Her friends and family members spoke of the magnificence of Jessica Orozco as the man who killed her was sentenced to the Arizona Department of Corrections Thursday. They told the Court that the 31-year-old Kingman woman excelled at everything and that her loss leaves a void in all their lives.
Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle was told that Orozco was a gifted parent, a beloved co-worker and a brilliant botanist. “Everything that she ever touched turned into flowers,” said Orozco’s Uncle Shaun Gaskins.
A trial jury last month convicted Gerald Richardson, 58, of manslaughter in Orozco’s death last October. Orozco was returning a child to Richardson’s home when he fired a shot through his front door, suspecting the presence of an intruder.
Judge Carlisle noted that the jury rejected the defense theory that the shooting was justified because Richardson enjoys the right to protect himself and his property. Prosecutor James Schoppmann said Richardson had many options other than to blindly fire through his front door while a woman and two children were at his porch.
“This was senseless,” Schoppman said. “This was reckless. This was unjustified.”
Input to the Court noted the suffering of the ten year old boy whom Orozco was adopting. The child has been returned to foster care in the California system.
Judge Carlisle ordered a 10.5 year prison term but completed sentencing does not necessarily end the case. An August 9 hearing has been scheduled regarding contested restitution and an appeal is in the wind.
Defense attorney Robin Puchek said he will be filing a motion to vacate and set aside Richardson’s conviction and sentence. The motion will be based upon input from trial jury member Lynette Wedemeyer.
Wedemeyer wrote Judge Carlisle twice after the verdicts. She said she and another juror who were not convinced were brow beaten by other jurors before they joined in the guilt determination.
