ELIZABETH, N.J. (AP) - A man whose murder conviction for killing his estranged wife was overturned has been resentenced following his guilty plea to a lesser charge.
Union County prosecutors say Ademir Ramalho received a 27-year state prison sentence Friday.
The now 64-year-old Roselle man fatally stabbed 51-year-old Lucia Emeliano, of Elizabeth, in July 2006. Authorities say he confronted his wife - who had a domestic violence restraining order against him - and stabbed her four times after trapping her between his rental vehicle and her vehicle.
Ramalho was arrested moments later. Emeliano was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ramalho was convicted of murder and other charges in 2009. But that conviction was overturned in 2013 when an appellate court found the trial judge didn’t sufficiently instruct jurors about evidence regarding Ramalho’s mental health.
Ramalho pleaded guilty in January to aggravated manslaughter.
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