REDWOOD CITY (BCN) — A Hayward man who gunned a naked man down in his Daly City backyard before turning the gun on his screaming mother in 2014 was sentenced
to 124 years to life in prison Wednesday, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.
Demond Spikes, 36, called the prosecutors and judge “corrupt” before Judge Mark Forcum handed down the maximum sentence in the case, according to Wagstaffe. Spikes was remanded in to custody to be taken to state prison in the next few days.
“He’s a dangerous man, so I’m very pleased this one came out this way,” Wagstaffe said.
A jury in June convicted Spikes of first-degree murder, shooting at an inhabited dwelling and possession of a firearm by a felon as well as various weapons-related enhancements.
He was found guilty of fatally shooting Marcus Brackenridge in the backyard of his home in the 500 block of Skyline Drive on April 13, 2014, at about 5:50 a.m.
Brackenridge was naked and the two had an argument over money while a prostitute stood nearby before Spikes shot Brackenridge in the head and abdomen.
Brackenridge’s mother, who saw the shooting through the home’s sliding glass doors, yelled out as her son was shot. Spikes fired through the glass doors and she was struck in the abdomen, prosecutors said.
Spikes fled the area with the prostitute, but was arrested months later in Sacramento and stood trial earlier this year.
The jury did not find Spikes guilty of attempted murder for shooting at the mother.
But he had two strikes against him under California’s three-strikes law for previous crimes, so he faced a minimum sentence of 75 years in prison. The judge today rejected motions for a new trial and to not consider one of the previous strikes for sentencing.
There will be a hearing in October to decide restitution for Brackenridge’s family, but Spikes waived his right to attend it.