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Source: Albuquerque Journal, N.迷你倉M.Jan. 21--When double-homicide convict Marino Leyba Jr. came to his sentencing hearing in state District Court earlier this month, he faced more than just the relatives of the people he'd killed.In contrast to most sentencing proceedings, Leyba's fate also drew comment in the courtroom from Santa Fe Mayor David Coss, the executive director of a domestic violence shelter and two policemen, not just the family of Leyba's victims.Several courthouse veterans said they hadn't seen a similar line-up testify at a high-profile sentencing. Typically, on the prosecution side, the judge hears from those most affected by a crime -- the victims themselves or, in cases of homicides or crimes against young people, their families or other loved ones.Coss' participation in Leyba's hearing, through a statement read in court, was particularly unusual.City government spokeswoman Jodi Porter said Coss had intended to appear himself at the Jan. 8 sentencing but had a scheduling conflict.He wanted to speak, Porter said, because Leyba's case "was the worst tragedy like this since he's been mayor" and because he'd taken a personal interest in the case. Porter also said a detective had asked the mayor to speak at the sentencing.In 2009, Leyba shot and killed his girlfriend, Sarah Lovato, 17; her father, Bennie Ray Lovato, 50; and Sarah's unborn son. Sarah was 8 1/2 months pregnant at the time of the murders."As mayor," Coss' statement to Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer said, "I want to state how serious domestic violence and gun violence is in our community. The present case, as in so many cases, has severely impacted every family member, as well as our community of Santa Fe."As mayor, I have worked with law enforcement and advocates to educate people about domestic violence and its prevention. As you consider sentencing for this awful crime, I ask you to also consider our community's commitment to ending domestic violence and to making Santa Fe a zero tolerance community for domestic violence."Like Coss, Jessica Montoya of the Esperanza Shelter for Battered Families asked Marlowe Sommer to send a message with her sentencing of Leyba. "You have the power to bring some justice back to Santa Fe," Montoya said.The judge sentenced Leyba to 32 years in prison -- the maximum allowed under a plea deal in which Leyba pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder.He'd been convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to 63 years in 2010, but the state Court of Appeals threw out that conviction. The appeals court ruled that a key piece of evidence used to show premeditation for the shootings, Sarah Lovato's diary, was inadmissible hearsay.'Wasn't thrilled'Steve Aarons, Leyba's lawyer and a veteran defense attorney, said he "wasn't thrilled" with some of the sentencing testimony迷你倉將軍澳"It seemed like Marino had become a political football for general policy issues related to domestic violence," Aarons said. He said he'd never seen a mayor or public official give a statement at a sentencing hearing."Those kinds of public policy statements don't really belong in a sentencing hearing," Aarons said.Aarons said he understood the mayor's responsibility to take on issues of city-wide importance but that sentencings should be about the particulars of a defendant -- his actions in the case, his psychiatric makeup, his personal history and what he's done since committing the crime.Police officers also stated strong opinions -- instead of merely providing information -- at Leyba's sentencing.While that appeared atypical to some who've sat through numerous sentencings -- defense lawyer Aarons said it doesn't happen often -- both District Attorney Angela "Spence" Pacheco and Santa Fe Police Department spokeswoman Celina Westervelt insisted it's not particularly rare for officers to stake out a position on a convicted defendant's fate.An undercover officer spoke at Leyba's hearing, as did veteran Detective Tony Trujillo, who called the Leyba murders "pure evil" and the worst "violence, brutality and senselessness" he'd ever seen.Aarons said he didn't have a problem with the officers speaking out."It's a little unusual, but I think it's appropriate and it was very powerful for the prosecution," the defense lawyer said. "It's not seen often but I think police officers have a right to speak. They were on the case and these two were affected by it."I don't agree with (one of) them saying Marino was not going to amount to anything -- all they know is what happened over a few seconds. But in terms of what they saw and their reaction, I do think that was appropriate."Westervelt said the Leyba killings still haunt the investigating officers."They spoke because they wanted to make sure their perspective and the law enforcement perspective was part of the hearing," she said.Westervelt also noted that Marlowe Sommer was not the original trial judge on the case. "They wanted to make sure she had some of the relevant facts," Westervelt added.'Vested' in casePacheco said community groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving regularly speak at sentencings. In Leyba's case, many factors probably spurred people to speak up, she said."Everybody was involved," she said. "With the Supreme Court reversing the first-degree convictions, just everything, everybody was really vested in this case."This was very emotional," Pacheco added. "Especially with the death of the fetus, everybody has been upset by this case."Copyright: ___ (c)2014 the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.) Visit the Albuquerque Journal (Albuquerque, N.M.) at .abqjournal.com Distributed by MCT Information Services倉