The penalty phase for a man convicted of two murders ” including the slaying of a University City resident and an Ocean Beach liquor store clerk ” was scheduled to begin last week. The same jury which convicted Tecumseh Colbert, 23, will recommend whether he should get the death penalty or a life term in state prison without parole.
The six-man, six-woman jury found Colbert guilty on June 28 of two first-degree murder charges, along with the special circumstance of murder during a robbery. The jury deliberated four and a half days before reaching a guilty verdict on all but two charges. Jurors deadlocked on a conspiracy charge and an attempt robbery count.
Colbert, of the North Bay Terraces area, was found guilty of killing Richard Hammes, 45, who was shot to death at Prime Market Liquor, 4161 Voltaire St., on Nov. 10, 2004. Colbert was wearing a Halloween mask and the store’s security camera showed Hammes approach the gunman before being shot in the chest.
Hammes, who lived on the property in a shed, was filling in as the clerk because the owner was taking care of his ill son. The robber fled without taking any money. The jury found Colbert guilty of attempting to rob Hammes.
Colbert was also found guilty of killing Robert McCamey, 32, of University City, who was shot to death Oct. 29, 2004. The jury deadlocked on whether the incident was an attempted robbery.
Colbert’s ex-girlfriend testified against him. She pleaded guilty last month to voluntary manslaughter and conspiracy to commit robbery and is awaiting sentencing.
Theron Lee Peters, 40, of Point Loma, pleaded guilty to all charges and avoided a trial. Prosecutors had alleged Peters was the getaway driver in both murder cases. He was given two consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole on June 22.
San Diego Superior Court Judge Michael Wellington also imposed a third life term, plus seven years consecutively, along with a $10,000 fine.