Santa Rosa Man Sentenced to Life in Prison for Domestic Violence Offenses

Defendant Adrian Cervantes-Alvarez, 38-years-old of Santa Rosa, was sentenced on May 6, 2024 by the Honorable Troye Shaffer to serve 6 years plus 27 years to life in prison after having been convicted by a Sonoma County jury in February of attempting to murder the mother of his children.

District Attorney Rodriguez stated, “The victim showed amazing courage in holding Mr. Cervantez-Alvarez accountable. This was an extremely violent act committed by a man with a history of extremely violent criminal conduct. He falls clearly within the spirit of the Three Strikes Law.”

The charges resulted from an August 4, 2020 incident where Cervantes-Alvarez violently attacked the mother of his children with a small pair of grooming scissors, stabbing her in the neck at least seven (7) times while they were seated in her car. The incident took place in front of their children, and only ended when a neighbor intervened, causing Mr. Cervantes-Alvarez to flee the area.

Mr. Cervantes-Alvarez was sentenced on Monday, the result of a February jury trial where he was convicted of attempted murder, assault with a deadly weapon, and injuring a co-parent. The jury also found true an allegation that Cervantes-Alvarez personally used a deadly weapon, and that he suffered two (2) prior convictions under California’s Three Strike’s Law. The prior convictions qualified Cervantes-Alvarez for a life sentence under the Three Strike’s Law, and Judge Shaffer imposed the maximum sentence possible under the law. In addition to the prison sentence, the court also issued a 10-year Criminal Protective Order, which is the maximum duration permitted by law.       

The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Scott Uemura, assisted by District Attorney Investigator Robyn Fuentes. Detectives with the Santa Rosa Police Department Domestic Violence headed the investigation.