Saturday, 1 August 2026, 5:51
A Contra Costa County judge on Friday sentenced a 39-year-old Pinole man to 50 years to life in state prison for fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend in front of their 4-year-old son. The sentence follows a jury conviction for first-degree murder and child endangerment in the death of 30-year-old Brittany Elizabeth Ligdis. The jury returned its verdict on May 7, 2026.
Kendall shot and killed Ligdis at her home on Feb. 16, 2024. Prosecutors said the shooting occurred just 10 days after Ligdis broke up with him. The violent encounter was captured on a 911 call, with Ligdis telling dispatchers that Kendall had broken into her home and that she was hiding in the laundry room with their son.
About a minute and a half into the call, Kendall entered the room. Ligdis told him, "let go of me" and "you're scaring him," before screaming "stop it." Kendall then shot her in the head. The couple's son cried "momma" and ran out of the room.
Kendall fled the scene shortly after the shooting. Responding officers arrived to find Ligdis dead of a gunshot wound to the head.
Deputy District Attorney Tylyn Wells described the killing as "an execution in front of a 4-year-old child" and urged the court to impose a 50-years-to-life sentence. She argued that the killing was not the product of a mental break but a familiar pattern in domestic violence cases, where a threat escalates once a victim decides to leave, and asked the judge to impose a sentencing enhancement. Judge Glenn Kim called the case "one of the most difficult" he has presided over, prosecutors said.
Before trial, the defense successfully petitioned the court to try this separate charge before a judge rather than a jury. In a separate bench trial, Kim found Kendall guilty of possessing an assault weapon: a 3D-printed pistol capable of semi-automatic fire. The judge also ruled that half a dozen aggravating sentencing factors tied to that charge were true.
The case was prosecuted in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez. Kendall, a Pinole resident, remains in Contra Costa County jail and is awaiting transfer to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to begin serving his sentence. The crime has reverberated through the East Bay, where domestic violence cases have drawn increased attention from local advocates and law enforcement.
The shooting occurred just 10 days after the estranged couple's breakup. The couple shared a 4-year-old son, who witnessed his mother's killing and ran from the room. Kendall was arrested the next day and has been in custody since then. The case was docketed as case No. 02-24-00229.
The 50-years-to-life sentence ensures Kendall will serve decades in prison for a killing prosecutors described as an execution before a child. The case also highlights the lasting trauma domestic violence can inflict on the youngest witnesses. For now, the boy's mother is gone, and the legal system has responded with one of the longest sentences available under California law.
