San Rafael Man Convicted of Killing His Mother

A Marin County Superior Court jury convicted Richard Leroy Carlson of second-degree murder late this morning for killing his mother in her San Rafael home last year.

Carlson, 31, faces 16 years to life in prison when he is sentenced April 6 for killing 72-year-old Eleanor Carlson with a Leatherman utility knife, Deputy District Attorney Tom Brown said.

Police responding to an alarm call at 215 C St. at about 4 a.m. on March 15 noticed signs of a break-in and could see a woman lying on the floor.

Officers forced their way into the home and determined that the woman, later identified as Eleanor Carlson, had been murdered, San Rafael police spokeswoman Margo Rohrbacher said.

Richard Carlson, who was adopted by Eleanor Carlson and her late husband, was arrested without incident by San Rafael and Hayward police the following day on Grand Avenue near the BART station in Hayward.

San Rafael police also said Carlson's mother obtained a temporary restraining order against him after a violent confrontation with him in January 2010.

The jury began deliberations Friday afternoon, continued on Monday and Tuesday and returned its verdict at about 11:30 a.m. today, Brown said.

Brown said the jury found Carlson not guilty of first-degree murder before convicting him of second-degree murder.

Deputy Public Defender Pedro Oliveros argued during trial that the slaying was manslaughter because Carlson was abused by his mother when he was
nine or 10 years old, Brown said.

Oliveros was not immediately available for comment this afternoon. Brown said the slaying was not a "heat of passion" manslaughter.

"It was murder. The issue was the degree," Brown said.

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Bay City News Service