A 65-year-old man who shot his girlfriend — an elementary school teacher — in the face was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the murder, the First Judicial District Attorney’s office announced Monday in a news release.
Jerald Arthur Cross was convicted of second-degree murder in November and sentenced Dec. 20 in the death of Julene Isaacson, 61.
“Ms. Isaacson had told family and friends that Cross had been physical with her and that she had an exit strategy to leave the relationship,” the release said. “She wanted to wait until the end of the school term so as to lessen the impact on her students.”
When deputies arrived at the Morrison apartment of Cross and Isaacson on Oct. 7, 2018, they found Cross kneeling by Isaacson, according to the arrest affidavit. She had been shot twice in the face and was sitting on the floor surrounded by an art project for her students.
“Cross said that he committed the murder because he couldn’t give her up,” the district attorney’s release said.
