A Sacramento jury has handed down a conviction in a murder case where Darnell Erby, was found guilty of first-degree murder for the killing of 77-year-old Pamela May, a North Highlands resident. The verdict was reached on Tuesday, and included additional convictions for mutilation and five counts of burglary, with Erby facing the possibility of life in prison without parole, according to a detailed report by the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.
As reported, on the morning of July 15, 2022, Erby trespassed into May's home, restrained her using her clothing and subsequently murdered her, the burglary during which the murder occurred lent a special circumstance to the charges; Erby then attempted to fraudulently transfer the deed of her home into his name, events unfolded in a disturbing sequence, where over several days, he returned to May's residence to dismember her body and place the remains into garbage bags.
Erby's criminal history compounded the case, with allegations of prior strike convictions for residential burglary and the sentencing consideration of whether these prior convictions represent a pattern of increasing severity which will be assessed during sentencing scheduled for August 15, as per a statement by the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office . The presiding judge, the Honorable Laurel White, of Department 33 is set to pass down the sentence.
The jury's decision came after an examination of the facts presented by Deputy District Attorney James Wax, from the Homicide Unit, who prosecuted the case against Erby.
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