Woman Sentenced in Cop Killing

Melissa Ortiz pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the 2010 death of SDPD Officer Christopher Wilson

The third and final defendant to face charges for the murder of San Diego police Officer Christopher Wilson was sentenced to decades in prison Thursday.

Defendant Melissa Ortiz pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and agreed to a plea deal for her involvement in the 2010 shooting death of Officer Wilson.
 
According to her plea deal, Ortiz will spend 25 years and four months in prison.
 
On October 27, 2010, Officer Wilson, 50, and other SDPD officials were providing backup to probation officers as they searched for a dangerous parole violator inside a Bay Terraces apartment.
 
During the search operation, Officer Wilson, a 17-year veteran, was shot in the head and died from his injuries. Investigators said the shot came from suspects who barricaded themselves in the back bedroom of an apartment.
 
In a videotaped interrogation, Ortiz later admitted to investigators that she aided the suspects by turning on a light in a bedroom, thus putting the officers at a disadvantage.
 
Two suspects, Holim Lee and Lucky Xayasene, killed themselves before they could be captured by police, according to investigators.
 
This left Ortiz, Alex Charfauros, and Patrick Luangrath to face charges for Officer Wilson’s death.
 
In September, Charfauros, who was convicted of second degree murder, was sentenced to 85 years to life plus 11 years for knowingly aiding the two people who were accused of firing the gun that killed Wilson. That same month, Luangrath, who pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter, was sentenced to 21 years in prison.
 
Ortiz will also serve time for robbing an Apple store in the Otay Ranch Towne Center in April 2011. For this, Ortiz pleaded guilty to robbery with enhancements for gang related crime and participating in a crime in which a fire arm was used.
 
At the County Courthouse Thursday, Judge Kenneth So called Ortiz’s crimes "tragic” and said they will have a lasting impact on everyone involved. Meanwhile, Ortiz’s father said his daughter made serious mistakes and let drugs ruin her life.
 
Prosecutor Michael Runyon told the court that Ortiz had not shown any regrets about her crimes and that she had several opportunities to turn her life around and continually made the wrong decisions.
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