Man sentenced to over 37 years in prison for 2017 crime spree that killed retired Las Cruces officer

LAS CRUCES, New Mexico -- A Colorado man was sentenced to 37 years and five months in prison Wednesday for a carjacking resulting in the death of a retired police officer and other offenses stemming from a 2017 crime spree in southern New Mexico.

35-year-old Daniel Allen Lowell of Pueblo, who pleaded guilty last July, had faced up to life in prison.

Prosecutors said Lowell and 32-year-old Trista Marie Schlaefli of Colorado Springs fled from a U.S. Border Patrol checkpoint west of Las Cruces in a stolen pickup truck in November 2017.

The couple allegedly carjacked an SUV from a family at gunpoint and a subsequent collision killed retired Las Cruces police officer J.R. Stewart, who was riding his motorcycle.

Lowell and Schaefli then attempted to carjack two other vehicles before being arrested by New Mexico State Police.

Schlaefli testified at Lowell's sentencing hearing that he had bragged about eluding police often. She has pleaded guilty in a deal in the case and is awaiting sentencing.

(The Associated Press contributed background to this report.)