"Trista Ann Spicer, who said she killed her boyfriend in self-defense after months of abuse and concealed his body in what police described as a makeshift tomb in her San Bernardino backyard for eight years, was convicted of second-degree murder on Monday, Nov. 10. Jurors also found true a sentencing enhancement that Spicer used a deadly weapon to kill 42-year-old Eric Mercado. In this case, the weapon was a cast-iron skillet."
"Mercado was considered missing for eight years until 2022, when Spicer's current boyfriend called police. Spicer had told him eight months earlier that she had to move the body, encased beneath concrete steps, because her family planned to sell the home. The boyfriend's mother successfully urged him to call the authorities, according to testimony. You cannot keep justice in a time capsule, San Bernardino County District Attorney Jason Anderson said after the verdict."
Trista Ann Spicer was found guilty of second-degree murder and a true deadly-weapon enhancement for the killing of 42-year-old Eric Mercado. The weapon used in the killing was a cast-iron skillet. Jurors considered verdicts including first-degree murder, voluntary manslaughter and not guilty. Spicer faces a potential sentence of 16 years to life (15 years for the murder plus one year for the enhancement) at sentencing on Jan. 30. Mercado was missing for eight years until 2022, when a boyfriend alerted authorities after Spicer said she had moved a body encased beneath concrete steps. Spicer described past meth addiction, relapse, and months of abuse.
Read at www.sbsun.com
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