A Maricopa County Superior Court judge has sentenced a man who murdered a county jail guard to 33 years in prison.
After an eight-day trial, on May 1, the jury sentenced Daniel Davitt, 63. Guilty of Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office Detainee Gene Lee in Manslaughter and acquitted of second-degree murder.
It was the first known death of a detainee on duty at the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office.
On October 29, 2019, David was awaiting sentencing at Lower Buckeye Prison. Convicted of five counts of sexual abuse. That day, he was about to deliver a letter of complaint about Lee to a member of staff.
David saw officials handing the letter of complaint to Lee and walked over to them to discuss. The jury agreed that David grabbed Lee by the neck and threw him over his leg, pushing him to the ground.
Lee later died from his injuries.
Defense attorneys argued that: A history of complaints and problems between Lee and David So did other inmates, as they reminded the court during Friday’s sentencing.
As more than 20 uniformed prison officers stood by in the stands, Lee’s boss, Chief Deputy of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, Russ Skinner, called for the maximum possible sentence. Mr. Lee’s wife and his son stood out in a sea of ​​brown and tan.
Skinner told the court how Lee’s death hurt the department personally and logistically. He said many police officers still struggle with death, especially after having to return to crime scenes every day. Others quit their jobs.
Skinner asked the judge to consider that the murder made it difficult for the prison to recruit new officers.
Staffing is a problem at the department, and David’s actions deepened that problem, he said, hinting at retired officers and potential rejection of applications for the position.
Lee’s wife, Linda Lee, also spoke about her husband. She described him as a caring father and her husband. Lee started working for the sheriff’s office when he was 59, but he was 64 when he was murdered.
The night before the attack, she said, they went out to dinner to celebrate their 27th wedding anniversary. Now she doesn’t know what to do with her very lonely days.
She asked the judge to give David a maximum sentence.
David, seated in a brown prison uniform and handcuffed, said nothing, but his attorney, Eric Crocker, did.
Crocker said the judge sentenced him to nearly 15 years in prison and argued that the case did not meet the criteria for a weighted sentence.
For someone like David, who has been convicted of multiple felonies, manslaughter charges typically carry prison sentences of 10 to 28 years. Nevertheless, it can extend up to 35 years if significant factors apply. Some are outlined by law, such as the suffering of the victim’s family and defendants convicted of felonies within the past decade.
In the case, the state argued that the judge should apply the aggravated sentence because of family impact, prior history, and senseless manslaughter.
The defense argued that the murder was not in vain.
Mr. Crocker told the judge that the charges filed against Mr. Lee by those in custody showed why Mr. Lee reacted the way he did that day.
But Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Roy Whitehead didn’t think so.
He thought the murder was pointless, but it turned out that the pain and trouble it caused outweighed any remorse David had shown.
He sentenced David to an aggravated prison sentence of 33 years. At his age, David is unlikely to live long beyond his prison term.
Crocker said he plans to appeal.
The judge also ordered the sentencing to begin no matter what sentence was given for the groping conviction.
David’s sentencing in the sexual assault case is scheduled for Nov. 18, with a possible life sentence.
This article originally appeared in the Republic of Arizona. Daniel David sentenced to 33 years in prison for death of Officer Gene Lee
