Judge Sentences Merriman to Death

Calling the rape and murder of Santa Monica College student Katrina Montgomery “unspeakably brutal,” a judge sentenced skinhead gang member Justin Merriman to death Tuesday.

“I have no doubt about Mr. Merriman’s culpability,” Judge Vincent J. O’Neill Jr. said during a sentencing hearing in Ventura County Superior Court. “The evidence in this case was truly overwhelming.”

Merriman, who stunned observers during his trial by giving a Nazi salute, fidgeted in his chair as he was sentenced for killing the 20-year-old Montgomery in 1992. He will become the 12th man sent to San Quentin’s death row from Ventura County since California reinstated the death penalty in 1978.

The judge followed the jury’s March recommendation in imposing the death penalty.

Supported by two dozen friends and family members, Katy Montgomery expressed the sorrow she has felt since her daughter was killed more than eight years ago.

“We have endured all that we are able,” she told the judge. “We trust the court to bring this to a just end today.”

Merriman, who smiled at his mother and grandmother as he entered and left the courtroom, continued to deny responsibility for the murder. “I stand before you in complete innocence,” he said, his voice shaking. “My life has been taken away unjustly. I am not the person I am made out to be.”

The 28-year-old Ventura man, with a bushy mustache and several tattoos, accused prosecutors of lying and his own lawyers of defending him inadequately.

“I was frustrated with the way things transpired in my trial,” he said. “I can’t believe the outcome that has ultimately become my fate.”

Katrina Montgomery disappeared on Nov. 28, 1992, after leaving a party in Oxnard. Later that day, her bloodstained pickup truck was found abandoned in the Angeles National Forest. The murder went unsolved for years, until a series of breaks led to the 1999 indictment of Merriman, an unemployed parolee and member of a white power gang.

During the 2 1/2-month trial, prosecutors portrayed Merriman as a violent man who sexually assaulted women and used his gang connections to avoid prosecution and intimidate witnesses. They argued that Merriman, who had known Montgomery for a few years and sent her increasingly provocative letters during his previous stay in prison, raped Montgomery, then beat her with a wrench at his mother’s condominium. Then, they said, he slit her throat so she couldn’t report the assault to police.

During closing arguments in Merriman’s trial, defense attorneys admitted that their client killed Montgomery but said it was unplanned and did not warrant a first-degree murder conviction.

Jurors convicted him in February of first-degree murder, conspiracy, witness intimidation and the rapes of two other women.

During the penalty phase of the trial, Merriman drew gasps when he gave a Nazi salute, took the witness stand and proclaimed his innocence.

The jury recommended the death penalty, despite a defense argument that Merriman suffered from severe psychological problems.

On Tuesday, defense attorney Willard Wiksell argued for a new trial, saying the judge erred by not declaring a mistrial after an incident of juror misconduct. While the penalty phase was underway, a juror reportedly told a friend that the panel planned to “fry” Merriman. Wiksell said his client was deprived of the right to an unbiased jury.

The defense also presented a motion to reduce the penalty to life without the possibility of parole. Wiksell said it was fundamentally unfair that his client should receive a death sentence when the two men who witnessed the crime and helped dispose of Montgomery’s body--Sylmar gang members Larry Nicassio and Ryan Bush--are on parole.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Ron Bamieh disagreed, saying that death is the only fair verdict given the circumstances. “What’s fundamentally unfair is that the defendant raped Ms. Montgomery repeatedly that night,” Bamieh said. “What’s fundamentally unfair is that she was slaughtered.”

O’Neill denied both defense motions and then reviewed the probation report, which said Merriman was devoid of moral character and had a propensity for violence and racial bigotry. In addition to the death penalty, the judge sentenced Merriman to 67 years, which will be stayed pending his execution.

Wiksell said afterward that he was not surprised by the sentence. “It’s as we anticipated,” he said. “But it’s unfortunate. It’s a sad day.”

Bamieh said the county will be safer now that Merriman is being sent to death row. “The main thing is that he will never walk the streets of Ventura County again.”

Outside the courtroom, Katy Montgomery said she was thankful that the trial is finally over.

“There’s no happiness,” she said. “There’s no joy. But there is a sense of relief.”

Times staff writer Tracy Wilson contributed to this story.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Key Dates in Montgomery Murder Case

Nov. 28, 1992--Katrina Montgomery leaves a party in Oxnard about 5 a.m. Later that day, her blue Toyota pickup is found abandoned in the Angeles National Forest with blood in the truck bed. The Los Angeles Police Department launches an investigation.

July 1997--The Ventura County district attorney’s office, which took over the case in 1995, begins to pursue it full time. A grand jury is convened in November to investigate.

Nov. 21, 1997--Authorities arrest San Fernando Valley gang members Ryan Bush and Larry Nicassio on suspicion of murder. Bush is later charged with a drug offense, and Nicassio is charged with murder in Montgomery’s death.

Jan. 30, 1998--Justin Merriman runs from deputies during a traffic stop on Ventura Avenue and barricades himself inside a nearby home. After a standoff with police, he is arrested and charged with resisting arrest, vandalism and other counts.

March 30, 1998--Nicassio agrees to cooperate with investigators. He signs a plea agreement and leads them to a site near Sylmar where, he said, he and Bush had buried Montgomery’s body after Merriman killed her. Authorities are unable to locate her remains. Nicassio agrees to wear a wire to obtain statements from Merriman in jail.

December 1998--Prosecutors convene a second grand jury.

Jan. 6, 1999--Merriman is indicted on murder charges in Montgomery’s slaying. He is also indicted on rape charges for allegedly assaulting two women in the mid-1990s and a charge of evading arrest in the 1998 standoff. In May, he is indicted a second time for allegedly conspiring to intimidate witnesses.

Jan. 4, 2001--Merriman’s trial begins in Ventura County Superior Court.

Feb. 13, 2001--Jurors find Merriman guilty of first-degree murder with additional findings that make a death sentence possible.

March 12, 2001--Jurors recommend the death penalty for Merriman.

May 1, 2001--Merriman is sentenced to death.