Laura Northrup sentenced to 15 years to life for killing shelter roommate
A Utah judge imposed the sentence on October 29 after Northrup pleaded guilty with a mental condition to the 2024 murder of Stephanie Lynn Haskett-Carrasco.
- Development
- 29 October 2026
- Coverage
- Sentencing
- Current status
- Sentence imposed
- Source record
- 2 verified sources
Sentence imposed
Laura Darlene Northrup was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison on October 29 for murdering her roommate, Stephanie Lynn Haskett-Carrasco, at a Sandy, Utah, shelter in 2024. The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office announced the sentence the following day. Northrup will serve the term at the Utah State Correctional Facility. [1]
Guilty plea
According to KSL.com, Northrup, 62, entered a guilty plea with a mental condition on July 22 to one count of murder, a first-degree felony. Judge Dianna Gibson imposed the sentence and recommended credit for the more than two years Northrup had already spent in custody. An obstruction-of-justice charge was dismissed under the plea agreement, KSL reported. [2]
The shelter investigation
Emergency personnel found Haskett-Carrasco beneath her bed at the Medically Vulnerable People shelter on May 26, 2024, according to the district attorney's office. Investigators reported injuries to her head and neck and recovered a nutrition-powder can with blood and hair on it. Northrup, Haskett-Carrasco and a third person shared the room. Shelter staff had previously reported disagreements between the two women. [1]
Family attends sentencing
Haskett-Carrasco was also 62. All five of her children attended the sentencing hearing, KSL reported. Her family presented photographs accompanied by a recording of her grandchildren singing. One daughter described her mother's outings with the grandchildren to an arcade and shops. The facility where the women lived provides housing and medical care for seniors, veterans and medically frail people experiencing homelessness. [2]
The plea, evidence and custody term
Northrup’s July plea meant the murder charge would not proceed to a jury trial. Utah’s guilty-and-mentally-ill framework permits a defendant to accept criminal responsibility while preserving a finding that a qualifying mental condition existed at the time of the offense. The conviction remains a murder conviction, and the court imposed the indeterminate term authorized for the first-degree felony. Under the agreement reported by KSL, prosecutors dismissed an obstruction-of-justice count. Judge Gibson’s recommendation for credit recognized the time Northrup had already spent in custody. The Utah Board of Pardons and Parole, rather than the sentencing judge alone, will determine whether and when release is appropriate after the minimum term and applicable credit. The district attorney’s account said Haskett-Carrasco was found beneath her bed after emergency personnel were called to the shelter. Investigators documented injuries and recovered the nutrition-powder container. The charging account connected the object to blood and hair evidence and described prior conflict between the roommates. Those allegations were not tested through a completed jury trial because Northrup entered the plea. The plea supplied the legal basis for conviction, while the prosecutor’s release and KSL report preserve the publicly described investigative chronology. The dismissed obstruction count did not produce a separate conviction or sentence. The sentence sends Northrup to the Utah State Correctional Facility, where the Department of Corrections will manage the custodial term and any treatment provided within the prison system. [1] [2]
Sources & further reading
- Laura Darlene Northrup Sentenced to 15 to Life for the Murder of Stephanie Lynn Haskett-Carrasco ↗Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office · 2026-10-30 · Primary source
- Woman sentenced to prison for killing roommate after pleading guilty with mental condition ↗KSL.com · 2026-10-30
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