Mom Could Be Executed if Guilty of Sons’ Deaths
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VENTURA — Socorro “Cora” Caro could face the death penalty if she is convicted of murder in the slayings of her three oldest sons, the Ventura County district attorney’s office announced Thursday.
Dist. Atty. Michael D. Bradbury declined to say why he decided to seek the death penalty, saying it would be inappropriate to discuss the case because Caro has not yet been tried.
Caro, 43, is charged with fatally shooting her three sons--11-year-old Xavier, 7-year-old Michael and 5-year-old Christopher--as they slept in the family’s Santa Rosa Valley home in November 1999. A fourth child, a toddler, was not hurt.
Deputy Public Defender Jean Farley said she was surprised and disappointed by the decision, which she told Caro about in jail Thursday.
She has pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity. She is being held on $500,000 bail, and her trial is set to begin March 5.
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