UPDATED Tuesday, January 13, 2009 --- 8:00 a.m.

BELOIT, Wis. (AP) -- A man convicted in a 20-year-old stabbing case faces up to 15 years in prison.

Ezequiel Lopez-Zavala was sentenced Monday in Rock County Circuit Court where he was convicted in October of manslaughter in the death of 22-year-old David Landwehr. Under the laws in effect at the time of the crime, only 25 percent of the sentence must be served before he becomes eligible for parole.

The criminal complaint said Landwehr died from a single stab wound to his neck after the two got in a dispute on Sept. 19, 1988, on the west side of Beloit.

Lopez-Zavala was apprehended in South Beloit, Ill., soon after the victim's body was found, but he left the area after being released on bond. He was apprehended in October 2007 in the state of Washington where he was living under an assumed name.

Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

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UPDATED Monday, January 12, 2009 --- 5:45 p.m.

Press Release from Rock County District Attorney:

Rock County District Attorney David O’Leary announced that Ezequiel Lopez-Zavala was sentenced today after being found guilty of manslaughter while using a dangerous weapon in Rock County Circuit Court Branch 6 by the Honorable Richard Werner.

Lopez-Zavala was convicted of causing the death of David Landwehr on September 19, 1988 on the west side of Beloit.

According to the criminal complaint, Landwehr’s body was found in a driveway at 415 Roosevelt; Landwehr suffered a fatal injury from a single stab would to his neck which severed his common carotid artery and adjacent left jugular vein; witnesses reported having seen Landwehr and Lopez-Zavala arguing and swinging at one another in the road in front of 802 ½ Vine Street; and Landwehr’s body was discovered shortly thereafter.

Lopez-Zavala was apprehended in South Beloit, Illinois shortly after the discovery of Landwehr’s body and a knife was found in his possession. Lopez-Zavala was interviewed by officers from the Beloit Police Department and admitted that he had stabbed Landwehr one time while they were arguing in the road in front of 802 ½ Vine. Lopez-Zavala stated he stabbed Landwehr because Landwehr came at him. Lopez-Zavala fled the area after posting bond in Illinois and was not apprehended until his arrest in the State of Washington on October 26, 2007, where he was living under an assumed name.

Judge Werner concurred with the District Attorney’s recommendation and sentenced Lopez-Zavala to the maximum sentence of imprisonment for not more than 15 years.

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Thursday, October 9, 2008 --- 12:30 p.m.

Rock County District Attorney David O’Leary announced today that Ezequiel Lopez-Zavala entered a guilty plea to Manslaughter While Using a Dangerous Weapon in Rock County Circuit Court Branch 6 before the Honorable Richard Werner. Lopez-Zavala was originally charged in 1988 with first degree intentional homicide for causing the death of David Landwehr on September 19, 1988 on the west side of Beloit. According to the criminal complaint, Landwehr’s body was found in a driveway at 415 Roosevelt; Landwehr suffered a fatal injury from a single stab would to his neck which severed his common carotid artery and adjacent left jugular vein; witnesses reported having seen Landwehr and Lopez-Zavala arguing and swinging at one another in the road in front of 802 ½ Vine Street; and Landwehr’s body was discovered shortly thereafter.

Lopez-Zavala was apprehended in South Beloit, Illinois shortly after the discovery of Landwehr’s body and a knife was found in his possession. Lopez-Zavala was interviewed by officers from the Beloit Police Department and admitted that he had stabbed Landwehr one time while they were arguing in the road in front of 802 ½ Vine. Lopez-Zavala stated he stabbed Landwehr because Landwehr came at him.

Lopez-Zavala faces a maximum sentence of a fine not to exceed $10,000 and imprisonment for not more than 15 years or both for the crime of manslaughter while using a dangerous weapon. Manslaughter while using a dangerous weapon is committed when a person causes the death of another person unnecessarily in the exercise of self-defense while using a dangerous weapon, for example, a knife.

The legislature rewrote the homicide laws effective January 1, 1989 and this crime would currently be a Class B felony, subject to a maximum penalty of 60 years imprisonment. However, the law in effect on the date of offense, September 19, 1988, must be applied to the facts in this case. Sentencing is set for January 12, 2009 at 1:15 in Rock County Circuit Court Branch 6.