SANTA ANA — A 32-year-old former U.S. Marine pleaded guilty Friday and was immediately sentenced to 35 years to life in prison for gunning down his estranged wife in Laguna Hills.
Jerel Mark Boykins pleaded guilty to murder with a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a gun. He was given credit for 2,316 days behind bars awaiting trial.
Deputies were sent about 2:30 p.m. Sept. 14, 2017, to check on Boykins’ 23-year-old estranged spouse, Yahaira, in the 25000 block of Via Lomas and found her dead of multiple gunshot wounds, according to sheriff’s department spokeswoman Jaimee Blashaw.
After shooting the victim in her bedroom, Boykins drove to Camp Pendleton, where he was detained by Marine personnel, who called sheriff’s deputies.
Friends said the victim had three young children, two of them fathered by Boykins. He had been most recently stationed out of North Carolina, but was staying at Camp Pendleton at the time of the killing.
The couple had split up about six months prior to the killing.
Anyone experiencing or at risk of domestic violence can obtain help by calling the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233.
