The son of Peoples Temple defectors murdered 25 years ago walked out of Berkeley jail a free man Thursday and will not be charged with his parents' or sister's slayings, a prosecutor said.

The Alameda County District Attorney's Office refused Thurs-

day to file triple-murder charges against Edward Michael Mills, 43, citing questions about the evidence and a lack of time to review the case.

Mills stood accused of shooting his parents, Al Mills, 51, and Jeannie Mills, 40, and his younger sister, Daphene Mills, 16, the evening of Feb. 26, 1980, at their cottage at 2731 Woolsey St. in Berkeley.

Edward Mills' family had once been members of the Rev. Jim Jones' Peoples Temple but defected in 1975 from the cult and became some of its most outspoken critics. Jones led the 1978 mass murder-suicide of 900 Temple followers at a compound in Jonestown, Guyana.

"No charges have been filed," said prosecutor Chris Carpenter, who was involved in the case in 1980. "Because of the arrest, we had to make a decision by noon (Thursday). We did not feel that was sufficient time toreview all the material." Prosecutors have 48 hours from the time of a person's arrest to file criminal charges.

Carpenter said his office would be willing to review additional material because there are still questions about the evidence. "But my understanding is that while we remain open to reviewing additional material, the Berkeley Police Department is going to close the file," he said.

Officer Joe Okies, police spokesman, said that without additional information, the case is closed at this point.

Cold case investigator Russell Lopes reopened the case two years ago, citing "new forensic evidence and subsequent interviews" to link Mills to the crime.

Because he was 17 years old at the time, Mills would have been prosecuted as a juvenile had a charge been filed.

Lopes was frustrated with the prosecutor's decision Thursday.

"Eddie Mills gets away with murder, and it's outrageous," he said.

Mills was detained Saturday by U.S. Customs as he arrived at San Francisco International Airport from his home in Japan.

Mills was not available for comment Thursday, but his older sister, Linda Mertle of Point Richmond, expressed relief that her brother is a free man again.

"I'm just glad he's home," she said. "This has been the most horrible vacation anyone could ask for." Mertle said Mills had come to the Bay Area with his two small children to visit family for the holidays.

Mertle was not certain why police targeted her brother after 25 years.

"My personal opinion is it's an easy way out. They don't want to do the footwork to find out who really did this."

Mertle did not provide a theory on who killed her parents and stepsister. "I know Eddie did not do it, I don't care who did it, it's so far in the past now," she said.

At the time of the murders, Mills family members were under police protection because they feared "hit squads" had organized to kill them for leaving the Temple.

But police discounted those theories and focused on Mills, then 17. The teen told police that on the night of the murders, he had taken a long shower and gone to his bedroom, where he smoked marijuana and watched television. He told police he hadn't heard shots or shouts. Tests showed some microscopic gunpowder residue were on his hands, but not enough to provide conclusive evidence, police said following the crime.

The victims were all shot in the head at close range with a .22-caliber pistol. They were discovered in the blood-splattered bedrooms when Edward Mills' grandmother stopped by for a visit. The murder weapon was never found.