Man Convicted In St. George Murder Sentenced 

ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) — A southern Utah man has been sentenced to 15 years to life in prison after being convicted of murder in the death of a woman whose throat was cut during a night of violence that left two women dead.
The Spectrum newspaper of St. George reports Wednesday that 35-year-old Brandon Perry Smith was sentenced Wednesday.
Smith was convicted in February of the death of 20-year-old Jerrica Christensen, who was killed while helping acquaintances move out of a St. George townhome in 2010.
Prosecutors had been seeking the death penalty, but dropped it so the case could move more quickly.
Smith’s lawyers said he was manipulated by a friend who was later convicted in the death of 27-year-old Brandie Sue Dawn Jerden. A man was also shot that night but survived.