Three San Gabriel Valley Co-Defendants Sentenced to Lesser Terms in Death Penalty Case

Three people were sentenced today for their roles in two 2004 murders for which the gunman is expected to land on death row.

Jose Resendez, 37, and Bernadette Corvera, 32, were both sentenced to 15 years to life behind bars.

Both defendants pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and robbery counts -- Resendez for the San Gabriel killing of Dianqui Wu, and Corvera for the shooting death of 22-year-old Pasadena City College student Joseph Molina.

Mitzie Ann Oso, 35, who pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in both killings, was given an eight-year term but was expected to be released later today. She's been jailed since her arrest in 2005 and has already served more days than required by her sentence, according to Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Ronald S. Coen.

All three defendants negotiated plea deals with prosecutors and testified at the trial of Leonardo Cisneros, who was convicted May 7 of first- degree murder for shooting Molina during a Dec. 10, 2004, heist at a Subway sandwich shop in Whittier, along with the Aug. 4, 2004, shooting death of Wu. The 50-year-old Rowland Heights man was shot, despite agreeing to turn over his money before he was killed in the 1800 block of South Del Mar Avenue.

Jurors found true the special circumstance allegations of murder during the course of a robbery and multiple murders, and found Cisneros guilty of 16 counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery -- some involving armed heists at other businesses in the San Gabriel Valley area.

Deputy District Attorney Frank Santoro told the eight-man, four-woman panel that Cisneros was "a monster, a ruthless, brutal killer," who deserved a verdict of death because he "ruined so many lives."

Jurors agreed, and deliberating less than a day and a half before recommending that the 30-year-old defendant be put to death for his crimes. He's due back in court June 18, when a formal sentencing date is scheduled to be set.

A fourth co-defendant, Sara Lopez, 32, pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact in Wu's death and was sentenced in 2010 to three years probation.

—City News Service