Jury finds man guilty in California serial killing case

LOS ANGELES >> A jury on Thursday found an aspiring actor who was described by prosecutors as a serial killer guilty of fatally stabbing two women and attempting to kill a third in their Southern California homes.

After three days of deliberations, the Los Angeles jury reached the verdict against 43-year-old Michael Gargiulo, who is also awaiting trial for a similar killing in Illinois in 1993.

Gargiulo was convicted in the murder of 22-yearold Ashley Ellerin, in her Hollywood home in 2001 on a night when she was supposed to have drinks with Ashton Kutcher, who testified at the trial. Her father sat in court for the verdict,

Gargiulo was also convicted of the 2005 murder of 32-year old Maria Bruno in her El Monte home, and with the 2008 attempted murder of Michelle Murphy, who fought off her attacker in her Santa Monica apartment and forced him to flee.

Jurors also found that Gargiulo was guilty of several special-circumstance allegations, including lying in wait and multiple murders, that make him eligible for the death penalty or life in prison with no possibility of parole.

A final phase of the trial is set to start Tuesday, with jurors to determine whether Gargiulo was sane at the time of the killings.

Gargiulo sat in court in a lavender dress shirt and slacks with eight sheriff’s deputies standing behind him. He showed no reaction as the clerk read the verdict.

His attorneys declined comment outside court. Prosecutors and victims’ family members did not speak to reporters.

A native of the Chicago area who moved to Los Angeles in the late 1990s, Gargiulo had acting aspirations and worked as an air conditioning repair man and Hollywood nightclub bouncer at the time of the attacks.