San Diego

A Clairemont man who pleaded guilty Jan. 14 to first-degree murder in the shooting death of his 66-year-old mother was sentenced Monday to 25 years to life in state prison. Michael Arthur Pierce, 29, had changed his plea last month just as jury selection in his trial began in San Diego Superior Court. Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Zumwalt said Pierce found himself in a dilemma and decided to either commit suicide or kill Laura Pierce, his mother, after he had lied to her. Pierce was arrested April 27 after a police officer found the mother’s decomposed body in a bedroom of the home on Diane Avenue. The murder was estimated to have occurred six weeks earlier. Pierce’s mother had been shot twice in the head and was found lying face down on a bed.