Attorneys emotional over 'Golden State Killer' guilty plea: 'He is pure sociopath'

Record ID: 1559902

  • Title: Attorneys emotional over 'Golden State Killer' guilty plea: 'He is pure sociopath'
  • Date: 30th June 2020
  • Summary: SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JUNE 29, 2020) (REUTERS) WIDE SHOT OF NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) SACRAMENTO COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY, ANNE MARIE SCHUBERT, SAYING: "Joseph DeAngelo isn't just the 'Vicalia Ransacker', or the 'East Area Rapist' or the 'Golden State Killer'. Having sat here today and listened and sat that night of his interview, he is the real life version of Hannibal Lecter. He is a cruel, intelligent, sadistic serial killer. He is pure sociopath. He is a master manipulator. And then we have today, perhaps even for others, that light came today that we now have moved this monster not simply from just being caught to now standing convicted." WIDE SHOT NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) ORANGE COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY, TODD SPITZER, SAYING: "The case is so disturbing to me for this reason. It doesn't follow God's plan. You don't bury your children when you're a parent. Janelle Cruz was buried by her mom. That's not God's order of things. You don't have your kids have to witness your parents being beaten and killed and your mother sexually assaulted. That's not the order of life that that is something that no one in their wildest dreams could ever perceive. It's not God's plan. When a man is bound by his spouse and then he's belittled and berated while his wife is sexually assaulted and he can't protect his family. That's not God's plan. That's why this is so hard, because I'm a husband and a father, too. And if I couldn't protect my family or my children or my wife, that's not God's plan." WIDE SHOT NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SANTA BARBARA COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY, JOYCE DUDLEY, SAYING: "There were so many emotions in the hours and hours that we all sat here and I saw so much in the eyes of the crime victims of DeAngelo's crime victims. And when I mostly saw was sadness and rage and a case reverse of bravery that were extraordinary. Then I also saw signs of peace as I would walk around to look into some of those crime victims' eyes and their loved ones, it was just the glimmer of peace. And I hope that that is a catalyst to spark the beginning of their healing process. I know many of them rightfully believed that this day would never come. But today did come. And even though their pain is still raw and their wait was painfully long, most of them are appreciative because they saw justice today. I know that's true for Debbie Domingo, Santa Barbara County victim [BLOWS KISS] - and for all of the other crime victims." WIDE SHOT ATTORNEYS EXITING STAGE AS NEWS CONFERENCE CONCLUDES
  • Embargoed: 14th July 2020 02:17
  • Keywords: Golden State Killer Joseph DeAngelo Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert guilty plea
  • Location: SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
  • City: SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Judicial Process/Court Cases/Court Decisions
  • Reuters ID: LVA001CKKABEV
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: An ex-policeman turned violent serial prowler known as the "Golden State Killer" pleaded guilty on Monday (June 29) to 13 murders and confessed to dozens of rapes and home invasions that terrorized much of California during the 1970s and '80s.
    Joseph James DeAngelo, 74, entered the pleas as part of a broader agreement with prosecutors sparing him from a potential death sentence in exchange for his admission to all offenses he stood accused of - charged and uncharged - in 11 California counties.
    Under terms of the unusual plea deal, outlined by prosecutors and Superior Court Judge Michael Bowman at Monday's hearing, DeAngelo faces a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
    Prosecutors said they wanted to ensure that the dwindling number of aging survivors, victims' families, witnesses and investigators would live to see resolution of the case, saving them from legal proceedings that might have dragged on for another decade.
    DeAngelo's arrest in 2018 capped more than 40 years of investigation in a case that authorities said was finally solved by comparing crime-scene DNA samples to information on genealogy websites consumers use to explore their ancestry.
    The breakthrough came about two months after the case gained renewed national attention in the bestselling book, "I'll Be Gone in the Dark." A TV documentary series spawned by the book premiered by coincidence on HBO on Sunday.
    In addition to 13 murders and kidnappings, prosecutors said DeAngelo was known to have committed nearly 50 rapes in all and more than 120 burglaries - most of them in and around Sacramento, the eastern San Francisco Bay area and Southern California.
    The crime spree spanned more than a decade - from 1975 to 1986 - and began while DeAngelo was a police officer, having served on two small-town departments during the 1970s, authorities said.
    (Production: Nathan Frandino, Vanessa Johnston)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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