By Cathy Locke
clocke@sacbee.com
A 36-year-old man has been sentenced to 50 years to life in prison after a DNA sample linked him to the 2004 murder of Juanita Johnson.
Christopher Rogers was convicted by a Sacramento County jury in October of first-degree murder and the use of a firearm. He was sentenced Friday by Superior Court Judge Eugene Balonon.
Johnson's body was found on the doorstep of a home early Thanksgiving Day 2004 on 40th Street near 44th Avenue in south Sacramento . A trail of blood led down the street to where she had been shot one time in the head, according to a Sacramento County District Attorney's Office news release. Evidence, including a condom, indicated that a sexual act had taken place, officials said.
The case remained unsolved for five years. Although DNA was recovered, it was not matched to a known offender. In January 2009, provisions of Proposition 69 went into effect, authorizing collection of DNA samples from individuals arrested for a felony offense.
In 2009, Rogers was arrested for a domestic violence offense. In accordance with the new law, a DNA sample was taken and analyzed by the District Attorney's Crime Lab. When the sample was placed into the DNA database, it returned a match to the 2004 murder of Johnson, officials said.
Call The Bee's Cathy Locke, (916) 321-5287.









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