Local News in Brief : Man Sentenced to Death in Murder
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A Los Angeles Superior Court commissioner Friday sentenced a 24-year-old man to death for robbing and raping a woman before tying her to a bed and burning her to death.
Commissioner Florence-Marie Cooper imposed the sentence on Manuel Mendoza, who was convicted last May of one count each of murder, rape, arson and robbery in the attack on Mary Frances Litovich, 65, on Feb. 7, 1986, in her El Sereno home.
After a three-week trial, a jury recommended the death penalty for Mendoza after just four hours of deliberations last May 27.
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