18 years for killer of girl, 16, who aspired to help others

On Friday, the man who took the 16-year-old's life on Oct. 25, 2000, was sentenced to 18 years in prison, still proclaiming his innocence.

Louie Machado, 26, told Pima County Superior Court Judge Frank Dawley he isn't an angel, but he's "never committed any acts of violence, especially as senseless as this one."

Originally charged with first-degree murder, Machado was convicted of second-degree murder in March following a nearly month-long trial.

Ramsay was shot moments after arriving home from a church-sponsored pizza party and died in her mother's arms.

Tucson police identified Machado as a suspect in 2001, but he wasn't charged until October 2006.

During the trial, jurors learned Machado's mother and girlfriend told detectives Machado confessed to shooting Ramsay.

Patricia Machado said her son told her he shot toward Ramsay hoping to persuade her father to pay a drug debt he owed Gilbert Machado, Louie Machado's father and her estranged husband.

On Friday, Machado was facing a sentence of between 10 and 22 years in prison.

Dawley read about 150 letters and listened to members of both families before the sentencing.

Machado's family, including his mother, insisted he is innocent.

Patricia Machado told Dawley her hatred of everyone led her to lie to police, and those lies later came back to haunt her. Gilbert Machado said he didn't even know Ramsay's father.

Most of the hearing was devoted to members of Ramsay's family. One after another, her cousins, an aunt, her sister, her stepfather and her mother tried to give Dawley a feeling for who Ramsay was and the impact her death has had on them and the community.

Ramsay's mother, Lorie Artery, and aunt, Diana Tripp, were raising their daughters together. All of the girls were close friends who spent hours together dreaming about their future husbands, planning their weddings and envisioning a life filled with babies and family vacations.

Ramsay spoke often of finding a career where she could help others, perhaps as a school- teacher or social worker. Her first job — and her last — was as a lifeguard.

Krystal Ramsay told Dawley of her disbelief when told of her sister's death, and about later passing out when hearing her sister's voice on her mother's answering machine.

The sobs in the courtroom began in earnest when Artery described her screams for help upon finding her daughter, her attempts at CPR and her pleas to God to not take her baby.

Her most important job in life was to raise her children, but she didn't get to finish with "Becky," Artery said.

The best thing she can do is to give Becky a voice at Machado's sentencing hearing and to urge a 22-year prison sentence, Artery said.

"It's all I have left to do," Artery said. "I didn't get to see her through high school and any other accomplishments in life."

Deputy Pima County Attorney Casey McGinley told Dawley that in the months and years after Ramsay's death, "she became everyone's daughter, sister, cousin and friend."

Tucson residents remember Rebecca Ramsay and the circumstances of her death, McGinley said.

What is striking to him and fellow prosecutor William McCollum is Machado knew what a sweet, innocent and wonderful girl Ramsay was because he had dated a cousin and yet still chose to go to her house with a loaded gun, McGinley said.

Assistant Pima County Public Defender Thomas Martin argued for a lenient sentence, noting Machado's lack of a significant criminal history and his family support. He also argued there is "residual doubt" about his client's guilt.

One witness told police she saw a man running west down Ramsay's street, near East 22nd Street and South Craycroft Road, and another neighbor saw a man running east, Martin said.

Martin also questioned the credibility of one witness who testified he saw Machado on TV years after the fact and recognized him as the shooter.

Reading from a prepared statement, Machado said he sympathizes with the Ramsays not only because of their loss, but because the real killer is on the loose.

He also spoke of having found God in jail and his belief God will someday remove the thorn he is now living with.

Machado will have to serve every day of his sentence with the exception of the 589 days he spent in jail awaiting trial.