Judge Sentences Long Beach Man To Death In 2010 Murder Of Norma Lopez
RIVERSIDE (CBSLA) — A Long Beach man was sentenced to death Friday for the 2010 murder of 17-year-old Norma Lopez in Moreno Valley.
Jesse Perez Torres, 44, was found guilty of first-degree murder last year, and jurors found the circumstance of murder during a kidnapping to be true. A week later, the same jury sentenced Torres to death.
Judge Bernard Schwartz on Friday affirmed the jury's decision and sentenced Torres to death.
Norma Lopez was kidnapped on July 15, 2010 as she walked to a friend's house from summer school at Valley View High School in Moreno Valley. Her body was found five days later in a nearby dirt field about three miles away.
Torres, who lived in the neighborhood where the murder and kidnapping happened, was linked to the crime by DNA.
At the sentencing hearing, Norma's sister read a statement from their mother.
"I took Norma to school that day not knowing it was the last time I will ever see her again," the letter said. "That's the day this nightmare started. Without Norma, my house was filled with pain and sadness."
