Man Who Gave Hoarding Defense Sentenced For Murder

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A Northern California man has been sentenced to life in prison for killing an animal control officer despite defense testimony from a psychologist who stars on the reality TV show "Hoarders."

Sacramento therapist Robin Zasio testified at 67-year-old Joseph Francis Corey's trial that a hoarding disorder might explain why Corey reacted violently when the officer tried to take his pets.

Zasio appeared as a witness for Corey's defense. His lawyers argued that the same mental illness that made Corey a hoarder also made him incapable of planning the killing at his residence in Galt, 26 miles south of Sacramento.

A Sacramento County jury wasn't swayed, convicting him in October of first-degree murder for fatally shooting Roy Marcum in 2012 as he arrived to remove Corey's dogs and cats amid eviction proceedings.

The life sentence was handed down on Friday.