A member of the MS-13 street gang who shot a 2-year-old to death and took the toddler's toy ball as a souvenir of the crime -- in an attack that also killed the boy's 19-year-old mother -- was sentenced Thursday to life in prison plus 35 years. Adalberto Guzman, 22, of Central Islip, was convicted last September of conspiracy, murder and illegal use of weapons in federal court in Central Islip in the February 2010 killings of Vanessa Argueta, of Hempstead, and her son, Diego Torres. Guzman, along with two other MS-13 members, including Argueta's former boyfriend, had lured her and her son to a Central Islip wooded field that happened to be near the courthouse, initially to kill her because she had "disrespected" the former boyfriend, according to officials. The "disrespect" involved having members of the rival 18th Street gang unsuccessfully attempt to harm the boyfriend because he had quarreled with her, officials said. Argueta took her son along because she could not find a baby-sitter. After the two other MS-13 members shot and killed Argueta, Guzman fatally shot the 2-year-old twice in the head, saying that the toddler -- who began to cry as he saw his mother hit by bullets -- might grow up and seek revenge, according to Eastern District federal prosecutors John Durham and Raymond Tierney. Before he was sentenced, Guzman said, "I would like to offer my condolences to the victim's family . . . But I would also like to let it be known that I am not here to show remorse for causing the deaths of these victims, because I can't show remorse for something I did not cause. I was found guilty because I did not cooperate. I was found guilty because the government and its cooperating informants lied about me on trial. And most importantly, because I am a member of La Mara Salvatrucha . . ." He went on to say, "At the end of the day they all got to respect this. I'm MS-13. That's what all of this is about for me." In issuing his sentence, U.S. District Judge Joseph Bianco said that because of the horrifying nature of the crime and the defendant's criminal history he didn't view Guzman as a candidate for rehabilitation. Jose Argueta, the father and grandfather of the slain victims, said in Spanish that he approved of the sentence. "I want to thank God . . . I'm grateful that justice was served," Argueta said. Guzman's attorney, Gary Villaneuva of Manhattan, had asked for a sentence of no more than 30 or 40 years, arguing that there was a chance that his client could be rehabilitated in prison. Federal prosecutors Durham and Tierney argued that the crime was so heinous and Guzman so incorrigible that he should be sentenced to two life sentences, one for each killing, plus an additional 35 years on the gun charges. Guzman, who had a full head of hair when he was arrested in 2010, appeared in court Thursday with a shaved head except for two pointed tufts of hair on the left and right front of his scalp. Villaneuva declined to comment on his client's appearance. A psychologist for the defense, Sanford Drob, who testified at a Wednesday pretrial hearing, said that Guzman's court appearance was "somewhat troubling," but also argued that Guzman was capable of rehabilitation. The hearing was held because, under a recent Supreme Court ruling, a court cannot impose what would otherwise be a mandatory life sentence on a person under the age of 18 without a hearing to determine the character of the convicted person and the prospects of rehabilitation, stressing the difference of how children and adults act. Guzman was 17 years and 8 months old at the time of the killings. Drob noted that Guzman, born in California, had a troubled childhood and many psychological problems. But while the defense attorney and psychologist argued that there was the possibility of rehabilitation, prosecutors showed a video of Guzman fighting with guards at the federal detention center in Brooklyn, where he is being held, and pictures of what they said were lock picks and potential weapons he had somehow constructed while imprisoned. At Guzman's trial, a government witness testified that he was so callous or indifferent to the crime that he gave her the slain toddler's toy ball for her 4-year-old daughter to play with. The toy ball had a picture of the character Diego from the children's cartoon show "Dora the Explorer." The witness, Carla Santos, said after she found out where the ball had come from, she threw it out, saying, "I was scared because I felt like . . . the little kid was gonna come and haunt me back." One of the other MS-13 shooters in the case, Rene Mejia of Brentwood and Patchogue, has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing. The third alleged shooter, Argueta's former boyfriend, Juan Garcia, was arrested by members of the FBI's Long Island Gang Task Force in Honduras in March. Garcia, of Hempstead, was on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list for one day before his arrest. He is awaiting trial. http://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/adalberto-guzman-sentenced-to-life-plus-35-years-in-slaying-of-mom-and-tot-1.9459800?view=print