Chandra Levy Killer Sentenced to 60 Years in Prison

Photo Courtesy - Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The man convicted of murdering congressional intern Chandra Levy was sentenced in a Washington, D.C., court Friday to 60 years behind bars.

Ingmar Guandique, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador, was arrested in 2009 and charged with Levy's murder, as well as kidnapping and attempted sexual assault, among other counts.

A 24-year-old intern for then-California Congressman Gary Condit, Levy disappeared on May 1, 2001, while jogging in Rock Creek Park. Her body wasn't discovered until more than a year later.

It was revealed that Levy was romantically linked to the married Condit. The allegations pushed Condit's political career to the brink and in July 2001, he admitted to having a sexual relationship with Levy.  In an interview with ABC News, he denied knowing anything about Levy's disappearance and stated that he did not kill her.  No hard evidence ever connected Condit to Levy's disappearance.

Guandique was already serving a 10-year sentence for separate assaults that took place in Rock Creek Park when he was arrested.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Jury Finds Man Guilty of Murdering Chandra Levy

Photo Courtesy - Getty Images(WASHINGTON D.C.) -- A jury has reached a guilty verdict in the trial of a man charged with killing congressional intern Chandra Levy, who disappeared in 2001.

The case became a sensation when Levy was linked to then-Rep. Gary Condit (D-Calif.).

Salvadoran immigrant Ingmar Guandique was charged with killing Levy in D.C.'s Rock Creek Park where she jogged.

Defense lawyers said during trial he was a scapegoat for a botched investigation.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio

Gary Condit's Son: Dad Got a 'Bad Deal', Didn't Deserve What Happened

Photo Courtesy - ABC News(NEW YORK) -- Nine years after Chandra Levy’s murder cast suspicion on California Congressman Gary Condit, his son told ABC News that he doesn’t know if his father will ever get over what happened to him.

“I don’t know that it will ever entirely be behind him,” Chad Condit said on Good Morning America.

“This has been a bad deal. He didn’t deserve what had happened and we have been dealing with it for ten years. It is just unfortunate. It has worn on my Mom and Dad,” Condit said.

Ingmar Guandique is now on trial for Levy’s murder, but Gary Condit was at one time the prime suspect in the case, creating a media firestorm.

“Congressmen are disposable in our society. So one leak here, one story there, you had a runaway train.  And when it’s your dad, someone you love, it’s a painful thing to watch,” Condit said.

Gary Condit is writing a book about his ordeal, his son said. Asked if his father was partly responsible for the price he paid because he did not speak publicly about Levy, Condit says his father wasn’t silent and fully cooperated with the police.

“He told the police everything he knew about Chandra Levy from the very start. I mean he called the police originally. Dr. Levy called my Dad because he wasn’t getting the kind of response from the police department,” Condit said. “So he got everything moving and it boomeranged on him because it made a good story. It made a good story and it sold a lot of papers.”

The Congressman was not reelected and the incident also affected the careers of his son and daughter. Chad and Katie Condit were working for California Governor Davis at the time but resigned “out of protest” when Davis publicly criticized their father.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio

Prosecution Rests in Levy Case, Sexual Assault Charges Dropped

(WASHINGTON) – After a judge dismissed two charges in the murder trial of Chandra Levy, the prosecution abruptly rested their case in a surprise turn Wednesday, opening the courtroom for the defense to present its case.

According to U.S. Attorney General Amanda Haines, charges that the defendant, Ingmar Guandique, tried to sexually assault the former federal intern would be dropped.

The Wall Street Journal reported the charges were dropped after the prosecution decided not to call on an inmate who was set to testify that Guandique said he had sexually assaulted Levy.

Guandique, however, still faces charges of murder, kidnapping and attempted robbery in the case.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio

Chandra Levy Trial Begins in Washington

Photo Courtesy - David Hume Kennerly/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As the trial in the case of murdered political intern Chandra Levy is set to begin Monday, it could be the beginning of the end for the nine-year-old case that began in mystery and exploded in scandal before turning to heartbreak.

Levy, a 24-year-old intern for California Congressman Gary Condit, disappeared on May 1, 2001 while jogging in Washington, D.C.'s Rock Creek Park.  The woman's body wasn't discovered until more than a year later.

The story, already a headline-maker across the country, sparked a media frenzy when it was revealed that Levy was romantically linked with married Congressman Condit.

The allegations pushed Condit's political career to the brink and in July of 2001, he admitted to having a sexual relationship with Levy.  In an interview with ABC News, he denied knowing anything about Levy's disappearance and stated that he did not kill her.  No hard evidence ever connected Condit to Levy's disappearance.

Then, last year, authorities arrested Ingmar Guandique, 29, and charged him with murder, kidnapping and attempted sexual assault among other counts.  When he was arrested, Guandique, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador, was already serving a 10-year sentence for separate assaults that took place in Rock Creek Park.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio

Chandra Levy Murder Trial Begins with Jury Selection

Photo Courtesy - Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Jury selection begins Monday in the murder trial of Chandra Levy, a Washington, D.C., intern who was murdered in 2001.

Salvadorian immigrant Ingmar Guandique attacked Levy as she jogged through a park, authorities say. He faces charges of both murder and kidnapping.

Levy was serving as an intern for then-California congressman Gary Condit at the time of her murder. The two were found to have been romantically linked prior to her disappearance.

Condit is expected to be called as a witness.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio