A Long Beach man who fatally shot his ex-girlfriend in front of their toddler son during an argument a few days before Christmas in 2015 was sentenced Friday to 40 years to life in prison.
Superior Court Judge Jesse I. Rodriguez imposed the term on Eric Jerome Williams Jr., 32, who pleaded no contest May 3 to second-degree murder for the Dec. 22, 2015, killing of Jerica Owens, 26.
Williams also admitted an allegation that he personally and intentionally discharged a firearm in the commission of the crime.
Williams pulled out a gun and shot his ex-girlfriend eight times in the face in front of their 20-month-old son during an argument in an alley near his apartment, according to Deputy District Attorney Troy Davis.
Williams subsequently fled from the area with their son and ran to a friend’s apartment, where police forced entry to rescue the boy that day, the prosecutor said.
Owens was killed about 2 1/2 months after Williams allegedly tried twice to strangle her when he became angry during a meeting to hand over their son, Davis said shortly after the murder case was filed.
Charges stemming from the Oct. 10, 2015, confrontation were dismissed as a result of Williams’ plea to the murder count.
The victim’s mother, Altha Goldsmith, asked how Williams could stand over her daughter — the mother of his child — and shoot her in the face, calling it “a level of selfishness I’ll never understand.”
“My grandson is going to have to grow into the idea that his daddy killed his mama,” she said of the boy, who is now in foster care. “What could I possibly tell him? … Nothing is going to bring my baby back.”
She said she remembered the first time her daughter met Williams and “finding what she thought was love,” and told her daughter’s killer that he couldn’t stand his ex-girlfriend leaving him behind after the two broke up.
The judge initially considered the defense’s request to postpone Williams’ sentencing so his mother, who was at work, could attend the hearing. But he said he changed his mind and decided to proceed with the sentencing after hearing from the victim’s aunt, Lisa Owens, who questioned why her family should have to wait any longer.
“She didn’t have a chance … I cannot get out of my head her last moments, what she was thinking,” the woman’s aunt told the judge, noting that she is still in disbelief about what happened.
The victim’s father, Jeremy Owens, said he didn’t understand what happened.
“It hurts, it really hurts,” he said.
The judge called mothers “sacred” and offered his condolences to the family.