82-Year-Old Man Sentenced In Palm Springs Murder

PALM SPRINGS, CA — An 82-year-old man who fatally bludgeoned a senior at her and her husband's Palm Springs home, where he was staying as a guest, was sentenced Monday to 16 years to life in state prison.

A Banning jury last month convicted Stephen Roy McKernan of second- degree murder and a sentence-enhancing allegation of using a deadly weapon in the commission of a felony for the 2019 slaying of 75-year-old Claire Carsman.

During a hearing at the Banning Justice Center Monday, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Samuel Diaz imposed the sentence required under state law for the offenses.

Deputy District Attorney Steven Sorensen told jurors that "we don't know why Mr. McKernan did it."

But the prosecutor said testimony had revealed there were political differences between the defendant and victim — she a Democrat, he a Republican.

"She was watching one of her TV shows, and they bickered," Sorensen said. "He had a sadistic reason."

Defense attorney Michael Selyem said that his client "found Claire Carsman like that. There's no doubt she was murdered, but it was not done by him."

The attorney contended that investigators could never determine exactly what had transpired, or whether Carsman and McKernan were the only ones in the house at the time of the crime on April 22, 2019.

The defendant had known Carsman and her husband, Barry, for years, leading to the invitation to stay with them, beginning April 20, 2019.

The victim's spouse headed to an area casino in the early afternoon hours of April 22, leaving his wife and McKernan alone in the single-story residence at 360 W. Pico Road. Sorensen said nothing was amiss until 5:53 p.m., when Barry received a rapid succession of four calls from McKernan in under 10 minutes.

One of the voicemail messages was replayed for the jury, during which McKernan was heard saying, "It's a nightmare you've never been in your life. I need you to stay away so you're not in any danger. We got attacked. We need your attorney."

"She was bludgeoned," Sorensen said, adding that blood spatter covering the defendant's clothes and shoes indicated he "had to hold the bar stool facing Mrs. Carsman" when he struck her with it.

Selyem said his client suffered cognitive impairment from a stroke, and he had an affinity for alcoholic beverages, but he was known as a "happy drunk."

McKernan reached a 911 dispatcher, saying "We had a break-in. I think someone is dead."

The defendant was taken into custody without incident. One witness testified that his pants were unbuttoned and his belt had been hanging loose when officers encountered him standing outside the residence. However, there was no evidence of a sexual assault.

The defendant had no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.