A 22-year-old California man stood in court Wednesday and tearfully apologized to the family of Samantha Sharp, his 24-year-old girlfriend who he admitted stabbing more than 20 times, dismembering her body and scattering it in a west Fresno County orchard.
Cameron Wright was sentenced to 55 years to life in prison for the January murder of Sharp and the mutilation of her body. He pleaded no contest to the two felony charges.
Wright blamed his heinous acts on being high on methamphetamine. And he denied being a follower of Satan, as one family member accused him of in court.
“I am not a devil worshiper. I was on drugs; I was on methamphetamine,” he said sobbing. “I am sorry.”
Someone from the courtroom audience shouted, “It is not going to bring her back.”
Relatives said Sharp, who was from Porterville, was in Fresno with Wright the night she was killed. Also with them was the couple’s newborn baby boy. What prompted Wright to kill his girlfriend remains unclear, family members said.
“What made you do this? You destroyed our lives,” said Michelle Hill, Sharp’s mother. “You took her life from us and now we are taking your life from you and your family.”
Wright was arrested on Jan. 10 by Fresno County Sheriff’s Deputies, who were responded to a call of domestic violence at a home in the 8300 block of South Hayes Avenue at about 10 p.m.
Deputies soon developed information that Sharp may have been killed and her body dismembered. They searched an orchard about two miles away and found evidence of the gruesome crime.
Sharp’s mother said the burial of her daughter was especially difficult because deputies never found Sharp’s left leg. One of the only ways she was able to identify her body was by a tattoo on her forearm.
Several people who spoke before Judge Cullers said Wright’s unspeakable crime has left them broken.
“When I first met you, I told you to take care of my sister,” said Brandon Loudermilk, Sharp’s younger brother. ”You told me you were going to be like a bigger brother and that you would protect my sister. And then you did this, Cameron.”
Wright responded by saying, ”I was on drugs.”
Cullers did not appear swayed by Wright’s admitted drug use and the role it played in his decision to kills his girlfriend.
“There have been plenty of people high on meth, but not many people deliberate on killing the mother of their children, then go ahead and kill them, dismember them and hide the body parts,” Cullers said.
The judge called the facts in this case horrendous. He said that not only did Wright try to strangle his girlfriend, he resorted to stabbing her 20 to 30 times as she was on her hands and knees.
Cullers said Sharp was saying “I love you” as Wright was viciously attacking her.
The other tragedy in this case, Cullers said, is the “innocent child who now must navigate the world without the love and support of his mother.”
Sharp’s uncle James Hill said the child, who is now 7 months old, is with Sharp’s side of the family. Who gets permanent custody of the child is still being sorted out in court, he said.
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