West Covina : Man Gets Life in 2 Killings

A West Covina man has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing his daughter and her boyfriend.

Jimmy Joe Gregory, 57, of West Covina was convicted by a Pomona Superior Court jury on Nov. 5 of the murders of his daughter, Vera Gregory, 27, and her boyfriend, Charles Franklin, 41. The panel also affirmed the special circumstances allegation of multiple murder.

Gregory apparently was emotionally distressed when he shot the pair on Aug. 20, 1990, in the home the three shared, Deputy Dist. Atty. Hyatt Seligman said.

The next day, Gregory entered the City of Industry sheriff’s station and told deputies that he had killed two people and that the bodies were outside in his car.

Then he produced a gun, and for the next 90 minutes, he refused to drop the weapon. At times, Gregory seemed suicidal, authorities said.

He finally placed the gun on a station counter after deputies brought him the drink of bourbon he had requested.

“He had no prior convictions of any kind,” Seligman said, explaining why the death penalty was not sought. “He apparently acted out of extreme depression and emotion.”