Roberta Pearce

A third Escondido teen-ager was arrested Friday in connection with the slaying of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, the estranged husband of former Orange Glen teacher's aide Roberta Pearce. Authorities said Friday that a 16-year-old student at Orange Glen High School surrendered himself and was arrested on suspicion of murder, solicitation of murder and conspiracy to murder. The student was implicated in testimony Thursday in Vista Municipal Court by another teen-ager, Anthony Pilato, who along with Isaac Hill, both 15, have pleaded guilty to killing Pearce, 40, outside his Cardiff apartment on Jan. 31. Pilato and Hill testified this week in the murder trial of Roberta Pearce, 41, alleging that it was at her behest--and the promise of receiving two cars and sharing $100,000 of her husband's $200,000 life insurance policy--that they killed the man. On Thursday, Pilato testified that he originally was brought into the murder scheme by a third teen-ager who lived with Roberta Pearce at her Valley Center home.

A Vista Superior Court jury decided Friday that Roberta Pearce deserved sympathy and spared her from the gas chamber for hiring two teen-age boys to murder her estranged husband. Instead of death, the 42-year-old former Escondido teacher's aide was sentenced to life behind bars without parole for the crime that involved sex, drugs, a kitchen knife and a carpenter's hand ax. After an hour of deliberations, the jury was deadlocked, 10-2 in favor of life in prison, but after Judge Franklin Mitchell Jr. ordered them to try again, jurors debated for two more hours and emerged to announce a unanimous decision.

A San Diego Juvenile Court judge Tuesday ordered authorities to release from custody an Escondido teen-ager charged with helping to plot the slaying of the estranged husband of a high-school teacher's aide. Judge Sheridan Reed allowed Frank (Soddy) Rodriguez, 16, to leave the county's juvenile detention facility but placed him under house arrest at the home of his mother. The boy is suspected of helping to solicit the murder of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, who was slain outside his Cardiff apartment Jan. 31. His wife, popular Orange Glen High School teacher's aide Roberta Pearce, is charged with masterminding a plot that ended in the 40-year-old construction worker's death.

A second Escondido teen-ager was sentenced to the maximum term in the California Youth Authority for his admitted role in the stabbing and hacking murder of a Cardiff man. The 15-year-old boy on Wednesday was given a term of 25 years to life but will spend no more than 10 years in the CYA, which loses jurisdiction after inmates turn 25. Earlier, a 15-year-old friend of the boy also drew a 25-year-to-life sentence in the CYA. The two...

A teacher's aide accused of hiring two teen-age boys to kill her estranged husband pleaded not guilty Monday in Vista Superior Court to multiple charges in the case. Among the charges filed against Roberta Pearce, 41, are murder, conspiracy and special-circumstances allegations, which could result in the death penalty if she is convicted. Pearce was also charged during a short hearing before Judge Runston G. Maino with two counts of soliciting for murder two other teen-agers who refused her request to kill her husband.

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a teacher's aide accused of hiring two Escondido teen-agers to kill her estranged husband, officials said Thursday. Special-circumstances charges will be filed against Roberta Pearce, 41, when she is arraigned Monday in Vista Superior Court, said Linda Miller, a district attorney's office spokeswoman. Miller said the death penalty will be sought because the killing of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, 40, appeared "so cold-blooded and heinous" based on evidence presented during the recent preliminary hearing.

A Vista Superior Court jury decided Friday that Roberta Pearce deserved sympathy and spared her from the gas chamber for hiring two teen-age boys to murder her estranged husband. Instead of death, the 42-year-old former Escondido teacher's aide was sentenced to life behind bars without parole for the crime that involved sex, drugs, a kitchen knife and a carpenter's hand ax. After an hour of deliberations, the jury was deadlocked, 10-2 in favor of life in prison, but after Judge Franklin Mitchell Jr. ordered them to try again, jurors debated for two more hours and emerged to announce a unanimous decision.

A second Escondido teen-ager was sentenced to the maximum term in the California Youth Authority for his admitted role in the stabbing and hacking murder of a Cardiff man. The 15-year-old boy on Wednesday was given a term of 25 years to life but will spend no more than 10 years in the CYA, which loses jurisdiction after inmates turn 25. Earlier, a 15-year-old friend of the boy also drew a 25-year-to-life sentence in the CYA. The two...

Two 15-year-old boys pleaded guilty Friday to killing the estranged husband of an Escondido high school teacher's aide, saying the woman promised them $100,000 and two cars to carry out the crime. Anthony Pilato and Isaac Hill, both freshmen at Orange Glen High School, admitted in separate hearings in San Diego Juvenile Court that they murdered Robert (Wayne) Pearce at the behest of his wife, Roberta. Both sat resolutely with their hands folded as they answered a series of questions from Judge Gil Smith pinning down the circumstances of the killing.

A 15-year-old Escondido boy Tuesday accused a teacher's aide of approaching him and a friend four times to solicit the slaying of her estranged husband, with the pair eventually agreeing when the offer grew to $100,000 and two cars. The youth said Roberta Pearce at first promised $2,000 for the slaying, but increased the offer substantially during subsequent meetings to entice the teen-agers to kill Robert (Wayne) Pearce. "She asked me if I wanted to make some money . . . then she told me how I could make some money by killing her husband," said Isaac Hill, one of two Orange Glen High School students who pleaded guilty last week to the slaying.

A 15-year-old boy who admitted he helped kill the estranged husband of a teacher's aide at his Escondido high school was sentenced Wednesday to a California Youth Authority prison until age 25. Isaac Hill, one of two teen-agers who pleaded guilty to killing Robert (Wayne) Pearce at his wife's behest, sat calmly with hands folded as Judge Gil Smith passed down the sentence in San Diego Juvenile Court. Although the high school freshman was officially given a sentence of 25 years to life, he will be eligible for parole in seven years and, at worst, would probably be incarcerated only until his 25th birthday because he committed the slaying while he was a juvenile, authorities said.

A teacher's aide accused of hiring two teen-age boys to kill her estranged husband pleaded not guilty Monday in Vista Superior Court to multiple charges in the case. Among the charges filed against Roberta Pearce, 41, are murder, conspiracy and special-circumstances allegations, which could result in the death penalty if she is convicted. Pearce was also charged during a short hearing before Judge Runston G. Maino with two counts of soliciting for murder two other teen-agers who refused her request to kill her husband.

Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a teacher's aide accused of hiring two Escondido teen-agers to kill her estranged husband, officials said Thursday. Special-circumstances charges will be filed against Roberta Pearce, 41, when she is arraigned Monday in Vista Superior Court, said Linda Miller, a district attorney's office spokeswoman. Miller said the death penalty will be sought because the killing of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, 40, appeared "so cold-blooded and heinous" based on evidence presented during the recent preliminary hearing.

A Vista Municipal Court judge ruled Monday that a popular high school teacher's aide must stand trial on charges that she hired a pair of 15-year-old boys to slay her estranged husband, promising them two cars and $100,000 to split. After a six-day preliminary hearing rife with dramatic testimony from teen-age witnesses, Judge Suzanne W. Knauf ordered Roberta Pearce, 41, bound over for trial on allegations that she hatched the plot to kill Robert (Wayne) Pearce. The 40-year-old construction foreman was slain outside his Cardiff apartment as he left for work Jan. 31. Isaac Hill and Anthony Pilato, both freshmen at Orange Glen High School in Escondido, pleaded guilty last month to the slaying, saying they were put up to it by the wife.

An Escondido girl befriended by Roberta Pearce, a teacher's aide accused of hiring two teen-age boys to kill her estranged husband, testified Friday that the woman discussed the murder plot with her half a dozen times. The 16-year-old girl, who lived with Pearce during the month before the Jan. 31 slaying of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, also said in court that the woman provided drugs and X-rated videotapes for a cadre of teen-agers hanging out at the house. Testifying in the fifth day of Pearce's preliminary hearing, the girl said the popular teacher's aide at Orange Glen High School in Escondido had a continuing sexual relationship with Frank (Soddy)

A San Diego Juvenile Court judge Tuesday ordered authorities to release from custody an Escondido teen-ager charged with helping to plot the slaying of the estranged husband of a high-school teacher's aide. Judge Sheridan Reed allowed Frank (Soddy) Rodriguez, 16, to leave the county's juvenile detention facility but placed him under house arrest at the home of his mother. The boy is suspected of helping to solicit the murder of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, who was slain outside his Cardiff apartment Jan. 31. His wife, popular Orange Glen High School teacher's aide Roberta Pearce, is charged with masterminding a plot that ended in the 40-year-old construction worker's death.

A 15-year-old boy who admitted he helped kill the estranged husband of a teacher's aide at his Escondido high school was sentenced Wednesday to a California Youth Authority prison until age 25. Isaac Hill, one of two teen-agers who pleaded guilty to killing Robert (Wayne) Pearce at his wife's behest, sat calmly with hands folded as Judge Gil Smith passed down the sentence in San Diego Juvenile Court. Although the high school freshman was officially given a sentence of 25 years to life, he will be eligible for parole in seven years and, at worst, would probably be incarcerated only until his 25th birthday because he committed the slaying while he was a juvenile, authorities said.

The second of two 15-year-old boys who have confessed to killing the husband of an Escondido teacher's aide testified against the woman Thursday as her preliminary hearing on charges of first-degree murder continued in Vista Municipal Court. But his testimony, and that of the other teen-ager who said he was solicited by the woman to kill her estranged husband, was laced with so many responses of "I don't remember" and inconsistencies that the defense attorney said afterward that the case against his client is little more than "fantasy."

A third Escondido teen-ager was arrested Friday in connection with the slaying of Robert (Wayne) Pearce, the estranged husband of former Orange Glen teacher's aide Roberta Pearce. Authorities said Friday that a 16-year-old student at Orange Glen High School surrendered himself and was arrested on suspicion of murder, solicitation of murder and conspiracy to murder. The student was implicated in testimony Thursday in Vista Municipal Court by another teen-ager, Anthony Pilato, who along with Isaac Hill, both 15, have pleaded guilty to killing Pearce, 40, outside his Cardiff apartment on Jan. 31. Pilato and Hill testified this week in the murder trial of Roberta Pearce, 41, alleging that it was at her behest--and the promise of receiving two cars and sharing $100,000 of her husband's $200,000 life insurance policy--that they killed the man. On Thursday, Pilato testified that he originally was brought into the murder scheme by a third teen-ager who lived with Roberta Pearce at her Valley Center home.

The second of two 15-year-old boys who have confessed to killing the husband of an Escondido teacher's aide testified against the woman Thursday as her preliminary hearing on charges of first-degree murder continued in Vista Municipal Court. But his testimony, and that of the other teen-ager who said he was solicited by the woman to kill her estranged husband, was laced with so many responses of "I don't remember" and inconsistencies that the defense attorney said afterward that the case against his client is little more than "fantasy."