Life sentence in attorney's stabbing

LOS ANGELES -- A 40-year-old defendant convicted of stabbing a workers' compensation attorney in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom was sentenced this week to 11 years to life in prison.Torres, who identifies herself as a male-to-female transsexual, was convicted on Feb. 15 of one count of premeditated attempted murder. On May 20, 2010, Torres -- armed with a nine-inch butcher knife -- entered the Junipero Serra state office building and wandered the halls looking for courts that were in session, prosecutors said. Torres found the courtroom where her previous court appearance was held, sat in the chair closest to the judge's door and waited. While she waited, an attorney entered the courtroom and made a phone call. Seconds after he began speaking, stating the name of his law firm at the outset of the call, Torres stabbed the man in the back. The law firm was the same firm who opposed Torres in her workers' compensation case. The victim did not know Torres.

********** Published: March 08, 2012 - Volume 10 - Issue 47