Woman sentenced to life for murdering girlfriend

March 4, 2016 5:03 pm

A Johnston woman is sentenced to two consecutive life sentences for the murder of her girlfriend.

43-year-old Sendra Beauregard was convicted last November of shooting and killing Pamela Donahue in her Providence apartment in December of 2014.

Beauregard was given one life sentence for murder and another for firing a gun during a crime of violence.

Testimony revealed that on the night of December 2nd, 2014, Beauregard, Donahue, and a friend, Walter Woodyatt were hanging out in the apartment he shared with Donahue. At one point in the night, Beauregard gave Wyatt money to buy cigarettes and soda across the street. When he returned, he witnessed Beauregard leaving the area and found Donahue unresponsive.

Emergency personnel found a small gunshot wound to Donahue’s upper chest. She was taken to Rhode Island Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

During the investigation, police located spent shell casing on the floor of Beauregard’s vehicle, and recovered a .38 Derringer pistol in a wooded area in Scituate that matched the bullet in the victim. In her cell phone records, investigators found numerous hostile and threatening text messages from Beauregard to Donahue.

Before Beauregard’s sentencing three members of Donahue’s family gave statements to the court.

"My sister Pam was murdered thinking I no longer loved her, but that’s not true. I can’t tell her that I do love her I can’t give her anything," said Donahue’s brother, Mike.

"Sendra Beauregard is a heartless and heinous murderer. Her actions and reactions clearly demonstrate a person with unwavering capacity for evil," said Donahue’s brother John.

Her daughter was so overcome with emotion that a prosecutor read much of her statement. But, she was able to get through a few of her final thoughts.

"No one deserves to be stripped of the right to live by another person, especially in this violent manner. I hope and pray that justice will be served here today," said Donahue’s daughter.

Beauregard did briefly address the court saying, "I am very sorry for the family, their loss and their heartache."