No charges against transient accused in Campbell stabbing

Prosecutors say they will not file criminal charges against a homeless man who was arrested in the stabbing death of a San Francisco Bay Area teenager.

The Santa Clara District Attorney’s office said Wednesday that they dismissed the case against Todd Tharp because the evidence suggests he stabbed 16-year-old Ivan Diaz Amezcua in self-defense.

The 24-year-old Tharp said in jailhouse interviews that the teenager and his friends jumped him for no reason near a baseball field in Campbell on Sunday, and that he was kicked in the head and struck with a bottle.

He said he pulled out his hunting knife to defend himself. Amezcua was stabbed and later died at a San Jose hospital from his injuries.

Tharp was released from jail on Tuesday.