Man gets life in prison for attempted murder in Santa Cruz

A man was sentenced to life in prison for shooting at a father in front of his family.

According to the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office, John Jason Thomas attacked several families, just one week before Christmas in 2013.

On Dec. 18, 2013, Thomas confronted a family of four, including a 3-month-old baby, who were driving door-to-door to sell tamales to make a extra money for the holidays. Thomas walked up to the car on Bixby Street with a loaded gun and attempted to unlock the door.

“He then began banging on the glass with the gun, which was hard enough to crack the window,” said the DA’s Office.

The driver of the car got out of the car to protect his family, at which time Thomas pulled the trigger twice.

“Luckily for the driver, the defendant had the wrong ammunition in the gun which caused it to misfire,” the DA’s Office said.

Authorities said Thomas pointed the gun at several other people, including a 15-year-old boy, and a mother and daughter who were driving by.