Man Faces Life in Prison in 1995 Dismemberment Slaying

A Bouquet Canyon man faced the prospect of life in prison without the possibility of parole Thursday after a jury convicted him of stabbing and dismembering an Antelope Valley man two years ago, a prosecutor said.

In addition to the murder charge, Scott Taylor, 20, was found guilty of special circumstances in the slaying, including lying in wait for his victim, murder in the commission of a robbery and killing a witness to a crime, Deputy Dist. Atty. Joseph Payne said.

Prosecutors did not seek the death penalty.

“I think it [the verdict] was justified by the evidence of the crime,” Payne said. “And I think it was justified by the brutality of the crime.”

The public defender’s office, which represented Taylor, was unavailable for comment.

Prosecutors presented evidence that Taylor and another man, Edwin Contreras, attacked Frederic Walker, 20, from behind with a machete. A witness, who claimed to have witnessed the slaying, testified Taylor had told her the victim had a lot of money and was going to rob him, Payne said.

Prosecutors said Walker was killed Aug. 9, 1995, after the two men invited him to a barbecue at the Bouquet Canyon home of Taylor’s parents. Prosecutors presented evidence that Walker had with him $635 from an inheritance he had just received after the death of his parents.

The Antelope Valley man’s remains--including his head and feet--were found in a plastic bag in the Lake Hughes area on Aug. 11, 1995.

Taylor will be sentenced April 9 by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge John Fischer. Contreras’ trial is scheduled to begin April 30.