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OGDEN — The story of one man and two women trapped in a life of "serving wicked men" played out in a courtroom full of tears, anger and compassion Monday.
Second District Judge Brent West sentenced Jacob Daniel Ethridge, 33, to two consecutive terms of 20 years to life in the Utah State Prison. Ethridge fatally shot two Ogden prostitutes, Teresa Tingey and Rosanna Marie Cruz, on July 12, 2008.
"I know there is something good inside of you, there has to be," James Parks, Tingey's brother, told Ethridge. "I want to look at you right in the face. Welcome to the first day of the rest of your life."
After the hearing, Parks said he traveled from north central Oregon to witness the sentencing and to speak to his sister's killer. He said he sensed there was some goodness in Ethridge despite the brutal nature of the murders.
"I can see it in his eyes," he said. "Every human being has it no matter how nasty they are."
The same forensic psychologist who testified that Elizabeth Smart's kidnapper was mentally ill took the stand in a sentencing hearing Monday to dispute that anti-depressants were the sole factor in a double murder.
Dr. Stephen Golding said an array of prescription medications could not be blamed as the reason Jacob Daniel Ethridge, 33, fatally shot two prostitutes on July 8.
Rather, Golding testified in 2nd District Court, a combination of factors have to come into play including Ethridge's personality, his alcohol abuse and the anti-depressants. Golding was a key witness for the defense during Brian David Mitchell's federal trial that ended with his conviction last Friday.
Ethridge pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated murder for the killing of Teresa Tingey and Rosanna Marie Cruz in a deal with prosecutors in October. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to not seek the death penalty.
Golding's testimony was in large measure to refute that of another forensic psychologist who said there is a clear link between violent criminal behavior and the discontinuation of psychotropic drugs.
Dr. Ronald P. Houston said people who abruptly stop taking those drugs often suffer from a host of extremely negative side effects, including suicidal thoughts, aggressive behavior and "homicidal ideation." Those side effects can be manifest as paranoia and depersonalization, devolving into "internal restlessness," he said.
"Many patients describe it as crawling out of their skin. It's nasty," he said.
Despite Houston's testimony about the possible side effects of discontinuing medication, Ogden police testified that Ethridge was calm, polite and accommodating during interaction at the police station the day of the murders.
Officer John Thomas said Ethridge asked for a cigarette and was escorted to a secure area behind the station.
"The only time he showed any emotion is when he was talking about his kids . . . He talked liked we were two guys out having a smoke on a Sunday afternoon."
During a 2009 preliminary hearing, a police detective matter-of-factly repeated Ethridge's confession to investigators.
"His first response was, 'I shot two girls,' " detective Tim Scott recalled of his first encounter with Ethridge, shortly after the man walked in and confessed to the killings.
Describing a "calm, friendly" interview, Scott testified that after getting into an argument with his girlfriend, Ethridge wound up on Adams Avenue where he encountered Cruz, who was working as a prostitute. She led him up to an abandoned apartment where he sought to have her perform a sexual act, Scott said.
"She said she couldn't because she had sores in her mouth," Scott said. "He was repulsed by that."
Scott testified that Ethridge pulled out a gun and shot Cruz, 25, in the neck. As she lay there dying, Scott said, he told police he picked up the shell casing and left.
Ethridge then wandered over to a nearby bar and struck up a conversation with Tingey who led him back behind an apartment building where she performed a sexual act. Tingey, 45, was "executed," prosecutor Gary Heward told the judge.
"He picked up what he thought was the casing," Heward said. "He picked up the bullet that passed through her head."
As he left the scene, Ethridge told police he sent text messages to his girlfriend and his parents. It was his father who took him to the police department and told him to turn himself in.
Ethridge told investigators he had fantasized about killing someone, Scott testified, "walking down the street and shooting someone as they walk past me."
Defense attorney Bernie Allen fought the aggravated murder charges. It did not rise to the level of a capital case because the two slayings were not one act, he said.
E-mail: amyjoi@desnews.com
