Murder, arson conviction leads to sentence of life in prison

Jerome Smith will spend the rest of his life in prison for pistol-whipping Valerie Rose Villegas and then setting fire to the Modesto motel room they shared.

“At any time, at any time, Mr. Smith could have prevented this from becoming a murder,” Judge Marie Silveira said before sentencing Smith in Stanislaus Superior Court on Monday afternoon. “The fact of the matter is, she died because Mr. Smith wanted her to. It’s clear to me how much violence occurred in that small room on that night.”

Silveira sentenced Smith to life in prison without the possibility of parole, a state-mandated sentence in the case.

Villegas, 31, died on Nov. 14, 2015, in the bathroom of a room at the Arrow Inn in the 500 block of Ninth Street. Jurors in November deliberated only 40 minutes before convicting Smith of murder and arson in the case. It was Smith’s second trial in the matter after his first ended in a hung jury.

Prior to the sentencing, Villegas’ mother and other family members offered victim impact statements in court, and Deputy District Attorney Dina Petrushenko showed a memorial video. On Smith’s behalf, Chief Deputy Public Defender Sonny Sandhu asked if the defendant could be excused during the statements.

Silveira denied the request.

“She was a sweet girl,” said Bernadette August, Villegas’ mother, adding that her daughter loved to dance, laugh, smile and “talk loud.” She loved getting together with her family for occasions big and small.

“She could be a real pain in the behind,” August said. “But she was my pain in the behind.”

Since her daughter’s death, August said, “I’m broken. I’m truly broken.”

A regular churchgoer, August said, “God says I have to forgive you, and I do, because I need peace in my life.

“But you still have to pay.”

Smith looked straight ahead during the statements. He did watch the video, which included photos set to music, as it played on a screen to his right.

Smith has been in the Stanislaus County jail since his arrest a few days after Villegas’ death. After sentencing, Sandhu said, Smith hoped to remain in local jail for 30 days to take care of some personal tasks before being remanded to state prison.

Silveira denied that request, too.

This story was originally published March 6, 2017 at 5:20 PM with the headline "Murder, arson conviction leads to sentence of life in prison."