A year after Pleasanton security guard Blake Mohs was fatally shot while trying to stop a shoplifter, the two suspected of his killing are admitting to the crime.
That admission was part of a plea deal — a deal the Mohs' family tells NBC Bay Area they had asked for. They said it was a hard decision, but the right one to make for their family.
“It’s us taking back something they stole. Because now with a plea deal, there is no appeal,” said Mohs' mother, Lorie Mohs. “There is no years back in court. It’s done.”
The parents of the 26-year-old Home Depot security guard returned to his workplace Monday. They went there to tell his coworkers they wouldn’t have to relieve his killing in court.
“We decided we couldn’t put our family through the chaos, so release them and get some final closure is more important than a few extra years,” said Mohs' father, Eric Mohs.
Mohs' parents asked for a plea deal, but say it wasn’t because of a lack of evidence.
“He knew, even in his death, how to preserve evidence and he did that for us,” Lorie Mohs said. “He made such a beautiful case that we could do this to honor of him and we could do this in honor of our faith.”
Under the agreement, the suspected shooter Benicia Knapps will serve 19 years to life for second degree murder and enhancements as opposed to 25 years to life.
David Guillory, the suspected getaway driver who fled with Knapps’ 2-year-old in the car, will serve seven years and four months on child endangerment and accessory charges instead of a possible 16 years.
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Both pleaded guilty in court on Monday. Lorie Mohs hopes they will spend the time rehabilitating their lives.
“This is closure for us,” she said. “This is closure for them, too. They get another chance and that is important to me.”
The deal comes after the Mohs family previously criticized Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price for not adding additional special enhancements — something they stand by.
“DA Price has nothing to do with this deal and it is on record that there is nothing that DA Price helped with this deal,” Lorie Mohs said. “It is a family-driven, God-led choice and I’m proud of it.”
It’s a decision Mohs’ parents said allows them to move on while honoring their son and remembering him as a person filled with joy, kindness and laughter.
Both Knapps and Guillory are scheduled to be sentenced on June 6.
