Inmate Jesus Lopez has been sentenced to 30 years to life in prison by Judge Deborah Lobre. The sentence follows Lopez’s decision to withdraw his not guilty by reason of insanity plea and plead guilty to second-degree murder in the death of his cellmate, Jose Garcia, at California State Prison Sacramento. Deputy District Attorney Sterling Wilkins stated that Lopez also admitted to a prior strike conviction for voluntary manslaughter in 2003, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office.
On February 24, 2020, while already in prison for voluntary manslaughter, Lopez attacked his cellmate Garcia. Garcia was asleep when Lopez began strangling him. After briefly stopping and walking around the cell, Lopez continued the attack. He waited for a correctional officer to finish their routine check before carrying out the assault to avoid being interrupted, as stated by the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office…