Scott Dyleski

Even though Dyleski was originally sentenced to life without parole, in 2018 Dyleski's sentence was reduced to 25 years to life in prison after the state of California passed Senate Bill 394, which bill gives juveniles tried as adults and sentenced to life without parole a chance for eventual freedom. He will be eligible for parole in 2030.

Jury selection began in July 2006 in the courtroom of judge Barbara Zuniga, who became the trial judge after defense attorney Ellen Leonida made a peremptory challenge against judge Mary Ann O'Malley on the grounds that the jurist was "prejudiced against the interest of the defendant". Attorneys provided contrasting views of Dyleski in their opening statements. Prosecutor Harold Jewett said Dyleski identified with gothic symbols and art that depicted violence and stabbed and beat Vitale. Leonida described her client as a gentle kid whose friends know he isn't a killer and instead valued human and animal rights.

Scott Dyleski was found guilty of all the charges against him: first-degree murder, the special circumstance of murder in the commission of a first-degree residential burglary, first-degree residential burglary and an enhancement for using a dangerous weapon to bludgeon Vitale. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He was held in juvenile hall until his 18th birthday on October 30, 2006 (about one month after sentencing) and was then transferred to San Quentin Prison. He was kept out of the general population while his case was evaluated and was then transferred to Kern Valley State Prison several months later. In 2009, the Court of Appeal justices upheld the conviction and noted, "The defendant in this case committed a truly heinous crime. Putting on a dark mask and gloves, and arming himself with a rock and a knife, he invaded the home of a complete stranger to him. Without any provocation, he viciously set upon Pamela Vitale, raining blow after blow on her as she tried to fight him off." The court also noted that even as "Vitale lay motionless and near death, defendant was still not done with her. He put away his rock and pulled out a knife. He pulled Vitale's T-shirt up and used the knife to draw some type of mark or symbol on Vitale's back. He then turned Vitale over and stabbed deep into her midsection, leaving a gaping wound in her abdomen."

On October 15, 2005, Dyleski's neighbor Pamela Vitale was found murdered in her home. She was found lying in the entryway just inside the front door and had been bludgeoned and eviscerated. Five days later, on October 20, 2005, Dyleski was arrested on suspicion of committing the murder.

Initially, Dyleski was represented by attorney Thomas McKenna. He later asked to be removed from the case, because he defended the driver of a car that killed Dyleski's sister and another passenger in 2002. Dyleski was then represented by Ellen Leonida, a public defender. Dyleski pleaded not guilty.

Scott Edgar Dyleski (born October 30, 1988) is an American murderer, convicted of murdering his neighbor, Pamela Vitale, the wife of prominent attorney Daniel Horowitz. He received the maximum penalty allowed by the law, life in prison without parole. As a juvenile at the time of the murder, he did not qualify for the death penalty. The murder was committed on October 15, 2005, when Dyleski was 16 years old. He is currently serving his sentence in California State Prison, Corcoran. In 2018 Dyleski's sentence was reduced to 25 years to life in prison, after the state of California passed Senate Bill 394, which gives juveniles tried as adults and sentenced to life without parole a chance for eventual freedom. He will be eligible for parole in 2030.