Former California police officer Joseph James DeAngelo, dubbed the Gold State Killer, on Friday was sentenced to multiple life prison sentences without parole.
DeAngelo, 74, pleaded guilty in June to 13 murders and 13 rape-related charges in a plea deal to avoid a potential death sentence, The Associated Press reported.
Before his sentencing Friday, he stood up from his wheelchair to announce he was “truly sorry” for the crimes he committed between 1975 and 1986.
Spectators applauded when DeAngelo was remanded to the custody of the sheriff’s office to be sent to prison.
“When a person commits monstrous acts, they need to be locked away so they can never harm an innocent person,” Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Michael Bowman said, adding “the defendant deserves no mercy.”
DeAngelo also admitted to dozens more sexual assaults for which the statute of limitations had expired, with prosecutors calling his violent acts “simply staggering.”
In all, his criminal actions resulted in 87 victims at 53 crime scenes across 11 California counties.
DeAngelo evaded police custody for nearly four decades.
In 2018, investigators used a new form of DNA tracking to unmask and arrest him.
Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward lauded the technology used to uncover DeAngelo, saying, “As science and technology evolve, the space for evil like this to operate within gets smaller and smaller. Simply put, the DNA will never forget.”
Under the plea deal arranged by Bowman, DeAngelo will serve 11 consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, with an additional 15 life terms with the possibility of parole and eight years of other enhancements.
The punishment means DeAngelo will die in prison for the crimes to which he has pleaded guilty.