SANTA CRUZ — The mother and son arrested for the murder of their landlord, Gordon Smith, have learned their fates. Diana and Daniel Cohen will each spend the rest of their lives in state prison after being found guilty of first degree murder on Friday, January 22.
Throughout the trial, details of the crime emerged in earnest.
On November 8, 2013, the defendants took a car for a test drive so as to avoid implicating themselves by using their own vehicles, retrieved Diana’s gun, and laid in wait for Smith in the parking lot for over an hour until they could be sure he was alone.
Daniel Cohen walked into Smith’s office and fired four shots, including two in the head. Smith was found later that day by other occupants of the office building.
The pair were found guilty of first degree murder with special allegations — lying in wait gave pretense for pre-meditated murder. The two will be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on April 21, 2016.
