A man was sentenced Feb. 14 to life in prison for fatally shooting a discount store clerk during a robbery, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.
Eric William Atkinson, 35, was sentenced to life in state prison without the possibility of parole for the special circumstance murder of Martha Sanchez, 39. Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Robert Perry imposed an additional 38 years for a count of witness intimidation as well as allegations of gun use and a prior conviction of attempted robbery.
About 9 p.m., on Sept. 17, 2013, Atkinson entered Happy Bargain store in South Los Angeles, robbed between $200 and $300, and shot Sanchez multiple times, according to authorities. A customer found Sanchez 10 minutes later, but the clerk was pronounced dead at the hospital within the hour, according to coroner’s records.
Detectives later connected Atkinson to the shooting using store video surveillance footage and receiving nearly a dozen tips from the public. Atkinson was arrested Oct. 9 on a parole violation.
Contact the Homicide Report. Follow @jeromercampbell and @latimeshomicide on Twitter.
