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Attorneys/Judges
| Prosecutor(s): | Debra Archuleta | | Defense(s): | Katherine Nicole Bonaguidi | | Judge(s): | Janice Croft |
CONVICTED: Was justice served?
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Case #18078 Rating: 1.0 out of 5
Dog microwaved to death, woman murdered
Glendale, CA (US)Incident Date: Tuesday, Sep 8, 2009
County: Los Angeles
Charges: Felony CTA, Felony Non-CTA
Disposition: Convicted
Defendant/Suspect: John Levin
Case Updates: 2 update(s) available
A 45-year-old Glendale man charged with killing his wife and dog was once an active volunteer member of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department-affiliated Montrose Search and Rescue Team.
John Levin prepared for two to three years to become a sheriff's reserve deputy and member of the search-and-rescue team, finally completing his training in July 2001, according to then-newspaper the Foothill Leader.
He had to undergo background, medical and psychological checks, a polygraph test and complete 400 hours of reserve deputy field training. He earned his emergency medical technicians license and trained for a year in mountain rescue.
In July 2001, he told the Foothill Leader that his wife, Michelle Levin, had supported his training.
"There's no way I could've done it without her," John Levin told the Foothill Leader. "As much as it's a sacrifice for me, it is for her as well."
While serving on Montrose Search and Rescue, John Levin and fellow members received a commendation from the Sheriff's Department for rescuing a mountain biker.
Reserve deputies are given work assignments during their 20-hour-per-month volunteer schedule, according to the Sheriff's Department website. They are issued an identification card, sheriff's badge, uniforms, handcuffs, baton, a Beretta 92FS duty weapon and other police equipment.
John Levin was with the Montrose Search and Rescue team until May 2008 when he formally resigned, sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
John Levin is accused of stabbing his 35-year-old wife to death and killing their dog in their apartment on the 200 block of West Fairview Avenue.
Police discovered on Sept. 11 the decomposed bodies of Michelle Levin and their dog.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection arrested him the next day trying to cross into Canada. John Levin is being held in lieu of a $2-million bond in Washington state jail, where he is refusing to be extradited to California to face murder and animal cruelty charges.
Prosecutors have accused John Levin of microwaving his dog to death, according to a district attorney's office criminal complaint.
The Los Angeles County district attorney's office is in the process of filing a governor's warrant to return him to Glendale. That process could take up to six weeks.
He is scheduled to appear Oct. 15 before a Washington state judge during his fugitive hearing.
While volunteering with Montrose Search and Rescue, John Levin helped rescue former Glendale Mayor Sheldon Baker and his wife Marilyn's dog in 2006 after it escaped their open door and headed into the hills of Brand Park.
Resident Dedrick Brown, who lives in the same apartment complex as the Levin home, didn't personally know the couple, but said he was shocked when he heard about the homicide.
Apartment management was quiet about the discovery, so Brown said most residents had to find out about the killings on their own.
Brown said he recalled thinking something was seriously wrong when he saw police entering the couple's apartment Sept. 12 in protective gear and shoe covers.
Case UpdatesA 47-year-old Glendale man was sentenced Tuesday to serve 16 years to life in prison for killing his wife and microwaving his Pomeranian to death.
Jurors found John Levin guilty of second-degree murder in June for killing his 35-year-old wife, Michelle Levin, after he pleaded guilty to felony animal cruelty for microwaving his dog.
"I am told that it is a sin to not forgive and to harbor vengeance in your heart," Michelle Levin's father, Frank Raymie, told Levin in a Pasadena courtroom. "If that be true, then I will die a sinful man. I want you to spend a long time in jail."
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Janice Croft also sentenced Levin to eight months in prison for the animal cruelty charge, and ordered Levin to be placed on parole for life after serving his prison sentence.
Levin was arrested attempting to cross the Canadian border days after the body of his wife and the dog's remains were discovered Sept. 11, 2009, in their North Glendale condominium in the 200 block of West Fairview Avenue.
Authorities said she was stabbed to death three days prior, her body discovered in a locked second-floor bedroom.
During a preliminary hearing, officers testified that they found the home littered with dog excrement, rotting food and pills scattered on a table.
"You are evil," Michelle's friend, Tracey Naranjo, told Levin in court.
Levin's attorney, deputy public defender Katherine Nicole Bonaguidi, told Croft that he was addicted to Soma and was under the influence during the incident.
She added that Levin had no criminal history prior to his drug addiction and that he worked for eight years with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Montrose Search and Rescue Team.
But Croft dismissed claims that Levin may have been under the influence of the muscle relaxant when he killed his wife and dog.
"He wanted to move on with his life," she said of him leaving his dying wife. "He knew exactly what he was doing."
Deputy Dist. Atty. Debra Archuleta also requested $5,136 in restitution for the state's victim compensation program, and the funeral costs for Michelle Levin, whose father told the court Tuesday that John Levin had destroyed the family.
"I want you to have a long sentence," her father said. "You sentenced my daughter to death." | Source: glendalenewspress.com - Jul 19, 2011
Update posted on Jul 21, 2011 - 9:18AM |
A 46-year-old Glendale man who killed his wife and microwaved his Pomeranian before fleeing the state was found guilty Wednesday of second-degree murder, officials said.
Jurors deliberated for less than two days before finding John Levin guilty of killing his wife, Michelle Levin, with a knife, said Jane Robison, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.
John Levin pleaded guilty to felony animal cruelty for microwaving his dog before jurors returned with a verdict.
Attempts to reach his attorney, deputy public defender Katherine Nicole Bonaguidi, were unsuccessful Wednesday.
He is expected to be sentenced July 19 in the Los Angeles County Superior Court in Pasadena. He faces 16 years to life in prison for both counts, Robison said.
The murder occurred Sept. 8, 2009, in the couple's two-story condominium in the 200 block of West Fairview Avenue.
Officers discovered 35-year-old Michelle Levin's body three days later inside the apartment after police received a call from someone concerned about the couple's whereabouts.
John Levin was caught at the Canadian border Sept. 12, 2009.
During a preliminary hearing, officers testified that they found the home littered with dog excrement, rotting food and numerous pills scattered on a table.
They eventually found Michelle Levin's body on the floor next to the bed inside a locked second-floor bedroom. Los Angeles County coroner's investigators determined she died from being stabbed.
The couple's Pomeranian died after it was stuffed inside a microwave that was turned on for an undetermined amount of time, officials said.
Detectives said in court that John Levin eventually admitted poking himself in the chest with a knife to make it appear as though it was a defensive wound after stabbing his wife. | Source: glendalenewspress.com - Jun 15, 2011
Update posted on Jun 16, 2011 - 12:05AM |
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