Robin Shirley & Lee Thompson

On October 3, 1993, Sergio Nelson shot Robin Shirley and Lee Thompson because he was angry that Ms. Shirley got a promotion he thought he deserved.  The defendant walked up to the car they were in and shot several times into an open rear window.  He then put the barrel up to Robin’s head and shot again before fleeing the scene.  The defendant was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder, as well as the Special Circumstance allegation of multiple murders, and the jury recommended a sentence of death.  The Supreme Court of California reversed the penalty phase judgment based on a trial error and sent the case back for a new trial on the penalty phase.  Under Gascon’s Death Penalty Policy the District Attorney’s Office refused to retry the penalty phase and the defendant was sentenced to Life Without the Possibility of Parole.   Gascon’s lack of respect was further evidenced when he said on tape to Robin’s sister “It’s unfortunate that some people do not have enough education to keep their mouth shut so we can talk.”