Golden State Killer Joseph DeAngelo sentenced to life in prison without parole
Joseph DeAngelo, the "Golden State Killer," was sentenced to life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to 13 counts of first-degree murder. Victims and families delivered three days of impact statements before Friday's sentencing.
Golden State Killer sentenced to life as victims confront decades of terror
Joseph DeAngelo, the man prosecutors have called the "Golden State Killer," was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Friday after pleading guilty to 13 counts of first-degree murder, abcnews.com reports. DeAngelo, 74, rose from his wheelchair and removed the white face mask he had worn throughout days of victim impact statements to address the court directly.
"I've listened to all your statements. Each one of them," DeAngelo said. "And I'm truly sorry to everyone I have hurt. Thank you, your honour."
DeAngelo served as a police officer from 1973 to 1979 before carrying out a campaign of murders, rapes and burglaries across California in the 1970s and 1980s. He was arrested in 2018 and in June entered a guilty plea to the 13 murder counts as part of a deal that also required him to admit to multiple uncharged rapes. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to take the death penalty off the table.
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said Friday that the decision to forgo capital punishment had not been easy. "I honestly believe that this person — not even a person, this beast — deserved the ultimate punishment of death," Spitzer said. "But we met with our victims. We knew the age of the case. We knew how long it took to solve. And we knew that this was the right thing to do." He added that he wanted victims and families who could not attend to know that "there are 13 angels watching us today."
Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert addressed survivors directly. "My greatest hope for all of these victims and their families perhaps is best put in their own words," she said. "The greatest revenge is to live your lives. Know that the monster of your childhood or your younger years is gone forever and will die alone in the dark."
A statement from DeAngelo's sister, read in court, placed some responsibility on their father, whom she described as an abuser and a womaniser. A statement from his niece offered a contrasting portrait, describing him as a loving and patient man who had taught her to drive.
The sentencing came at the end of three days of victim and family impact statements that began on Tuesday. Rape survivors and their relatives spoke on Tuesday and Wednesday; on Thursday, the families of murder victims faced DeAngelo directly.
Ventura County District Attorney Gregory Totten noted a pattern in how DeAngelo operated. "His crimes were always committed in the dark of night. And it was common for him to cover lights," Totten said. "Even now here in this courtroom he turns away from the light, and dare not face or look at his accusers."
Among the most striking testimony came from Elizabeth Snelling, whose father, journalism professor Claude Snelling, 45, was shot and killed by DeAngelo on 11 September 1975 in Visalia, California. DeAngelo was a serving police officer at the time. Elizabeth, then 16, said she was woken in the early hours by an intruder in a ski mask who pressed a gun to her head and told her he was taking her with him. Her father charged out of the house as DeAngelo dragged her away.
"DeAngelo fired two shots hitting my dad," she told the court. "He then turned the gun on me as I was down on the ground. My only thought was, 'this is it.' He started kicking me in the head and face, then ran off."
Claude Snelling died from his wounds. Elizabeth described him as her "hero" and said he was in "the prime of his life." The family remained in their home but installed additional security. "Knowing that my dad's murderer was never caught left us all feeling very vulnerable," she said. "Since I was the only living witness, there was a chance he could come after me." She said she lived in fear for years while DeAngelo went on to raise a family. "I am so thankful that he will at least spend the rest of his miserable life in prison."
Jennifer Carole, daughter of attorney Lyman Smith, described how her 12-year-old half-brother Gary discovered the bodies of his father and stepmother Charlene Smith at their Ventura home in March 1980. "The walls were splattered with blood and gray matter," Carole said. "Gary gently lifted the corner of the comforter to find my dad face down in the pillow cemented to the fabric by blood." Carole was 18 at the time. She disclosed that she had been treated as a suspect for two days after the murders. "I've lived with the shame for decades," she said, weeping. "It's your shame, Joe."
Carole was direct about the limits of the legal outcome. "Joe sitting here with his blank face, trying to ignore what he's done to not validate his victims, is not justice," she said. "Joe spending the rest of his life in prison is not justice. Justice is not possible in this case."
Charlene Smith's closest friend, Jill-Karen Morrill, also addressed the court. "It's been a never-ending ache and sadness that does not go away," she said. "Charlene was so much more than beautiful and Lyman so much more than handsome. When she and Lyman were taken, the world lost two amazing people, full of life and both with bright futures."
DeAngelo will spend the remainder of his life in custody, with no possibility of release.
Source: The Sun