The decision by federal prosecutors means John T. Earnest, who pleaded guilty in July to parallel state charges in Superior Court, will not face execution for the hate-fueled attack in April 2019
The Rancho Peñasquitos man charged in the hate crime attack at a Poway synagogue that killed one woman and injured three others will not face the death penalty in federal court, prosecutors said Monday.
In a terse one-sentence court filing, prosecutors with the Department of Justice said they will not seek the execution of John T. Earnest, 22, in connection with federal charges filed in the wake of the April 27, 2019 attack on the Chabad of Poway synagogue.
The court filing means Earnest will not face the death penalty in either federal or state court. He pleaded guilty to state charges of murder and attempted murder on July 20 in a plea bargain where San Diego District Attorney Summer Stephan agreed not to seek state execution.
Under the terms of that deal Earnest will be sentenced to life without possibility of parole, as well as 121 years to life and another 16-year term. He is scheduled to be sentenced in San Diego Superior Court on Sept. 30.
Meanwhile, the status of his federal case is unclear. In June, Earnest signed off on a conditional agreement to plead guilty in the federal case, one which was then forwarded to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. The terms of the deal were not revealed.
Garland has the option of accepting the deal, which would eliminate the need for...
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