A young man who fatally beat his grandmother with a baseball bat in Chula Vista has been sentenced to 14 years and eight months in state prison.
Adrian Gutierrez, 20, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter for the Feb. 22, 2022, killing of 62-year-old Diana Diaz. Gutierrez was 18 at the time of the killing.
Police responded to a Melrose Avenue home at around 1 a.m. and found the victim wounded and unresponsive in a bedroom, according to Chula Vista police Lt. Dan Peak. Diaz was taken to a hospital, where she died.
Gutierrez locked himself in another bedroom, but later surrendered and was taken into custody.
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His defense attorney argued her client may have been suffering from mental health issues and experiencing hallucinations or delusions, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune's coverage of Gutierrez's preliminary hearing held last year.
Gutierrez, who was sentenced on Friday, was initially charged with murder and faced nearly 30 years to life in prison.
