Marine Could Face Death in 2 Slayings

A Camp Pendleton Marine could face the death penalty if convicted on murder charges filed here Wednesday in the San Clemente shooting that left his ex-wife and daughter dead and another woman seriously injured.

Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Steven Gibson, a decorated veteran of the Persian Gulf War, did not enter a plea during a brief appearance in South Orange County Municipal Court, where two charges of murder and one charge of attempted murder were filed against him. His arraignment was postponed until June 17 by Judge Blair Barnette.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Patrick K. Donahue said the murder charges were filed with a special circumstance--committing multiple murders--that could bring the death penalty, but prosecutors have not decided yet whether to seek the death sentence. Gibson, 32, is accused in the Saturday night shooting deaths of his ex-wife, Kristina Louise Gibson, 26, and his 5-year-old daughter, Amber Dawn Gibson. Wendy Lyndell Johnson, 32, who shared her apartment with the two victims, was also shot once in the chest and remains hospitalized in serious condition.