Man Sentenced for the Strangling Murder of 28-Year-Old Kneeland Woman
ARCHIVE PHOTO: Austin Michael Medeiros | Humboldt County Correctional Facility 2017
Press release from the Office of the Humboldt County District Attorney:
Judge Kaleb Cockrum sentenced 28-year-old Austin M. Medeiros of Rhode Island to serve 25 years to life in prison for the first-degree murder of 28-year-old Emily Lobba. Medeiros was ordered to serve an additional 6 years, four months for felony evading, theft of a vehicle, and assaultive crimes committed against other victims, including a Humboldt County Corrections Officer.
On April 3, 2022, Medeiros strangled Ms. Lobba to death while inside her Kneeland home. He proceeded to steal most of her possessions. Ms. Lobba’s caretaker encountered Medeiros at the crime scene and notified law enforcement as Medeiros fled in Ms. Lobba’s van. Despite a high-speed pursuit that followed, Medeiros reached the Arcata Community Forest where he escaped on foot. Medeiros was arrested seven days later after he stole a Santa Cruz Harbor Patrol’s boat and was caught attempting to sail away.
Medeiros was convicted of his crimes by a jury on April 27 of this year. Deputy District Attorney Candace Myers prosecuted the case with the assistance of District Attorney Investigator Martin Morris, as well as Victim/Witness Advocates Caitlyn LaHaie and Morgan Polasek. Local defense attorney Owen Tipps represented Medeiros. Humboldt County Sheriff’s Investigators Brandon Head and Scott Hicks led the investigation that ultimately brought Medeiros to justice.
District Attorney Stacey Eads said: “I commend Ms. Lobba’s caretaker for quickly alerting law enforcement of Medeiros’s crimes. Thank you to the jury for their dedication and service. May this outcome help provide Ms. Lobba’s loved ones with some sense of justice, and a path towards healing.”
Earlier:
- Scanner Report: One Dead, Police Searching Forest After Car Chase
- Law Enforcement Seeks Suspect in Suspicious Death
- ‘All involved individuals have been identified’ in Sunday’s Suspicious Death Investigation, Says HCSO
- Homicide Suspect May Be Headed to Mendocino County
- Suspect in Murder of Kneeland Woman Arrested in Santa Cruz
- Suspect in Kneeland Homicide Allegedly Assaulted and Injured Correctional Deputy
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How is this only a 25 year sentence?!!!!! Isn’t murder supposed to be a life sentence?
Realistically, he’ll probably be out in a decade on “good behavior”
I really gotta get out of CA, even murderers get a slap on the wrist these days
25 years is life in prison. Educate yourself before you comment.
Killing a handicapped person? This isn’t 25 years, or a life sentence. This is a death sentence… anywhere he goes in the CDCR he will be killed.
25 to life, meaning his first opportunity for parole will be in 25 years. The only way he’s out in 10 years is in a body bag
Newsome is going to convert state prisons to ‘Rehab Centers’.
I suspect he will be out far sooner than 25 years.
By the way… here are current California standards.
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By offense type, the median time served was 17.5 years for murder, 7.2 years for rape, 17 months for drug trafficking, and 9 months for drug possession.
The general rule is that a defendant serves 50 percent of his or her sentence while in prison. (Pen. Code §2933.)
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Go figure.
California does not grant early release for people convicted of murder. https://law.justia.com/cases/california/supreme-court/2022/s259999.html
What goes around eventually comes around!
Buh-bye, asshole.
POS.
This is a more recent picture.
https://kymkemp.com/2022/04/11/suspect-in-murder-of-kneeland-woman-arrested-in-santa-cruz/
Oh ya…he looks much better 😂
My. Jail has aged him. Oh welllllll.