Man Faces Life Term After Theft Conviction
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A career criminal from Ventura County who has served time in prison for rape and shooting a police officer now faces life in prison after being convicted last week of stealing lip balm, breath spray and wine from a grocery store.
Ronald Steven Herrera, 56, formerly of Santa Paula, was found guilty in Santa Barbara Superior Court on Oct. 16 of commercial burglary and petty theft with a prior conviction, officials said.
Prosecutors had charged him with stealing the items, valued at $11.97, from a Vons store in Carpinteria on Jan. 5.
Because the burglary marks his third felony conviction under the state’s three strikes law, Herrera faces the life term.
His sentencing is scheduled in Santa Barbara on Nov. 12.
At his most recent trial, Herrera’s attorney argued that his client has a brain defect that does not allow him to remember things.
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