A Santa Barbara man was sentenced Monday to 148 years to life in prison for his role in a 2010 home invasion in which a woman was beaten and a man shot.
Jack Mills, 54, was found guilty by a Santa Barbara County Superior Court jury of seven counts, including attempted premeditated and willful murder, assault with a firearm on two victims, attempted robbery on two victims, first-degree residential burglary, and being a felon in possession of a firearm, according to Deputy District Attorney Benjamin Ladinig.
Mills was also convicted of firearm-related enhancements, which added to the sentence.
Superior Court Judge Frank Ochoa denied several motions by the defense on Monday, including a request for a new trial, and upheld the jury’s verdict.
“I don’t anticipate he’ll ever get out of prison,” Ladinig said.
Mills and his wife, Rebecca Mills, were accused of a home invasion on the 1500 block of Gillespie Street on March 1, 2010. When a Santa Barbara woman answered her door, Mills punched her in the stomach and knocked her to the ground. When her nephew came to her aid, Mills shot him in the head at close range, which he miraculously survived.
Both victims, and other members of the family, spoke at Monday’s sentencing about the impact of that morning’s events. After the attack, they moved out of the Westside neighborhood residence.
The woman spoke about her nightmares and constant anxiety since Mills put a gun in her face, and her nephew talked about the effect that injury has had on him, and the problems he’s been dealing with ever since.
At the end, the man said he forgave Jack Mills for what he did, but was thankful for law enforcement’s work on the case and that it was all over, Ladinig said.
The Millses were found in Pahrump, Nev., with the help of U.S. marshals, other law enforcement agencies and citizen tips, but two accomplices have never been identified or arrested, Ladinig has told Noozhawk.
Rebecca Mills pleaded no contest to attempted robbery in April, and was sentenced to three years in prison.
— Noozhawk staff writer Giana Magnoli can be reached at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
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