72-year-old daughter convicted of murdering 96-year-old mother

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A 72-year-old woman has been convicted of murdering her 96-year-old mother in the Southern California home they shared.


Orange County prosecutors said Christine Reynolds was found guilty of first-degree murder Thursday for fatally shooting Gretchen DeStefano in August 2014.

A defense lawyer argued that Reynolds was too drunk to know what she was doing.

Her mother was on the phone with a relative when Reynolds got a 9 mm handgun from her car and shot DeStefano in the head.

Reynolds faces up to life in prison when sentenced Dec. 18.

Senior Deputy District Attorney Keith Burke says Reynolds testified that she bought the gun because she intended to kill herself.

Reynolds told a sheriff's deputy that her mother regularly told her she was a horrible person.