Judge calls Royal Oak slaying most brutal murder case she's seen

Pontiac — A couple were sentenced Friday for the November 2011 slaying of an elderly Royal Oak woman during a home invasion.

Alan C. Wood and Tonia Watson were both charged in the brutal killing in which Nancy Dailey, 80, was beaten, kicked and stabbed to death, her throat slit during the attack. The pair were homeless and desperate for money to buy drugs, investigators said.

Wood, 49, who was convicted of first-degree premeditated murder in the killing, was sentenced to mandatory life in prison with no chance of parole. During the proceeding, he complained his rights had been violated, interrupted the judge, and winked at a reporter taking his photograph as he left the courtroom.

Under a plea agreement, Watson, 41, cooperated with authorities in exchange for pleading guilty to a lesser offense of second-degree murder and reduced sentence. Wood did the actual killing, she said. Under the plea, Watson was to be sentenced to a minimum of 23 years in prison and could be eligible for parole in 2035.

By Mike Martindale
From The Detroit News:

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