Monterey County jury convicts Michael Ellison for multiple murder charges; Monterey County DA’s office

SALINAS, Calif. (KION-TV) -- The Monterey County DA's office announced Monday that 42-year-old Michael Ellison of Riverside was convicted of First-Degree Murder, FirstDegree Attempted Murder of a Peace Officer and First-Degree Attempted Murder for an incarcerated crime in 2018.

According to the DA's office, Ellison was also convicted of three counts of Assault by Life Prisoner. They say that on April 8, 2018, Ellison stabbed a fellow prisoner Jason Lewis to death in the prison yard at Salinas Valley State Prison.

The DA's office also says that on July 26, 2019, Ellison stabbed a Correctional Officer multiple times while he was housed in administrative segregation at Correctional Training Facility in Soledad.

Then, on August 12, 2023, the DA's office says that Ellison stabbed his cellmate at Salinas Valley State Prison.

Ellison has a prior conviction for a Riverside County murder in 2004, Assault by a Prisoner with a Deadly Weapon from Kings County in 2005, and Assault with a Deadly Weapon causing Great Bodily Injury from Kern County in 2017, according to the DA's office.

Ellison faces a maximum sentence of Life Without Parole with an additional 87 years-life in prison, according to the DA's office.