LOS ANGELES, Nov. 23 -- A Los Angeles businessman convicted of killing the former sister-in-law of entertainer Michael Jackson has been sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Morris Jones imposed the maximum sentence today on 62-year-old Donald James Bohana, who was convicted of second-degree murder for the August 1994 death of his former girlfriend, Dolores Jackson.
Jackson's body was found floating in Bohana's swimming pool. Bohana contended she had drowned while swimming, but those who were close to her said she couldn't swim and was deathly afraid of deep water. He was arrested more than 2 1/2 years after her death after her three sons, T.J., Taj and Taryll, filed a civil lawsuit alleging that he killed her by holding her head underwater following a four-hour fight. Prosecutors said there was evidence she had been beaten before she was thrown into the pool. Jackson was the ex-wife of Jackson 5 singer Tito Jackson, Michael's older brother. Tito Jackson and the couple's three sons were in court. The trio says their mother was the inspiration behind their singing group, 'Three T.' ---
Copyright 1998 by United Press International. All rights reserved.
