Defendant Sentenced for Stabbing Death on Folsom Boulevard

DATE: October 23, 2026

CASE: Roderick Earl Sowells (Case #23FE019860)

PROSECUTOR: Principal Criminal Attorney James Wax, Homicides

The Honorable Michael Sweet sentenced Roderick Earl Sowells to 31 years to life in prison. On May 14, 2026, Roderick Earl Sowells was convicted by a jury of second-degree murder. The jury also found true the allegation that Sowells used a deadly weapon in the commission of the murder. An allegation that Sowells has a prior strike conviction on a sexual assault charge and aggravating factors were found to be true at the sentencing hearing.

On August 12, 2023, the victim and his friend were sitting on a bench at a Folsom Boulevard light rail station in Rancho Cordova. Roderick Earl Sowells exited a light rail train and approached the two men. Sowells got into an altercation with the victim's friend, which ended with the friend throwing a glass bottle at Sowells. The bottle hit Sowells in the head. Sowells pulled out a sharp object and challenged the victim's friend to a fight, but the friend walked away and left the area.

Sowells then turned his anger toward the victim and stabbed him 18 times with the sharp object. A witness observed the victim on the ground and called 911. The victim was taken to a hospital, where he ultimately succumbed to his injuries a few weeks later.