A jury took less than two days to decide that Justin Helzer was sane when he murdered five people as part of a scheme to prepare for Christ's return to Earth.
Helzer, 32, his older brother, Glenn, and their former roommate, Dawn Godman, killed five people, including the 22-year-old daughter of blues guitarist Elvin Bishop during the summer of 2000. Justin Helzer was convicted last month.
On Thursday, the same jury that found him guilty decided he knew his crimes were morally wrong. He had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity and could've been sent to a mental hospital as punishment.
Those same jurors must return to court next week for the death penalty hearing.
Helzer's lawyers had argued he was so submissive to his brother, who masterminded the killings, that he suffered from a rare condition called "shared delusional disorder," believing his brother was a prophet and that the slayings were divinely sanctioned.
Defense attorney Daniel Cook said he was disappointed with the verdict but heartened that the jury had considered it at length. "Now, we have to try to figure out a way to convince these people to save his life," said Cook, adding he believed his client was essentially a good man who had done terrible things.
Godman pleaded guilty and accepted a 38 years to life prison sentence in exchange for testifying against Justin Helzer. Glenn Helzer pleaded guilty without a deal.
The trio declared war on Satan on July 30, 2000, before kidnapping Annette Stineman, 78, and Ivan Stineman, 85, a Concord couple who once employed Glenn Helzer as their stockbroker, to extort $100,000 from them.
The third victim, Selina Bishop, was befriended by Glenn Helzer to cash the Stinemans' checks. The three victims were dismembered with a saw, then stuffed into gym bags and dumped into the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
Glenn Helzer fatally shot Bishop's mother, Jennifer Villarin, 45, and her companion, 54-year-old James Gamble, at Bishop's apartment in Marin County.