A 30-year-old hammer-wielding man with a previous felony conviction has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison for an unprovoked attack on people in a shopping center in Santa Ana, according to court records.
Israel Lamadrid Zubiate attacked the victims, who he did not know, around 7:20 p.m. on Nov. 27, 2022, near a Smart & Final store in Bristol Marketplace at 1523 W. 17th St., according to police.
Zubiate pleaded guilty Wednesday, Oct. 2 to two counts of attempted murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon, all felonies, and admitted a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a deadly weapon.
Orange County Superior Court Judge Larry Yellin, who made the plea deal offer to Zubiate, sentenced the defendant to 10 years and four months in prison. Zubiate has credit for 778 days behind bars.
Prosecutors objected to the plea deal and Yellin using his discretion to strike prior crimes for the sentencing, according to court records.
Zubiate was originally charged in November 2022 with attempted premeditated murder, which would have carried a life sentence if he had been convicted at trial.
Zubiate pleaded guilty in January 2020 to a felony count of kidnapping and a misdemeanor count of battery.
Originally Published: