06-03-2025
Career criminal sentenced for Petaluma murder
(KRON) — A Sonoma County judge sentenced a killer to serve 50 years to life in state prison for committing a 2024 murder in Petaluma.
Paul Coilton, 59, pleaded no contest last month to murdering 49-year-old Steven Edward Lopez, prosecutors said. Coilton was sentenced by Judge Laura Passaglia on Wednesday.
District Attorney Rodriguez said, 'It is incredibly sad to hear the impact that this offense has had on the family members of the victim in this case. This was a senseless tragedy, and hopefully this sentence brings some small measure of closure to the family.'
Coilton shot Lopez five times and left him dying on the side of Highway 116 near Ernie's Tin Bar in Petaluma on November 10, 2024, prosecutors said. The victim died in an ambulance on his way to a hospital.
Sheriff's deputies found the murder weapon, a .380 Ruger Security handgun, at the scene. Investigators found surveillance video showing the two men loading marijuana into the back of Lopez's truck just before the homicide.
Twelve hours after Lopez died, deputies spotted Coilton driving the victim's truck in San Jose and arrested him.
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Coilton entered a 'no contest' plea on February 6 to first-degree murder.
The Sonoma County District Attorney's Office described Coilton as a career criminal. He cycled in and out of prisons for decades, completed five different sentences, and his record dates back to 1983, according to the DA's office.
Despite his new lengthy sentence, the 59-year-old inmate will have a chance for parole in 20 years because of his age.
The district attorney's office explained, 'Although Coilton was sentenced to a term of 50 years to life in prison, under California's elder parole statute which was enacted by the California legislature in 2018, Coilton will be eligible for possible release after serving only 20 years of his sentence.'
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