Offer by D.A. Prompts Guilty Plea to Murder

Swayed by a favorable offer from prosecutors, a Lido Isle man pleaded guilty Monday to first-demurder in the killing of his wife’s ex-lover, who was gunned down outside a Yorba Linda convenience store on Christmas night last year.

Patrick M. McBurney, 26, faces 27 years to life in prison when he returns to Orange County Superior Court on Aug. 2 for sentencing in the murder of Lance Michael Roney, 23.

Under an agreement struck over the weekend, prosecutors agreed to drop an allegation that McBurney had lain in wait for his prospective victim--an allegation that could have meant life in prison without the possibility of parole.

“We got an offer from the D.A. on Friday morning and we decided it was a good one,” explained defense attorney Ronald K. Perry of San Pedro. “We had a very genuine fear that (McBurney) could spend the rest of his natural life behind bars.” Now, however, McBurney may be paroled in about 17 years, his lawyer said.

Said Deputy Dist. Atty. Jill Roberts, “We’re satisfied that the case was resolved fairly for everyone.”

Lawyers on both sides described the motive in the killing as revenge.

A computer analyst in a small firm, McBurney became enraged when he learned that his wife had a brief affair with a co-worker and that she was planning to leave McBurney and take their 2-year-old daughter with her, Perry said.

“That caused him to lose all reason, and he shot the lover,” Perry said in an interview.

The victim was shot in the head and chest on Christmas night outside a 7-Eleven store in the 19000 block of Yorba Linda Boulevard. Roney was flown to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead. McBurney was arrested without incident the next morning.