An Ojai Valley man was sentenced Friday to 18 years in prison after pleading guilty last month to the 2019 sledgehammer death of his friend and roommate.
During the hearing in a Ventura courtroom, family and friends of the victim, 22-year-old Houston Auer, gave statements to Judge Derek Malan.
The defendant, Cameron Scott Lykins, also spoke during the sentencing hearing in Ventura County Superior Court.
Lykins, 28, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter on April 19. He was initially charged with murder, but admitted in a plea agreement to the lesser charge. He also admitted that he used a deadly weapon, namely the sledgehammer, in the commission of the crime.
The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, in consultation with Lykins’ defense team, recommended the 18-year sentence.
Auer’s family members read victim impact statements during Friday’s session. The victim’s mother spoke harshly about the legal proceedings.
“I am shocked and disgusted by the sentencing outcome that these courts have determined,” said Abigail Collins, Auer’s mother, who cried as she addressed the court.
Collins also directed his anger at the defendant.
“Cameron Scott Lykins doesn’t deserve a second chance, so help me God,” Collins said. “…That to me is a life sentence, any time of the day. I have life and you deserve the same.
Lehi Harris, Auer’s uncle, told the court that the crime has broken his family and they will never get over it.
His cousin’s personality stood out, Harris said.
“If you talk to real friends of Houston, they will tell you how funny and friendly he was,” Harris said as he read his statement. ‘Talk to his employer and the residents of the nursing home he cared for, they will tell you how conscientious he was. Talk to former teachers and they will tell you what he is like.
Defendant speaks
Lykins also issued a statement, saying he expressed his “deepest regret” for the pain and sorrow caused by his and Auer’s actions that evening.
“I killed Houston Auer and I accept full responsibility for that and everything else that happened after he was killed,” Lykins said.
Lykins described killing his friend with a small sledgehammer on May 12, 2019, at the home where the two lived in Meiners Oaks.
“Before I was shot, I picked up the hammer he was using to hold his door open and hit him in the forehead and temple,” Lykins said. “This entire confrontation happened very quickly and only lasted about a minute.”
After the hearing, Senior Deputy District Attorney Christopher Harman said Lykins struck Auer more than once with the weapon, which he described as a 3-pound sledgehammer widely available at hardware stores.
“The forensic evidence shows, as I said at trial, that there were multiple blows to his head,” Harman said during a telephone interview about the victim’s injuries. “(Lykins) may believe this happened, but the evidence doesn’t agree with him.”
The prosecutor described the sentence as an “unfortunate compromise” but a fair solution.
“It’s just hard because Houston was murdered in such a brutal way,” Harman said.
New trial avoided with plea
Prosecutors say Auer was in his bedroom at his grandmother’s home, where both men lived on the property, when Lykins bludgeoned him to death. Lykins left through his bedroom window, dragging his friend’s body with him, before later dumping the remains in Angeles National Forest.
A state fish and wildlife manager found Auer’s body about six weeks later while patrolling a road in the woods. Lykins fled to his mother’s home in the Lone Pine community in Inyo County, where he arranged to have authorities contacted, prosecutors said.
A jury trial was underway on the initial murder charge when a mistrial was declared in February after evidence was accidentally placed before the jury, the district attorney’s office said.
A new process was approved in March. Procedural hearings resumed in April when Lykins pleaded guilty to the manslaughter charge.
The district attorney’s office said at the time that new evidence uncovered by both sides, including text and verbal exchanges by the victim, weakened prosecutors’ ability to prove malice.
A murder conviction in California requires malice and intent. Under California law, voluntary manslaughter occurs during a sudden argument or in the heat of passion.
Lykins remained housed in the county’s main jail Friday evening. He will later be transported to Wasco State Prison, court records show.
Kathleen Wilson contributed to this report
Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at wesley.woodsii@vcstar.com, 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Ojai Valley man sentenced to 18 years for sledgehammer death of friend
