SAN DIEGO —— A state appeals court Wednesday overturned three second-degree murder convictions and the life prison sentence a suspected immigrant smuggler received in connection with a June 2003 crash near Borrego Springs that killed three illegal immigrants in the back seat of his car.

Jurors convicted Antonio D. Sanchez, 26, of three counts of second-degree murder based on a determination that another crime —— fleeing police with a willful disregard for the safety of others —— is "an inherently dangerous felony," an appeals court opinion stated. The court and attorneys on both sides of the appeal agreed, however, that it is not "an inherently dangerous felony" within the so-called felony murder rule, the opinion stated.

As a result, the murder convictions and Sanchez's sentence of 53 years to life in prison were reversed. The appeals court ordered that Sanchez's case be sent back to the Superior Court in Vista for prosecutors to decide whether to retry Sanchez on issues the jury did not resolve and for Sanchez to be resentenced for the crime of fleeing police.