Antonio Magana (DOB 1/29/1996), of Santa Paula, pled guilty to one count of first-degree willful, deliberate and premeditated murder for the 2014 slaying of his pregnant girlfriend Ashley Moran in Obregon Park. Magana also admitted he personally used two deadly weapons, a knife and a baseball bat, during the commission of the murder.
Magana and Moran were engaged in a dating relationship that resulted in her becoming pregnant approximately 7-8 weeks before her death. Magana wanted Moran to terminate her pregnancy, but she had refused. During the evening of March 14, 2014, Magana asked Moran to accompany him inside Obregon Park so they could discuss the pregnancy. Magana then struck Moran in the back of the head with a baseball bat, resulting in her death. Magana also stabbed Moran in the neck with a knife. Magana dragged Moran’s body into some nearby bushes and fled the scene. Moran’s body was located the following morning.
Magana’s sentencing hearing is set for December 5, 2019, at 9:00 a.m. in courtroom 47 of the Ventura County Superior Court. It is expected that Magana will be sentenced to a term of 27 years to life in prison.
The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office is the public prosecutor for the county’s 850,000 residents. The office employs approximately 280 employees including attorneys, investigators, victim advocates, and other professional support staff who strive to seek justice, ensure public safety, and protect the rights of crime victims.
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What was the plea deal? What induced this defendant to give up his right to a trial and a chance that one juror would hang the jury in return for a plea of guilty to first degree murder with a guilty plea to being armed at the time of the commission of the offense?