Man Gets 2 Life Sentences For Killing Elderly Couple
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The methamphetamine-addled killer of an elderly Southern California couple has been sentenced to two consecutive life prison terms.
A Los Angeles judge on Tuesday sentenced 38-year-old Alfredo Montez Valenzuela, who was convicted by jurors in July on two counts of first-degree murder, burglary and robbery.
Prosecutors sought the death penalty, but the Pasadena Star-News says the jury decided Aug. 1 that Valenzuela should get life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Valenzuela admitted in court that he was on a methamphetamine binge in 2003 when he broke into the Monrovia home of 78-year-old Charles Shaum and his 70-year-old wife, Bernice, in search of money. Charles Shaum had 113 knife wounds and his wife was stabbed more than 40 times.
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