Citizen Staff Writer
A.J. FLICK
ajflick@tucsoncitizen.com
A Tucson woman was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years in prison for the shooting death of a former teacher for the mentally ill.
Pima County Superior Court Judge Michael Cruikshank imposed the aggravated sentence as stipulated in Kathryn Diana Dominica’s plea agreement.
Dominica, 53, was indicted on a first-degree murder charge, but agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder in exchange for the 22-year sentence, which she must serve day-for-day.
The 66-year-old victim, Gayle Patrick, was physically disabled due to scoliosis and bought medical treatments through Dominica, court records show.
Dominica, who legally changed her name from Denise Diane Holt in 1996 for “pen name” reasons, allegedly used Patrick’s credit card information fraudulently, court records indicate.
Patrick’s body was found March 17 in the trunk of her own car, wrapped in sheets from Dominica’s home, court records show.
Woman sentenced to 22 years in slaying of ex-teacher