Man Gets Life Without Parole in Rape, Murder
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SANTA ANA — A Huntington Beach man convicted of raping and killing a 47-year-old woman, stabbing her 120 times with manicure scissors, was sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Robert Allen Carter, 22, never looked up when the verdict was read by Orange County Superior Court Judge William Bedsworth.
“This is the hardest thing I do,” Bedsworth said. “This case, however, was a cruel and heartless act.”
Carter, a high school dropout, was convicted last month of killing Beverly Alexandria Holzmiller, also from Huntington Beach. Holzmiller’s body was found by an oil company worker Dec. 17, 1987, in a oil field near Huntington and Alabama streets.
An autopsy showed the woman survived the first 79 puncture wounds, and died when stabbed an 80th time in a major artery. There were 120 wounds in all, officials said.
Upon his arrest nearly three years ago, Carter was wanted on outstanding warrants in Illinois for arson, burglary and theft of more than $32,000, police said.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Pat Donahue could not be reached for comment.
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