violates constitutional prohibitions against excessive bail.

``There's an Eighth Amendment violation going on here,'' he said. ``A $1 million bail is not reasonable. Anyone who thinks it is is out of their mind.''

``I'm sad to see what's going on in this country,'' he added.

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PHOTO (Color) Michael and Kathleen Gentry hold daughter Lindsay in a family photo taken before the girl's death in 1996.