LOS ANGELES —A Southern California man was sentenced to death Tuesday for the 10-year-old killings of a family of four whose bodies were found buried in shallow graves in the California desert.
Charles “Chase” Merritt was convicted in June of killing his former business associate Joseph McStay, McStay’s wife, Summer, and their 4-year-old and 3-year-old sons, Gianni and Joseph Jr. Prosecutors say he bludgeoned them with a sledgehammer.
