The man witnesses said instigated a deadly shooting in a downtown Santa Rosa parking garage three years ago was sentenced Thursday to state prison, but he was expected to be released soon with credit for time already served.
Joseph Kenneth Lopez Sr., 41, received three years and eight months for his role in the slaying of Matthew Toste, a 32-year-old construction worker who had come to the defense of two women.
Witnesses accused Lopez Sr. of making lewd comments and grabbing the buttocks of one of the women, Toste's cousin, triggering a confrontation that led to Toste's murder by Lopez's son, 21-year-old Joseph Lopez Jr.
Although Lopez Sr. was allowed to plead to lesser charges - accessory and participation in a criminal street gang - he was widely blamed for causing the fight.
"My brother was attacked, shot and killed, simply for asking that man to leave them alone," said Cathy Toman, after playing a short video of Toste and his now 8-year-old son, Dominic. "You caused a lot of pain and sorrow for my family and yours."
Judge Lawrence "Gary" Antolini agreed, saying apologies can't erase the harm Lopez caused to Toste and his cousin, Kim Barragan. He called Lopez Sr. a poor role model and suggested he lied about being too drunk to remember what happened.
"There was no honor in outnumbering and taking on a family in that garage," Antolini told Lopez Sr. "No honor. That's cowardly."
Lopez Sr. said nothing at the sentencing but expressed remorse in a letter to the judge. He said it "breaks my heart" that Toste's son will grow up without a father. And he said he was embarrassed "if in fact I did touch Mrs. Barragan in that disrespectful manner."
"I will carry this with me for the rest of my life," Lopez Sr. said.
Lopez Sr. was one of five original defendants in the high-profile murder that stoked fears of gang encroachment in Santa Rosa's commercial core.
Prosecutors said Toste, his cousin Kim Barragan and date Kelly Griffin were walking through the Seventh Street garage to a nightclub on Dec. 3, 2006 when they were confronted by Lopez Sr., Lopez Jr., his cousin Raul Lopez Grandados, 22, Paul Whiterock, 30, and Nick Mejia, 32.
The defendants made sexual comments before Lopez Sr. grabbed Barragan and shoved her to the ground, prosecutors said.
When Toste intervened, the men turned their attention to him. Lopez Sr. threw a punch at Toste, missing, and Toste punched back, knocking Lopez Sr. unconscious. That's when Lopez Jr. pulled a handgun and shot Toste twice in the chest, killing him.
Lopez Jr. was convicted of second-degree murder and Whiterock was acquitted of all charges. Lopez Jr. will be sentenced next month.
Lopez-Granados pleaded to lesser charges and was sentenced to more than five years in prison. Mejia, who also pleaded to lesser charges, was sent to San Quentin for a 90-day evaluation.
Lopez Sr. didn't pull the trigger but should receive the maximum sentence because he "basically started it," prosecutor Spencer Brady said.
"His personal conduct caused this murder," Brady said.
A probation report laying out the recommended sentence showed Lopez Sr. had a criminal history in Sonoma County dating back to 1988.
He was convicted of beating his girlfriend in 1997 and arrested at least four times for drunken-driving. In 1995, he was charged with slapping and choking his pregnant girlfriend, but the case was dismissed.
Lopez Sr. said he is not a gang member, despite having symbols of a gang tattooed on his legs.
The high school drop out was never married but fathered four children. Three of them are incarcerated, according to the probation report. A 14-year-old daughter lives with family in Washington.
Antolini acknowledged Lopez Sr. had a good side. He was employed by the same landscape company, Creative Landscape Consultants, for 22 years and was apparently loved by his son, who shot Toste in his defense, his lawyer said.
The judge said he hoped Lopez Sr. would be productive when he emerged from jail.
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