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Jerald Cross Gets Prison For Killing Woman Who Postponed Leaving Him

GOLDEN, Colo. (CBS4) -- A 65-year-old Morrison resident was sentenced for killing his girlfriend, an elementary school teacher who planned to wait until the end of the school term to break up with him.

Jerald Cross received a 40-year prison sentenced on Dec. 20. He had been charged with First Degree Murder but pressed for a jury trial. The jury found him guilty of 2nd Degree Murder.

Girlfriend Murder (Jerald Cross, from JeffCo DA)
Jerald Cross (credit: First Judicial District Attorney's Office)

Jefferson County Sheriff's Office deputies found Julene Isaacson, 61, dead on Oct. 7, 2018 at the Pintail Court home that the couple shared.

Isaacson was shot twice in the head.

According to prosecutors from the First Judicial District Attorney's Office, Isaacson was found surrounded by items from an art project for her students.

Friends and family told investigators that Isaacson had spoken of Cross's previous physical abuse. She had developed an "exit strategy," per prosecutors, that would lessen the impact to her students.

During the investigation, Cross said he "couldn't give her up," according to the District Attorney's office.

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