Sandra Cantu #4 4/27/09 -

[akmom]

I wish that if she wasn't going to get the death penalty she would be confined to a small dark box for the rest of her life.  I still do not believe that this was a lone act by a single person


God Bless you Sandra. 

[JessStar]

I wish that if she wasn't going to get the death penalty she would be confined to a small dark box for the rest of her life.  I still do not believe that this was a lone act by a single person


God Bless you Sandra. 

Interestingly, akmom, some day we may know the truth to that.  Who knows what led to the plea, although I've always said that she confessed.  I still believe that.  There was overwhelming evidence of guilt.  That leaves the defense with one goal--how do I spare my client's life?  It is common in such cases for the prosecution to require, as part of the plea, for the guilty party to sing about other unsolved crimes or, as may be the case here, provide intelligence about "underground" criminal activity.  I find it interesting that it appears the rape charge was dropped.  I can only surmise as to why.

God Bless You, Sandra.  May You NOW rest in peace little girl.

[cece]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/05/10/BAH01DC7P9.DTL

Surprise guilty plea in Sandra Cantu murder

In a surprise move, a Tracy woman pleaded guilty today to charges that she murdered 8-year-old Sandra Cantu.
More Bay Area News

Melissa Huckaby, 29, entered her plea in San Joaquin County Superior Court to murder with an enhancement for kidnapping, said Sharon Morris, assistant court executive officer. Huckaby faces 25 years to life in prison without the possibility of parole when she is sentenced June 14 by Judge Linda Lofthus.

Huckaby's plea in a Stockton courtroom took place at what had been scheduled as a procedural hearing in advance of a trial set for this fall. Prosecutors had been urging for the case to move along since her arrest in April 2009.

In exchange for her plea, prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty and dropped other charges, including child endangerment and furnishing a harmful substance for allegedly drugging a 7-year-old girl and a man in the months before Sandra died.

Sandra was last seen March 27, 2009, when a surveillance video captured images of her skipping near her home in the Orchard Estates Mobile Home Park in Tracy. Her body was found in a suitcase April 6, 2009, in a dairy farm's irrigation pond 2 miles from the mobile home park.

 Huckaby, who is the mother of one of Sandra's playmates, was arrested four days later and originally charged with murder and three special circumstances. Those had alleged that the killing was committed during a kidnapping, involved a lewd or lascivious act on a child, and involved rape with a foreign object.

Attorneys in the case could not immediately comment today because of gag order.

[cece]

http://www.fox43.com/news/nationworld/ktxl-news-huckabypleadsguilty,0,710013.story

Melissa Huckaby Pleads Guilty To Kidnapping, Murder Of Sandra Cantu

video report at link.

[cece]

http://www.mysuncoast.com/Global/story.asp?S=12457259&nav=menu577_2

Calif woman pleads guilty in Sandra Cantu murder

STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) - A California Sunday school teacher accused of kidnapping, raping and killing an 8-year-old playmate of her daughter, then stuffing the body in a suitcase, pleaded guilty Monday to first-degree murder.

Melissa Huckaby, 29, entered the plea in San Joaquin County Superior Court before a hearing over evidence that had been scheduled for later in the day. Her trial had been set to begin in October.

A grand jury had indicted Huckaby on the murder charge with the special circumstances of rape, kidnapping and lewd or lascivious conduct with a child under 14, which would have made her eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

cont...

[cece]

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100510/A_MEDIA03/100519990/-1/A_SPECIAL0263

Families react to Huckaby plea outside courthouse

video

[cece]

Huckaby pleads guilty for Cantu murder

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100510/A_NEWS/100519995/-1/A_SPECIAL0263

STOCKTON — Melissa Huckaby admitted guilt today to the murder and kidnapping last year of 8-year-old Sandra Cantu in a crime that shocked Tracy and captured national attention.

The surprise development spares Huckaby, 29, of the possible death sentence, which prosecutors intended to seek in trial. Under the negotiated plea deal announced in a Stockton courtroom, Huckaby will spend the rest of her natural life in state prison.

Huckaby pleaded guilty to murder with the special circumstance of kidnapping. All other charges against her were dropped, including charges of rape and poisoning.

Huckaby's guilty plea came a little more than one year after a surveillance camera captured one of Sandra's last living moments on March 27, 2009, as she happily skipped through Orchard Estates Mobile Home Park in Tracy.

Both Sandra and Huckaby's families lived in the mobile home park. Sandra was a playmate of Huckaby's young daughter.

Days later farm workers discovered Sandra's body about two miles north of town stuffed in a black suitcase and discarded in a dairy pond. Hucakby was linked to the suitcase and charged with special circumstances murder. Her trial was set to begin in October.

San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Linda Lofthus set Huckaby's formal sentencing date for June 14.

[cece]

So sorry for the double post.   

[cece]

Rest in Peace, sweet Sandra.

(credit to blink & nutt for picture).

[trimmonthelake]

Thank you Cece.   

[no rose colored glasses]

Melissa Huckaby Pleads Guilty To Kidnapping, Murder Of Sandra Cantu

FOX40 News
 
A Stockton judge has accepted a guilty plea from Melissa Huckaby Monday morning.

Huckaby was accused of killing 8-year-old Sandra Cantu last year in Tracy.

The District Attorney has reportedly made a plea deal with Huckaby on murder and kidnapping charges.

According to the plea agreement, she will be sentenced to life in prison without parole.

http://www.fox40.com/news/headlines/ktxl-news-huckabypleadsguilty,0,7232594.story

Thank-you JessStar, that is a big surprise. Justice for little Sandra 

[no rose colored glasses]

Thank you Cece.   

Thank-you so much cece.  And JessStar, thank-you, why do you believe the rape charges were dropped?

[AmandaReckonwith]

(sorry if this is in the wrong thread)

Sandra Cantu archive album:
http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Sandra%20Cantu/

[no rose colored glasses]

(sorry if this is in the wrong thread)

Sandra Cantu archive album:
http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Sandra%20Cantu/

Thank-you. What in the world did she do to herself, appearance wise 

[mamacrazy30]

(sorry if this is in the wrong thread)

Sandra Cantu archive album:
http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Sandra%20Cantu/

Thank-you. What in the world did she do to herself, appearance wise 

i know
i look at it as her true colors showing.  you know when you meet a person for the first time and find them attractive, but the more you get to know them, they either start looking better, or worse.  i imagine she will look more and more demon like as the years go by.

[JessStar]

Thank you Cece.   

Thank-you so much cece.  And JessStar, thank-you, why do you believe the rape charges were dropped?

Probably to get a conviction on 1st degree murder and kidnapping.  Once that deal was reached, the prosecution didn't need those charges anymore.  We'll likely learn the drugging charges will also be dropped.  But it doesn't matter.  She's been convicted on the worst of the charges sentence wise, and the rape charge was plead as a special circumstance for death penalty eligibility.  This was Huckaby's plea for life, plain and simple.

[bananas]

I saw on HLN that MH has plead guilty to murder and I am glad at least sweet little Sandra Cantu can have some kind of justice.

[no rose colored glasses]

Thank you Cece.   

Thank-you so much cece.  And JessStar, thank-you, why do you believe the rape charges were dropped?

Probably to get a conviction on 1st degree murder and kidnapping.  Once that deal was reached, the prosecution didn't need those charges anymore.  We'll likely learn the drugging charges will also be dropped.  But it doesn't matter.  She's been convicted on the worst of the charges sentence wise, and the rape charge was plead as a special circumstance for death penalty eligibility.  This was Huckaby's plea for life, plain and simple.

Thank-you

[akmom]

I wish that if she wasn't going to get the death penalty she would be confined to a small dark box for the rest of her life.  I still do not believe that this was a lone act by a single person


God Bless you Sandra. 

Interestingly, akmom, some day we may know the truth to that.  Who knows what led to the plea, although I've always said that she confessed.  I still believe that.  There was overwhelming evidence of guilt.  That leaves the defense with one goal--how do I spare my client's life?  It is common in such cases for the prosecution to require, as part of the plea, for the guilty party to sing about other unsolved crimes or, as may be the case here, provide intelligence about "underground" criminal activity.  I find it interesting that it appears the rape charge was dropped.  I can only surmise as to why.

God Bless You, Sandra.  May You NOW rest in peace little girl.

Thanks for that info JessStar.  How long do you think it would be before we would possibly see something else coming to light, if there is anything?

[SuzieQ]

Calif. woman pleads guilty in death of girl, 8
By TERRY COLLINS and MARCUS WOHLSEN, AP
47 minutes ago

 TRACY, Calif. — A California Sunday school teacher accused of kidnapping, raping and killing an 8-year-old playmate of her daughter, then stuffing the body in a suitcase, pleaded guilty Monday to murder.

Melissa Huckaby, 29, entered the plea in San Joaquin County Superior Court to a charge of first-degree murder with a special circumstance of kidnapping. As part of a deal with prosecutors, all other charges — including two involving rape and lewd or lascivious conduct with a child under 14 — were dropped, according to court spokeswoman Sharon Morris.

The surprise plea came during what was scheduled to be a routine pretrial hearing Monday morning. The initial charges in the grand jury indictment last year would have made her eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Her trial had been set to begin in October.

Morris said Huckaby now faces a sentence of 25 years to life in prison without the possibility of parole when she's sentenced June 14.

Authorities say Huckaby killed Sandra Cantu, a playmate of her young daughter, in March 2009. A search for the girl ended after 10 days when her body was found stuffed in a black suitcase pulled from an irrigation pond a few miles from the Tracy mobile home park where both the child and the defendant lived.

Sandra was last seen on a surveillance camera skipping near her home just five doors down from Huckaby.

Huckaby also had been charged with previously drugging a 7-year-old girl and a 37-year-old man, whom police believe she had been dating. Those charges also were dropped in the plea deal.

During Monday's hearing, Judge Linda Lofthus maintained the gag order that she had imposed in the case last year, according to Tracy police spokesman Tony Sheneman.

Attorneys in the case did not return calls seeking comment. Angie Chavez, Sandra's aunt and the spokeswoman for the Cantu family, declined comment Monday, citing the gag order.

Just as at the time of the arrest, police on Monday morning stood guard at the entrance to the mobile home park where Cantu and Huckaby lived. A swarm of reporters gathered in a parking lot across from the entrance but were not being let into the neighborhood.

Susan Alley, 50, said she has lived in the mobile park for nearly four years. She said she was glad to hear of Huckaby's plea and said neighbors only recently have started to feel comfortable around each other again.

"It's gotten better out here. Nobody trusted each other," Alley said.

Huckaby calmly answered the judge's questions about whether she was in a sound state of mind and understood that she was entering a guilty plea, said courtroom artist Vicki Behringer.

"She was just really relaxed and pleasant. She looked better than I had seen her in a long time," said Behringer, who has attended every court hearing in the case.

Prosecutors wanted the judge to ask more questions to ensure the defense could not backpedal later by claiming Huckaby was not in her right mind, but the judge was satisfied with Huckaby's answers, Behringer said.

Details of the evidence against Huckaby remain sparse, as they have since she was arrested more than a year ago. Criminologists said at the time of her arrest that allegations that a mother acting alone raped and murdered a child not her own were nearly unprecedented in recent U.S. history.

___

Marcus Wohlsen reported from San Francisco.

http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20100510/US.Girl.In.Suitcase/