In just over two months, Larry Millete will learn if he’ll spend the rest of his life in prison. The Chula Vista father, recently convicted of first-degree murder for killing his wife Maya, was back in court Monday and changed his plea to guilty in an unrelated case.
Millete had been charged with possession of an unregistered assault weapon. Chula Vista police detectives seized that weapon, and other guns, when Larry was served a gun violence restraining order in 2021.
That happened while they were investigating Maya’s disappearance. Her body has never been found.
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An undated picture of Larry & Maya Millete.
That gun charge wasn’t mentioned once during his murder trial, because his defense attorneys successfully argued to exclude it – a legal process called bifurcation. Essentially, the gun charge could be tried separately because it wasn’t relevant to the murder case.
The sentencing for his murder conviction had been on hold until the gun charge was resolved. Judge Enrique Camarena set a sentencing hearing in Millete’s murder case for September 29.
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Larry Millete sits next to his defense attorney, Liann Sabatini, during a hearing on Monday, July 20, 2026.
First-degree murder carries a sentence of 25 years to life in prison. It will be up to the judge to decide he’ll be allowed to be paroled after serving a minimum of 25 years.
The weapons charge conviction could add as much as three more years onto that tally, though it’s unclear if the judge will rule those sentences to be carried out at the same time or one after the other.
Millete has been locked up since late 2021, so that time – almost five years – will count toward time served. It also remains to be seen if his attorneys will file motions for a new trial or appeal the verdict, which could also delay sentencing.
Camera allowed in the courtroom
Larry Millete (2nd from left), sits between his defense attorneys Colby Ryan (far left) and Liann Sabatini, while deputy district attorney Christy Bowles (far right) looks on, during a hearing on Monday, July 20, 2026
For the entirety of Millete’s two month trial, Judge Camarena hadn’t allowed cameras in the courtroom. He’d cited the need to protect the jury and prevent media exposure from impacting justice.
Now that Millete had been convicted, the judge now allowed the media to record the hearing. Millete was brought into the courtroom in shackles, wearing a jail jumpsuit.
One thing that was also noticeably absent on Millete – a COVID mask. The convicted murderer has routinely worn one at every hearing he’s had since his arrest in 2021.