By Ramneet Singh and Linhchi Nguyen
SACRAMENTO – Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Patrick Marlette called out a robbery suspect here last Friday for deliberately “picking particular victims when they are in particularly vulnerable situations.”
Because of that, the judge refused to grant the defendant LeJohn Spittler probation, and sent him to prison for four years.
Spittler was charged with three counts of robbery, and in deciding his sentence for his plea, the court was allowed to consider his previous uncharged burglary.
Deputy District Attorney Andrea Morris read aloud a victim statement about how the victim suffered from physical injuries and mental stresses for several months because of a robbery allegedly 
committed by the defendant.
During the hearing, Morris read that the robbery occurred Dec. 4, 2019, in Elk Grove. The victim stated that Spittler had “snatched” her purse outside of her place of residence, and she sustained a hip and leg injury as a result of the fall.
The victim said that “I was in pain for several months. I have difficulty sleeping at night. It was very stressful due to my pain, and my blood pressure went up all the time which caused me to have a headache.” Because of her pain, she was restricted from her daily activities and required assistance from her husband and children.
She is currently seeking multiple treatments from a doctor and has to use a compression wrap for her injury in order to ease the pain, and noted psychological trauma—she said she did not feel safe for her family and herself. “I was very unhappy and scared for my safety. It causes me to have anxiety when I think about it,” she stated.
As such, the victim wished to remain anonymous and wished for Spittler to right his path in life. “I hope the defendant doesn’t do this again and goes back to school and have a good job and have a good life.”
In response to hearing the statement, Judge Marlette told Spittler that he was not eligible for probation. Marlette reprimanded Spittler for his “cowardice at picking particular victims when they are in a particularly vulnerable situation.”
Marlette further added that it seemed clear to him that Spittler “planned this all out so that [he] victimized people who are much weaker than [him] and defenseless.”
The attorneys agreed on the aggregate four years for state prison. On top of that, the judge included a series of fees on Spittler’s plea to cover victim restitution, court security, court constructions, and more.
Defense Attorney Larry Pilgrim requested the judge to “minimize some wear if you can” when deciding on the fees, but Marlette went on to charge the defendant a total of approximately $375, not counting the victim restitution fee.
Ramneet Singh is a third-year student at the University of California, Davis. He is a Political Science major and is pursuing a History minor. He is 
from Livingston California.
Linhchi Nguyen is a fourth year at UC Davis, double majoring in Political Science and English. She currently lives in Sacramento, California.
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