Man draws life sentence in 1997 slaying of his wife

Tuesday, Jan. 12, 1999 | 11:36 a.m.

Antonio Leffall's 14-year-old son already had lost his mother to murder, and he sobbed in court as he watched his father receive a sentence of life in prison.

Leffall, 44, pleaded guilty to murder and kidnapping in the 1997 shooting death of his estranged wife, Dana Lorraine Leffall, 33. District Judge Kathy Hardcastle decided he would serve 25 years before being eligible for parole.

"Children should never be deprived of their mother unless God chooses," Charlene Caron, Mrs. Leffall's mother, said. "God didn't choose, her husband did."

Deputy District Attorney Bill Koot said that after an argument on the telephone Leffall grabbed a gun and went to his estranged wife's apartment. He dragged her to a car, and a short time later, she was shot to death in front of their 2-year-old daughter.

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