Parole Denied for Man Convicted of Sonoma Valley Double Homicide

William Barton, who was convicted of a 1975 Sonoma double homicide, was denied his parol request Wednesday, District Attorney Jill Ravitch announced today. 

The murders stemmed from a petty argument on March 23, 1975, after Barton gave a lift to Sabino Sotello, a 43-year-old Santa Rosa resident and his son, Gregorio, 16. Barton attempted to take money from the pair, they refused, and tried to leave with some beer.

The disagreement ended with Barton shooting Sabino Sotello four times and Gregorio Sotello three times. Their bodies were found the next day strewn by the entrance to Sonoma's Marini Ranch, on Moon Mountain Road.

Barton fled the area to Corscicana, Texas, but later turned himself in to law enforcement.

He pled guilty in 1976 to two counts of 1st Degree Murder with a deadly weapon and received two consecutive sentences of five years to life on March 2, 1976.

"William Barton’s senseless shooting of a man and his teenage son over a trivial dispute, compounded by his continuing offenses while in custody, demonstrated his serious public safety risk if released," said Ravitch.

Barton, who has been incarcerated since his arrest on August 4, 1975,
has picked up three serious conduct violations since his last parole hearing - including indecent exposure to a corrections officer, assault on a corrections officer, and fighting with another inmate - and received 140 misconduct violations during his prison term.

The members of the Board of Prison Terms agreed with the District Attorney’s representative, Deputy District Attorney Javier Vaca, that Barton posed an unreasonable risk of harm to the community if released.