Ex-Marine Raphael Ramey Found Guilty of Murder

Raphael Ramey was declared guilty of murder by a jury on February 10. He had been accused of knifing, beating, and stomping to death a used-car salesman who failed to deliver a car to Ramey (who was a 20-year-old active-duty Marine at the time) after more than two months of delays.

The jury went into deliberations late on February 1; on the morning of February 10, jurors came to a unanimous decision: guilty of murder, guilty of torture, and guilty of personal use of a deadly weapon.

On August 23, 2009, car salesman Charlie Williams, 23, was found dead inside his bloodied office located on Coast Highway in Oceanside. Raphael Ramey never did get possession of his already-paid-for red-and-white 1970 Chevy Impala.

Police recorded a confession from Ramey, who admitted to the killing and told officers that he slept well that night, that it had been his first good night’s sleep in weeks. The jury was shown the recorded confession during the weeklong trial.

Superior court judge Joan Weber is expected to sentence Raphael Ramey, now 21, to life in prison without parole March 14 in the Vista Courthouse.

Pictured: Raphael Ramey

Photo credit: Bob Weatherston