A Santa Maria man received a sentence of 29 years to life in prison for the first-degree murder of an individual in Oxnard in 2018.
Manuel Dominguez, 25, entered a guilty plea in August for the homicide of Robert Gutierrez in Oxnard and acknowledged the use of a pistol during the offense.
The homicide occurred on December 13, 2018, when Dominguez revisited a previous neighborhood in Oxnard and encountered Gutierrez.
Following a short verbal confrontation, Dominguez discharged a firearm at Gutierrez, striking him in the chest from approximately 30 feet away, according to officials. Gutierrez was sent to a nearby hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
“This statement underscores the seriousness of a futile act that resulted in the loss of an innocent life,” stated Ventura County Senior Deputy District Attorney Cynthia Nguyen, who prosecuted the case.
Dominguez was apprehended on January 2, 2019, following an inquiry conducted by the Oxnard Police Department. He admitted culpability for the accusations on August 20.