OXNARD : Jury Urges Gas Chamber for Killer of Woman
A jury Monday condemned a convicted Oxnard murderer to death for the fatal shooting of a 30-year-old mother of four.
Christopher James Sattiewhite, 24, becomes the eighth Ventura County defendant to face death in the gas chamber since California reinstated capital punishment in 1978.
After the proceeding, Sattiewhite remained glued to his chair as his attorneys tried to coax him to leave the courtroom. Lawyer Willard P. Wiksell later explained that his client, who was described in court as being childlike, was both astonished and frightened by the verdict.
Sattiewhite shot Genoveva Gonzales in the head three times Jan. 26, 1992, and left her body in a drainage ditch along Arnold Road in Oxnard. Investigators said the murder occurred after Sattiewhite inadvertently called out the name of an accomplice who had kidnaped and raped Gonzales. The killing was necessary to prevent the woman from identifying her assailants, according to testimony.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
