An Uber passenger received a life in prison sentence without parole for the 2022 murder of a mother named Christina Spicuzza who happened to be his driver.
Spicuzza’s family revealed that they “showed mercy” on Christina’s killer by requesting he not be handed the death penalty for the senseless murder.
According to a CBS News report, 25-year-old Calvin Crew was sentenced to life without parole at the Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh for the murder of the mother-of-four.
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Spicuzza’s family read impact statements to the court though the now-sentenced Uber passenger was not in attendance.
“You should have the death penalty, but we showed mercy,” Spicuzza’s mother, Cindy Spicuzza, said.
“You executed her. No mercy, no remorse. It was abhorrent. It was murder.”
Spicuzza’s family had asked the court not to give Crew the death penalty prior to his trial beginning earlier this year, per prosecutors.
Brandon Marto, the fiance of Spicuzza, lashed out at Crew in his statement for not being man enough to attend his sentencing.
“No reason other than a coward. A coward who couldn’t be here today to face this,” he said. “Christy was everything for my family. I was lost, out of control. She saw something in me.”
Marto also said to the judge that he hoped Crew would “rot and burn in prison.”
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He was also slapped with 13 to 26 years for kidnapping and robbery charges during sentencing.
On February 10, 2022, the 25-year-old picked up Crew, wore a dark hoodie with a mask, at around 9 p.m. while driving for Uber.
However, about 10 minutes into the ride, he was caught on dashcam footage putting a gun to the back of her head.
“You’ve got to be joking,” she said, before realizing the severity of the situation. Crew told her to “keep driving” as Spicuzza pleaded, “Come on, I have a family,” per the video.
“I’m begging you. I have four kids,” Spicuzza said. “I got a family too,” Crew told her. “Now drive.”
Throughout the drive, Spicuzza begged Crew to remove the gun from her head many times. “Please take that off of me,” she pleaded. “Do what I say and everything will be alright,” Crew told her.
The video ended once he noticed the camera and took it off the dashboard.
Two days later, the mother of four’s body was discovered in a wooded area in Monroeville with a single gunshot wound to the head.
Days later, Crew was arrested and was charged with criminal homicide, robbery and tampering with evidence.
After his arrest, Crew told cops that after his trip with Spicuzza ended, he got out of the car and later took a bus home to Pitcairn.
However, surveillance footage indicated that he never got on or off a bus.
Police said GPS records showed she had driven through multiple neighborhoods with the offender allegedly in the backseat.
Officers later found Spicuzza’s dashboard camera around where she picked up Crew.
Crew also received a text from his girlfriend, Tanaya Mullen, that said “[I’m] not going to jail if we get caught,” per the complaint obtained by The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
During his sentencing Monday, Crew’s defense attorney said that the convicted Uber passenger sentenced to life in prison “lived a childhood surrounded by violence and neglect,” per CBS News.
According to reports, his lawyers say that he will appeal his conviction and maintain his innocence.
