OAKLAND — Antonio Durant, the 33-year-old man convicted of murdering three people here in a 2019 shooting, has been sentenced to 30 years to life, court record show.
Durant was convicted last year of three counts of second degree murder. Jurors found he shot and killed Gino Houchins, 21, of Vallejo, and Marcus Fuller Jr., 29, and Dante Johnson, 31, both of Oakland, on the night of Jan. 4, 2019 in the 1000 block of Center Street in Oakland.
Judge Scott Patton, who handed down the sentence, imposed three 30 years to life sentences but stayed two of them, allowing Durant to avoid serving consecutive terms, court records show. Durant is now in North Kern State Prison. He received credit for the seven years he spent in jail since being arrested in a high speed chase about two weeks after the murders. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation records say he’ll be eligible for parole in 2039.
Durant was transferred to prison on Feb. 26.
Durant was linked to the shooting by clothing he allegedly discarded afterwards, which contained his DNA, according to court records. The motive for the shooting was less clear, but prosecutors alleged that Durant was seen talking to the three victims just before the shooting. While in jail, Durant wrote notes that gave varying accounts of the shooting, one denying he was there, another blaming the victims for attacking him, but also expressing remorse.
“(Fuller) began to reach down so I guessed he may have a gun and I was scared for my mother’s life … I don’t remember what happened. I have so much remorse for what happened and I’m so sorry,” one of the notes said.