Man Gets 90 Years for Killing DePaul Student

Narcisco Gatica sentenced for role in Halloween 2009 shooting

A gang member convicted in the Halloween 2009 shooting death of a DePaul University honor student was sentenced to 90 years in prison Friday.

Narcisco Gatica, 21, was found guilty last month of pulling the trigger of a TEC-9 semiautomatic that killed Francisco "Frankie" Valencia and wounded his girlfriend, Daisy Camacho, as they attended a Humboldt Park Halloween party two years ago.

Jurors found Gatica guilty of murder and aggravated battery with a firearm.

Camacho cried as she read an impact statement in court at Gatica's hearing Friday.

She called her ordeal a "terrible nightmare" and that she feels guilty to be alive as she struggles to pay her medical bills.

"The scars on my neck will never be as ingrained as ones on my heart," Camacho said in court.

Defense attorney Mary Jane Placek argued it would be absurd to sentence Gatica to life because he wasn't aiming for Valencia when he fired the gun.

"We waste our resources to do this over and over again," Placek said.

Gatica, 21, is a self-proclaimed member of the Maniac Latin Disciples and the second man convicted with Valencia's death.

Last June, Berly Valladares was sentenced to 70 years in prison for providing the gun that was used to kill Valencia.

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