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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Emergency Services Since You Asked: 'Black' was used to describe unspeakable crimes a century ago Late frost — but not the latest Texas Roadhouse offering free lunches for vets Tuesday Workshops on floods, insurance coming to Jackson County Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency Services Couple accused of robbing Dutch Bros. stand in Medford Driver crashes after attempting to pass on Hwy. 140 Grants Pass car crash kills one Emergency Services Politics and Elections Ballot measures played little role in mobilizing voters in state Senate race 'Euphoria' over pot initiative Oregon voters narrowly reject GMO labeling measure Statewide voter turnout close to 70 percent Marsh, Seffinger win big in Ashland council races Education Mom gives school lobby a makeover Crater students present play about Thoreau's night in jail Half of Oregon's community college enrollees need remedial classes Marketta Gregory: Stretch yourself for God Medford Schools Foundation supports programs the district can't Environment Grow 'em before you plant 'em Since You Asked: Biomass One makes steam-generated power Organic squash creates a bountiful harvest for ACCESS Prospect-area cow death likely not a wolf kill Navickas ordered to pay court filing fees State News Kitzhaber embattled as he seeks fourth term Nation - World Obituaries William Michael Chesney George Dotson CORRECTION Death Notices Jeanne R. 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Reflections on the election in Oregon and beyond ... Late frost — but not the latest ... Our View: Zoning, building codes should respect fire ... Reflections on the election in Oregon and beyond ... Late frost — but not the latest ... GRANTS PASS Elderly woman's kidnapper sentenced to 15 years By Melissa McRobbie Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Melissa McRobbie Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Oct. 26, 2014 @ 12:01 am By Melissa McRobbie Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Oct. 26, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News A man who broke into an elderly woman's Grants Pass home armed with a large knife, then terrorized her, ransacked her house and forced her to drive him to Walmart was sentenced Thursday morning to 15 years in prison. Craig Cruz, 31, entered the 90-year-old woman's house on Southeast Eighth Street early the morning of Jan. 9. Prosecutor Ryan Mulkins said Cruz pried the screen off a bathroom window, busted the glass and crawled in. He then pounced on the victim, who was sleeping in her bed, and threatened to rape and kill her if she didn't cooperate with him, Mulkins said. Cruz spent some time rummaging through the home, stealing the woman's jewelry and leaving items strewn all about. He then forced the woman to write him a check for the entire balance of her bank account, Mulkins said. "He was going to steal every dollar this 90-year-old woman had," Mulkins said, his lips pursed in apparent anger at times as he described the crime in a courtroom at the Josephine County Jail. Cruz later made the victim drive him to Walmart, where she managed to ask an employee to call for help. Cruz took off, getting a ride with some people in a red Ford Explorer. He was arrested later that day outside the Purple Parrot deli in downtown Grants Pass. Cruz pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary, first-degree robbery, fourth-degree assault, first-degree theft, unauthorized use of a vehicle and two counts of first-degree kidnapping for the incident. Mulkins described the victim's life prior to the break-in. She had married her husband in Santa Rosa, Calif., in 1946, and a week later the couple moved to Grants Pass, where her husband found work at a gas station. He later bought his own gas station, and the victim raised their son and daughter as a stay-at-home mother. When her husband died, she stayed in the same house. The victim's daughter, Debra Becker, said in court Thursday that her mother's life has been turned upside-down. She has moved out of the house on Southeast Eighth Street, where she lived for 66 years. "She was very happy in that little house … and that's taken away," Becker said. She said her mother now lives in fear and is easily startled by noises like a door closing or a book dropping to the floor. Becker called Cruz a predator and said, "I think it's important that we keep him out of society for as long as possible." Cruz, wearing a navy-blue jail jumpsuit, also addressed the court, beginning with, "I just really want to say that all whatever my sentence is today, I deserve 100 percent." He apologized to the community, and to the victim and her family. "I can only imagine the nightmares that she does have at night," Cruz said. He said he hopes his incarceration brings her some peace, and that "she lives a good and healthy life for the rest of her years." Cruz's defense attorney, Laurie Norman, who argued for a lesser sentence of 7.5 years in prison, said Cruz has been incarcerated on and off since he was about 14 years old. By all accounts, his early years were rocky. His father went to prison when he was a young boy, and his mother died when she was hit by a car, among other traumatic events. "His soul was so damaged at such a young age," Norman said. She said Cruz was high on methamphetamine at the time he broke into the victim's home. By Melissa McRobbie Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Melissa McRobbie Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Oct. 26, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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