SLO man who robbed elderly woman in home invasion gets long prison sentence
A San Luis Obispo who robbed an elderly woman during a home invasion was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison, according to the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office.
Johnny Jesse Roman, Jr., 39, pleaded no contest to one count each of residential burglary, residential robbery and grand theft automobile, on Oct. 19, the District Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
According to the release, Roman broke into the rural San Luis Obispo home of a 75-year-old woman, tied her up and stole thousands of dollars in cash before fleeing in a car parked outside the residence.
The woman was restrained in her home for several hours before she was found by a family member, the District Attorney’s Office said.
Roman was arrested in Virginia in March and extradited back to San Luis Obispo County, the agency said.
Roman was previously convicted of two felonies — residential burglary in 2005 and residential robbery in 2006, according to the release.
These crimes were committed under California’s Three Strikes Law, which, coupled with his plea for the recent robbery, made him eligible for a maximum sentence of 41 years to life in prison, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
In a San Luis Obispo Superior Court hearing on Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Jesse J. Marino struck the 16 additional years that was permitted under the three strikes law off Roman’s sentence and sentenced the defendant to 25 years to life, according to the release.
“Violent crimes committed by career criminals against vulnerable victims deserve especially strong sentences,” District Attorney Dan Dow said in the release. “Our office takes seriously the obligation to protect our community through aggressive and fair prosecution of crime while protecting the rights of crime victims.
“We will continue to advocate for strong sentences in cases like this in order to prevent future crimes by a particular defendant and to deter others from committing similar crimes.”
This story was originally published November 16, 2021 at 6:23 PM.
