Vista Judge Wryly Notes Victims’ Poor Shooting : Gunman Gets Life for Attack on Deputies

Mark Raymond Phelps, convicted of trying to kill two sheriff’s deputies in North County, was sentenced Thursday to life in prison after the judge said wryly that he faulted the deputies for being poor shots in their return fire.

Superior Court Judge William Mudd called Phelps an “enormous threat” to society.

Rural Shoot-Out

Phelps was convicted by a jury in San Diego last month for the attempted murder of Deputy James Bennetts in a shoot-out July 31 on a rural, residential street in Vista and for the attempted premeditated murder of Deputy Alfred MacKrille two days later along California 78 at Nordahl Road in San Marcos.

The trial was moved to San Diego because of pretrial publicity in Vista, but the sentencing was returned to North County.

Phelps maintained that he was being persecuted by law enforcement and was armed with submachine guns for self-defense in case authorities instigated a confrontation.

Mudd said there was “absolutely, unequivocally no evidence to sustain those allegations” about police heavy-handedness.

“The worst that could be said (about the deputies actions toward Phelps) is that in the fire fight situation, their aim was 2 inches off,” Mudd said.

“If anything, sir, you are a perfect poster child for the effects of methamphetamine,” Mudd added, glaring at Phelps during a 20-minute dressing down.

During the sentencing in Vista Superior Court, Phelps was surrounded by four marshals. Phelps frequently looked over his shoulder and winked at his wife, Pamela, who was sitting in the first row.

The judge sentenced Phelps, 28, to the maximum prison time allowable, as sought by prosecutors--14 years in prison for the attempted murder of Bennetts, and a life-in-prison term for his premeditated attack on MacKrille.

Phelps is eligible for parole in 14 years, but his defense attorney, John Emerson, previously remarked that “he’ll be an old man” before he gets out of prison.

Phelps still faces a May 10 trial in federal court on methamphetamine charges.

Mudd, who presided over Phelps’ trial in San Diego, both congratulated and gently chided the jury in its deliberations on the case, noting that they may have been confounded by conflicting eyewitness testimony about the two shootings.

“I may personally disagree with the conclusion they reached” in finding that Phelps did not premeditate the shoot-out against Bennetts, Mudd said, noting that Phelps was heavily armed when he confronted Bennetts.

Phelps unleashed a volley of more than 100 shots from an automatic weapon against Bennetts--hitting him in the shoulder--after he led Bennetts on a chase through Vista and then parked his car around a corner and opened fire on the deputy. Bennetts had seen Phelps and was trying to arrest him on a probation violation.

After that gun battle, Phelps took off on foot. He was next seen two days later--a Sunday afternoon--by MacKrille, driving west on California 78. According to testimony, Phelps opened fire on the deputy, after stationing his vehicle at the top of a freeway on-ramp as MacKrille slowly came up the ramp in his cruiser. Phelps then ran into a nearby furniture store--where he surrendered his weapons to a stunned salesman--and was arrested by deputies without further incident.

Given a chance to speak on his own behalf, Phelps told Mudd:

“I never did try to kill anybody. With the firepower I had, I could have. To actually kill somebody, that’s not in me.”

Methamphetamine Blamed

Emerson had asked Mudd to show some leniency toward Phelps, saying his client was “in a fog, he was paranoid” because he was under the influence of methamphetamine.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Bill Collins, however, noted that Phelps has a criminal record, including assault on police officers and firing a weapon at his wife.

Mudd added his assessment of Phelps, saying that with each subsequent run-in with the law, he had become more violent.

After the sentencing, Sheriff’s Capt. John Burroughs, commander of the Vista sheriff’s station, said he was pleased by Mudd’s remarks and the maximum sentence.

“It’s nice to hear the other side of the coin drop, to see justice.”