Golden State Killer Gets 26 Life Sentences
A former California police officer dubbed the Golden State Killer told victims on Friday he was “truly sorry” before he was sentenced to multiple life prison sentences for a decade-long string of rapes and murders that terrorized a wide swath of the state.
Joseph James DeAngelo, 74, pleaded guilty in June to 13 murders and 13 rape-related charges under a plea deal that avoided a possible death sentence.
The punishment imposed by Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael Bowman means DeAngelo will die in prison for the crimes committed between 1975 and 1986.
“When a person commits monstrous acts, they need to be locked away so they can never harm an innocent person,” the judge said.
DeAngelo also publicly admitted dozens more sexual assaults for which the statute of limitations had expired.
Prosecutors called the scale of the violence “simply staggering,” encompassing 87 victims at 53 crime scenes spanning 11 California counties.
Before sentencing, DeAngelo rose from a wheelchair, took off his mask and said to the court: “I listened to all your statements, each one of them, and I’m truly sorry for everyone I’ve hurt.”
Applause erupted when DeAngelo was remanded to the custody of sheriff’s officials for transfer to the state prison system.
“The defendant deserves no mercy,” the judge said.
The sentencing followed an extraordinary three-day hearing in which victims described his crimes in excruciating detail.
DeAngelo sat silently, expressionless in a wheelchair that prosecutors contended is a prop to hide his still vigorous health.
He eluded capture for four decades until investigators used a new form of DNA tracking to arrest him in 2018.
One of six prosecutors who spoke before the sentencing, Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward, said the outcome of the case offered hope to victims of long unsolved crimes.
“As science and technology evolve, the space for evil like this to operate within gets smaller and smaller. Simply put, the DNA will never forget,” Ward said.
Prosecutors initially sought the death penalty but settled for a life term given California’s moratorium on executions and the advancing age of DeAngelo, his victims and witnesses they needed to make their case.
Bowman sentenced DeAngelo under a plea deal that called for 11 consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, plus 15 life terms with the possibility of parole.
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
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