Woman Get Maximum Sentence For Role In Cold Case Murder

DENVER (CBS4) - A woman has received the maximum sentence for her role in a cold case murder of a disabled woman.

Lynn Kimbrough with the district attorney's office said Marie Lynn Marone, 40, was charged along with John Vazquez, 31, in the murder of 36-year-old Renee Ealy.

"Ealy was found in her apartment in the 1100 block of South Cherry Street in June 2000; she had been stabbed to death," Kimbrough said in a statement.

According to Kimbrough, Marone also admitted to accepting the proceeds of money orders stolen from Ealy and disposing of evidence.

"Marone intentionally misled investigators in 2000 during the original investigation, suggesting that a different individual was involved in the murder," Kimbrough said.

Vazquez was convicted last year of first-degree murder after deliberation and first-degree murder-felony murder. He is serving life in prison without parole.

The arrest and conviction of both Marone and Vasquez was the result of work by Denver cold case detectives.