Mother, 22, pleads guilty for part in Reno-Carson City crime spree

RENO -- A 22-year-old mother has pleaded guilty to her role in a crime spree that ended with the sidewalk shooting death of a Reno man who tried to stave off the theft of his friend's purse.

Aurora Rodriguez-Perez made the plea Wednesday to second-degree murder in the May 8 killing of Steven Gale, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported. Under a plea agreement, she would have to serve 20 years in prison before being eligible for parole. A sentencing date was not immediately set.

She told Washoe District Judge Patrick Flanagan that she drove her boyfriend, his brother and a 13-year-old boy with gang ties around Reno and Carson City so they could rob people at gunpoint. Gale, 25, a musician, was shot while walking home with two friends .

Jacob Sanchez, 21, and his brother Luis, 19, were scheduled to stand trial in April on murder and robbery charges for their roles in the spree. Rodriguez-Perez was expected to testify against them as part of her plea agreement .