Jury begins deliberations in Huntington Beach murder trial
Marylou Sarkissian, third from left, is pictured with her three children before her death in December 2016.
(Courtesy of Debra Zdrazil )
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A jury began deliberations Thursday in the trial of Jason Becher, who is charged with first-degree murder in the 2016 death of his ex-girlfriend Marylou Sarkissian in her Huntington Beach home.
Becher, 46, of Anaheim, could get life in prison without parole due to the special circumstances charge of lying in wait.
His public defender Irene Pai concluded her closing arguments Thursday at Orange County Superior Courthouse in Santa Ana, before Deputy Dist. Atty. Janet Madera addressed the jurors one final time.
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Jurors began hearing closing arguments Wednesday in the trial of a man accused of first-degree murder with special circumstances in the death of his ex-girlfriend in Huntington Beach.
Jason Becher of Anaheim, 46, could get life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted in the 2016 death of his ex-girlfriend Marylou Sarkissian. The special circumstance of lying in wait creates the enhanced penalty.
Prosecutors allege that Becher waited at Sarkissian’s house on Litchfield Drive in the early-morning hours of Dec. 2, 2016, before entering, strangling her and beating her to death.
During the trial, which began April 26, Becher’s public defender Irene Pai has not disputed that Becher caused the death of Sarkissian, who was 50. The defense has argued that it was a sudden act of rage, not a premeditated act.
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A lawsuit filed by the city of Costa Mesa claiming a $32-million theater planned for Estancia High School did not undergo proper environmental review will move forward, despite attempts by Newport-Mesa Unified officials to have the case thrown out.
In a Jan. 15 legal complaint, Costa Mesa City Atty. Kimberly Hall Barlow said school board members supported building a 46,000-square-foot performing arts complex with a 350-seat theater, black box theater and lobby at the Costa Mesa campus in October 2019.
More than one year later, with plans already submitted to the State Architect’s office, trustees determined in a Dec. 9, 2020 meeting the two-year construction project would be exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act a move the city has challenged.
Former mixed martial arts fighter Jason “Mayhem” Miller, who has a lengthy criminal record, pleaded guilty today to vandalism and was immediately sentenced to 364 days in jail.
By City News Service
May 12, 2021
SANTA ANA (CNS) - Former mixed martial arts fighter Jason “Mayhem” Miller, who has a lengthy criminal record, pleaded guilty today to vandalism and was immediately sentenced to 364 days in jail.
As part of the plea deal, a felony count of attempted grand theft was dismissed, according to court records.
Miller, 40, has been in custody since his arrest last Aug. 21, when he was charged in a residential burglary and car theft case in Irvine while on probation in a domestic violence case.
Miller was originally charged with one felony count each of first- degree burglary, unlawful taking of a vehicle and grand theft auto.