Galt man sentenced to life in prison after shooting deputy at Sacramento RT station
A Galt man convicted on attempted murder charges for shooting a Regional Transit officer in the face at a Sacramento light rail station could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Nicory Marquis Spann was sentenced to 32 years to life on Friday after a June 2017 fight with the officer on a Watt Avenue light rail platform, a Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled.
Spann, 30, was sentenced Aug. 21 in Sacramento by Judge Geoffrey Goodman. He remained held Tuesday in Sacramento County Main Jail pending his transfer to state prison, jail booking records showed. Goodman’s sentence guarantees Spann will serve decades in prison before he is eligible for parole.
Spann was convicted by a Sacramento Superior Court jury in July of attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon in the attack on Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy Alex Ladwig.
Prosecutors said Spann lunged at Ladwig while the deputy, on assignment with Regional Transit, was patrolling the platform. Ladwig’s gun fired in the struggle that ensued. Prosecutors said the struggle began when Ladwig checked to see if Spann had paid his light rail fare.
The wounded Ladwig managed to call for help. Spann fled for a nearby motel, where deputies flushed him out several hours later.
Court records showed Spann was held on a 16-month term for his involvement in a Santa Clara County double homicide more than 10 years before the June 2017 shooting. He had also faced a number of misdemeanor charges in Sacramento County.
Criminal proceedings against Spann were delayed for a time on questions of his sanity. Spann spent time in a state hospital before doctors ultimately cleared the Galt man to stand trial.
Ladwig spent 11 days in the hospital and underwent surgery to repair what sheriff’s officials described as “major structural facial injuries.” Ladwig continues to work in the department on limited duty, sheriff’s officials said.
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