Arroyo Grande man who attacked 2 women near Lopez Lake pleads guilty to attempted murder
An Arroyo Grande man who attacked two women in a domestic violence incident near Lopez Lake pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of attempted murder.
The plea means that Alberto Isaac Gonzalez-Penaloza will spend 22 years in state prison before he’s eligible for parole, Sheryl Wolcott, San Luis Obispo County chief deputy district attorney, said Monday.
Gonzalez-Penaloza, 27, was accused of attacking the two women with knives and a shotgun on a remote property near Lopez Lake in 2017.
San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office deputies were dispatched to the property on Sept. 9, 2017, after receiving a report of a stabbing. When they arrived, responders found two victims, including one who still had a knife stuck in her neck.
Deputies began searching for Gonzalez-Penaloza as the women were being transported to nearby hospitals.
A search of the area involving a CHP helicopter, a SWAT team, an armored vehicle, and search dogs, lasted about two hours. When Gonzalez-Penaloza was found, Sheriff’s Office officials said he was “dehydrated and delusional.”
Gonzalez-Penaloza has remained in custody at the San Luis Obispo County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail since his arrest.
In addition to the two counts of attempted murder, Gonzalez-Penaloza was also charged with two felony counts of mayhem, which were dismissed Monday in exchange for his guilty pleas to attempted murder.
He is expected to be sentenced May 1 to two life terms, with the possibility of parole after 22 years in state prison, Wolcott said.
Gonzalez-Penaloza’s attorney, Jeffry Radding, could not immediately be reached for comment Monday afternoon.
