“We appreciate the work of California DOJ criminalists who assist law enforcement officers throughout the state with their investigations based on evidence collected and processed. Their work truly helps to seal the deal in guilt or exoneration.” – CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
UKIAH– On June 8, 2023, Christopher Wayne Gamble, 48, of Willits, was sentenced in Mendocino County Superior Court for using a firearm to murder two men. Gamble was convicted by jury in early May for killing Ulises Andrade Ayala and Anwar Ayala Rodriguez at a marijuana site Willits was operating on Sherwood Road.
For the murder in the second degree of. Andrade Ayala, Gamble was sentenced to 15 years to life in state prison, the only sentencing option allowed by law for this crime.
Because Gamble personally and intentionally discharged a firearm to cause Ayala’s death, an additional 25 years to life was imposed, to run consecutive to the 15 years to life for the murder.
For the murder in the first degree of Ayala Rodriguez, the law required a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
The jury had found true a special circumstance alleging that Gamble committed at least two murders, with at least one of the two being murder of the first degree. This finding requires an LWOP sentence.
Because Gamble personally and intentionally discharged a firearm to cause Rodriguez’s death, an additional 25 years to life was added to his overall sentencing ledger.
Finally, Gamble was sentenced to the low term of 16 months — consecutive to the murder sentences — for his conviction for felony animal abuse involving hurting and killing roosters.
In total, Gamble was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, plus an additional 66 years in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The law enforcement agencies that developed the evidence supporting the jury verdicts were the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office, the Mendocino Major Crimes Task Force, the Department of Justice crime laboratory, and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation.
