Stanton : Man Who Murdered Neighbor Sentenced

A 25-year-old Stanton man has been sentenced to 17 years to life in state prison for the shotgun killing of a neighbor last year.

Spencer C. Heckathorne was convicted in June of second-degree murder. Heckathorne maintained that his shotgun went off accidentally on Oct. 16, 1985, firing through the thin wall of his apartment and striking Robin Ann Holding, 27. Witnesses said Holding, who died nine days later, had pounded on the wall when she heard Heckathorne and his wife arguing loudly.

Heckathorne and his wife both testified during the trial that they had not been fighting and that they did not hear Holding and others yelling or pounding on the walls that night. Heckathorne told the jury that he had been unloading the shotgun after a night of drinking to celebrate his birthday when it fired accidentally.

But Deputy Dist. Atty. Jeoffrey Robinson argued that Heckathorne fired shots because he was angry with his neighbors and wanted to teach them a lesson. After Heckathorne was convicted, Robinson said that Heckathorne knew that the shotgun pellets were “strong enough to penetrate that wall.” He noted that the shots pierced the wall at the point where Holding had pounded her fist.