A jury Monday determined Jon Ralph Dibble was sane when attempted murder and setting a motel room on fire.
The same jury last week convicted Dibble, 27, of all nine felonies and the verdict Monday was the result of a separate sanity phase as the Chula Vista man had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
The verdict means he will serve his sentence in prison rather than be committed to a state mental hospital. The attempted murder convictions carry three life sentences with parole after he serves 21 years.
Deputy District Attorney Ryan Karkenny said consecutive sentences on four counts of possession of incendiary devices, burglary, and having a prior record for attempted robbery could result in Dibble having to serve 72 years before being eligible for parole.
It’s expected that Dibble’s attorney, Damian Lowe, will seek a lesser sentence and argue against consecutive sentencing to Chula Vista Superior Court Judge Stephanie Sontag, who set sentencing for March 2.
Jurors heard psychiatric evidence from both sides in the sanity phase and they came back Monday after deliberating 1 ½ hours.
Lowe told jurors about Dibble’s delusions, saying he claimed to have seen a woman being held against her will in one room at the Riviera Motel, at 372 Broadway, in Chula Vista, on Sept. 30, 2013.
Dibble told officers that demon possessed men were holding the woman who had tape across her face. He said he learned of this through images on his television in his motel room even when it was off.
A male and female were in bed when the woman saw the doorknob move and heard their window screen being pried open. Her saw Dibble had wrapped wire around the doorknob and had beer bottles partially filled with gasoline.
The couple called the motel manager, the police, and then checked out immediately.
