No More Delays: Sentencing Phase of Long Beach Man Convicted of Killing Neighbor

SANTA ANA, CA — A judge on Wednesday cast aside bickering legal briefs by a prosecutor and defense attorney and refused another delay in the sentencing of a community theater actor who's expected to be ordered to death row for killing two friends.

Daniel Patrick Wozniak on Friday will face Orange County Superior Court Judge John Conley, who will decide whether to go along with a jury's recommendation to sentence the defendant to death for murdering 26-year-old Samuel Eliezer Herr and 23-year-old Julie Kibuishi.

Wozniak's attorney, Scott Sanders, sought another delay -- this time three weeks -- so he could respond to criticism from Senior Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy, who argued in a motion that there's no reason to delay Friday's sentencing of the 32-year-old defendant.

Murphy's motion was a response to Sanders' request for a new trial, which was filed Sept. 2 but subsequently sealed. Conley unsealed it Wednesday after going over what parts should be redacted because Sanders' motion contains information about confidential informants.

Tempers flared at Wednesday's hearing, particularly between Sanders and Conley over the requested rescheduling of the sentencing. Conley brushed aside Sanders' arguments that the Orange County District Attorney's Office can't be trusted to turn over evidence as legally required based on issues he has raised in the prosecution of Wozniak and his other client, Scott Dekraai, the worst mass killer in the county's history.

Sanders argued that he should be allowed to refute Murphy's allegations that he has cried foul against prosecutors in virtually every case he's been assigned.

"I don't think it's important," Conley said. "I think the bickering between you two has clouded your judgment... I'm interested in Mr. Wozniak's case only."

The judge added, "Both of you, for your own egos, want to set the record straight and I'm not going to delay the sentencing for that."

Sanders complained that many of Murphy's "claims" lacked "any foundation," and that if the roles were reversed, the judge would grant a delay so Murphy could respond.

"I think there's relevance to the fact that he's doing this without proper investigation," Sanders said. "He cannot be trusted... He's too upset. He wants this win so bad he'll do anything."

Conley replied, "I'm interested in legal arguments, not whether you like Mr. Murphy."

The judge said Sanders' complaints were "penny ante stuff."

Sanders questioned why Conley did not admonish Murphy for filing a brief full of allegations days before the sentencing.

"That's penny-ante stuff? I don't think so," Sanders said. "Why is the court not saying to him, 'Why did you do this on the eve of sentencing?"'

Murphy argued that he took two weeks to respond to Sanders' 754-page motion for a new trial, so the defense attorney has had ample time to respond to his motion.

"He says he can't respond? This is an eight-page (continuance motion), so that is his response," Murphy said. "And he has two more days to respond."

Murphy said the dueling in legal briefs could go on indefinitely, but at some point it should end.

"The family has waited six years," Murphy said of the victims' relatives.

Conley invited Sanders to file a brief responding to Murphy's allegations, but he emphasized he wouldn't give any of the back-and-forth any "weight" in his judgment on Friday anyway.

"I can see you're emotionally invested in this," Conley said to Sanders. "(You think) your career is at stake, your legacy in the public eye, and you have to justify yourself, but I don't care."

Conley also accused Sanders of complaining about Murphy's tactics when the defense attorney has done the same. Sanders denied that his arguments are personal.

Herr's father said he hopes there isn't another delay on Friday as servicemen who fought alongside his son in Afghanistan are planning to fly in to California for the hearing.

"These guys fought and got wounded with Sam and now they're going to be here facing his murderer and Julie's murderer," Steve Herr said.

Wozniak was convicted in December of the killings, and jurors recommended capital punishment in January.

Wozniak was deep in debt in May 2010, facing eviction and without money for his pending wedding, when he concocted a plan to kill his neighbor, Herr, and throw police off the trail by making it look like Herr murdered and raped Kibuishi, Murphy argued at trial.

Wozniak, who grew up in Long Beach, further tried to confound investigators by dismembering his first victim and dumping the body parts in the El Dorado Nature Center in Long Beach, Murphy said.

— City News Service, photo via Shutterstock