An Orange County judge sentenced a man to life in state prison without the possibility of parole on Monday, Nov. 29, for murdering an old friend in Sunset Beach in 1988.
In related news, the defendant also pleaded guilty to conspiring to have a detective and a witness in the case assaulted in exchange for $300 and sexual favors from his girlfriend, according to a statement issued by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
Paul Gentile Smith, 50, of Long Beach, was convicted by a jury on Tuesday, Nov. 2 of one felony count of special circumstances murder with torture and a sentencing enhancement for the personal use of a deadly weapon.
Paul Smith’s girlfriend and co-defendant, Tina Derae Smith, 47, of Mission Viejo, already pleaded guilty on April 2 to one felony count of conspiracy to commit aggravated assault.
She was sentenced to 240 days in jail and five years of formal probation.
The victim was Robert Haugen, 29, who was recently described by prosecutors as a drug dealer. At the time, newspaper accounts described him as a former bricklayer who was injured on the job.
Haugen died on Oct. 24, 1988. Orange County firefighters found his body after putting down a fire in Haugen’s apartment.
Haugen was stabbed multiple times. According to the DA’s Office, he was nearly decapitated.
At the time, investigators found a bloodstain that did not belong to Haugen.
During the trial, Paul Smith testified that he accidentally cut himself with a knife while cutting marijuana in the victim’s apartment the night before Haugen’s murder.
In 2007, Paul Smith was arrested in Nevada for domestic violence. His DNA was later entered into the national DNA database. In late January 2009, Paul Smith’s DNA was linked to the blood found in Haugen’s apartment.
Paul Smith was charged with the murder and extradited back to Orange County in March 2009.
The victim’s family submitted written victim impact statements to the court at Monday’s sentencing hearing.
Janey Perry, Haugen’s mother, wrote: “Twenty two years later I find myself going through the same pain I experienced when he was murdered in 1988. Finding out the horrific manner in which he was killed will remain with me forever.”
Edward Perry, the victim’s step-father, wrote a statement that read, “Not a day goes by that I have not missed him. I have wondered what he would have become. Perhaps a husband, a father. None of those things happened because he was murdered before he was given the chance.”
As for the failed conspiracy to assault an investigator and a witness, prosecutors say that in 2009, while he was in custody awaiting trial for murder, Paul Smith obtained a phone number for someone he believed would be willing to assault a civilian witness identified only as Scott M. and the lead homicide detective in the Haugen case.
Paul Smith did not know the individual in question was an undercover officer.
On Nov. 17, 2009 Smith reportedly called the undercover investigator to have him assault someone in exchange for $300.
According to prosecutors, Paul Smith provided a detailed description of the civilian witness including his cell and home phone numbers, the location of his home and the type of car he drove.
On Nov. 28, 2009, Tina Smith drove to a fast food restaurant in Lake Forest, reportedly with the intention of paying the undercover investigator $50 as an advance payment to assault the civilian witness.
This ultimately led to Tina Smith’s arrest and additional charges being filed against Paul Smith.
