| For Immediate Release Case # 08CF2402
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Susan Kang Schroeder Public Affairs Counsel Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami |
THIRD-STRIKER TRANSIENT SENTENCED TO 19 YEARS IN PRISON FOR UNPROVOKED STABBING OF
14-YEAR-OLD GIRL IN VILLA PARK
*The People twice-objected to the 19-year sentence, advocating for life in state prison
SANTA ANA – A third-striker transient was sentenced today to 19 years in state prison for the unprovoked stabbing of a 14-year-old girl in Villa Park while she was walking with a friend from a bagel shop. David Edward Eddy, 51, pleaded guilty to a court offer to one felony count of assault with a deadly weapon, one felony count of possession of a deadly weapon, and a sentencing enhancement for great bodily injury. The defendant has two prior strike convictions for 1983 and 1992 first degree burglaries in San Francisco and Los Angeles Counties, respectively.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office objected twice to the 19-year prison sentence, both at the time the court made the offer and at the time the sentence was imposed. The People advocated for a life sentence based on the seriousness of the crime and Eddy’s prior criminal history.
At approximately 11:00 a.m. on Aug. 17, 2008, 14-year-old Jane Doe and her friend were walking southbound on Santiago Boulevard in Villa Park back to the friend’s house after having breakfast at a nearby bagel shop. Eddy was walking the opposite direction on the other side of the street, but crossed over to the same side and walked toward the victim and her friend. The defendant and the girls do not know each other.
As Jane Doe and her friend passed the defendant, Eddy pulled out a knife and lunged at the victim. The defendant stabbed Jane Doe twice in the side, inflicting two puncture wounds. Jane Doe’s friend yelled for the victim to run and the two girls escaped to a nearby gas station. Witnesses called 9-1-1 and helped the victim put pressure on her wounds.
Eddy attempted to leave the scene, but was chased down and held by three men until police arrived. Jane Doe was taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, treated, and released.
During the sentencing today, five people gave victim impact statements to the court including Jane Doe, her parents, and her friend’s parents. Jane Doe told the court that her life changed after the attack by Eddy, as she went from being innocent and carefree to scared and paranoid. She explained that she is afraid of shadows and is fearful when people walk up behind her. The friend’s father, Sheldon Weinstein, explained that the two girls used to live in a world that was safe, but Eddy took only a few seconds to take that away from them.
Deputy District Attorney Brock Zimmon of the Special Prosecutions Unit prosecuted this case.