Ledesma convicted in Kelly Dahm murder, sentenced to 35 years

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A man convicted in the shooting death of a 19-year-old woman early last fall was sentenced to 35 years in prison not far from where her body was discovered in Hudson.

Christopher Soriano Ledesma, 30, St. Paul, pleaded no contest to second-degree intentional homicide Monday afternoon before Judge Eric J. Lundell, who handed down a sentence of 35 years in prison and 25 years extended supervision.

The charge was result of a plea bargain between District Attorney Eric Johnson and Public Defender John Kucisnki. Ledesma was originally charged with first-degree intentional homicide in connection with the shooting death of Kelly Lynn Dahm, 19, Maplewood, Minn., whose body was found in a car Sept. 20 parked in the Government Center lot outside the building that houses the Circuit Courtrooms.

Johnson said the plea agreement was, "In the interest of justice. I think 35 years is appropriate considering the facts." Kucinski said there were discrepancies in testimony from the medical examiner and ballistics experts and that Ledesma suffered from "ongoing mental health issues," that could lead to a not guilty by reason of insanity defense.

Ledesma pleaded no contest and waived a pre-sentence investigation. Dahm's body was found about 10:30 p.m. in an abandoned Chevrolet Malibu in the upper parking lot at the government center. Ledesma was arrested by Woodbury, Minn., police Sept. 20 when officers investigated a complaint that he was outside his parent's home waving a gun around. Officers found a .38 caliber handgun in his possession, the police report said.

The investigation revealed Ledesma, a convicted felon, purchased a .38 handgun at a Woodbury sporting goods store four days before the shooting. He has been serving a five-year sentence in a Minnesota prison on a felony conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon.

Last month he was sentenced to six years in prison on probation violation in Hudson. Those sentences will be served concurrent with the 35-year homicide conviction.

Tags: crime and courts, news, ledesma, dahm