Convicted serial killer Juan Corona has died. He was 85.
California State Prison- Corcoran officials say Corona died of natural causes at 8:15 a.m. Monday at an outside hospital.
Corona was serving 25 concurrent life sentences for 25 counts of first-degree murder. His victims were all farm workers, prison officials say.
In 1971, 25 bodies buried in orchards along the Feather River near Marysville in Sutter County were found. All the victims were men who had been seen with Corona or had been hired through Corona’s Sutter County labor contracting business, prison officals say. At the time, the number of murders set a record in the United States.
Corona was tried in Colusa County and found guilty in January 1973. He was sent to state prison on Feb. 17, 1973.
Prison officials say he barely survived a stabbing attack in 1973 while at California Medical Facility in Vacaville. The stabbing cost him the sight in his left eye.
In 1978, Corona’s conviction was overturned by an appellate court and he won a new trial. In 1981, he was admitted to Correctional Training Facility in Soledad as a safe-keeper commitment until the proceedings were moved to Alameda County.
In 1982, Corona was again convicted of all 25 murders and sentenced to 25 concurrent life sentences. Corona began serving time for the Sutter County commitment on Dec. 23, 1982.
Prison officials say Corona was transferred from Correctional Training Facility to the Protective Housing Unit at CSP-Corcoran in 1992. The unit houses inmates whose safety would be endangered by general population housing.
Corona was denied parole eight times after hearings in 1984, 1987, 1990, 1993, 1998, 2003, 2011 and 2016. He was not eligible to have another parole hearing until 2021.
