Placer judge sentences man for killing his father, attacking his mother in their Roseville home

A 48-year-old man was sentenced to 40 years to life in prison for killing his father and attacking his mother six years ago in their Roseville home after he became enraged over his parents’ refusal to buy him a car, prosecutors said.

On Nov. 9, a jury found Eric Joseph Bryant guilty of second-degree murder in the death of his 72-year-old father, Charles Cinnamon, and attempted murder in the attack on his mother. He also was found guilty of dissuading a witness with force.

Placer Superior Court Judge Michael Jones sentenced Bryant, who remained in custody Friday at the Placer County Jail awaiting transfer to prison.

Cinnamon was a retired colonel with over 30 years of service in the Air Force, assigned to Beale Air Force Base in 1989 as assistant deputy commander for intelligence, according to a Placer County District Attorney’s Office news release.

During his Beale assignment, he supported relief efforts for the San Francisco earthquake, the invasion of Panama and Desert Storm the first Persian Gulf war to expel Iraq from Kuwait. Prosecutors said Cinnamon also served on the Roseville Public Utilities Commission for nine years, and he remained active after retirement in the Air Force community as a Beale liaison.

His son had been temporarily living in a trailer in front of his parents’ Roseville home along St. Anne’s Place, a cul-de-sac just near Washington and Pleasant Grove boulevards. Prosecutors said Bryant’s parents had supported him on and off throughout his adult life.

The violent attacks occurred at their home in September 2018. Prosecutors said Bryant became angry during dinner, because his parents wouldn’t buy him a car.

In a confession to investigators, Bryant explained that once he realized they wouldn’t buy him a car, he decided to take their vehicle to drive to Los Angeles and become a street performer, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said Bryant stabbed his father multiple times with household items, including a garden stake. His mother heard the commotion and tried to call 911.

Bryant then ran towards his mother and attacked her, before she lost consciousness, according to the DA’s news release.

Several hours later, Bryant’s mother regained consciousness and called 911. Prosecutors said Bryant attacked his mother again while she was on the phone with the Roseville Police Department.

Roseville police received that call for help shortly after 2:30 a.m. on Sept. 7, 2018. Prosecutors said officers arrived at the home and found Bryant’s father dead and his mother collapsed in the living room suffering from significant injuries.

Officers found Bryant in the home’s backyard hiding in the bushes where he was arrested.

Supervising Deputy District Attorney Lisa Botwinik said Bryant’s mother showed “strength and resilience” by surviving this attack and testifying in court about it years later. The prosecutor said Bryant violated a position of trust, choosing to violently attack his parents after they had opened their home to him and supported him.

“He felt entitled, so he chose to forcefully take from them when he didn’t get his way,” Botwinik said in the news release. “His act was the ultimate betrayal, and he is being held accountable for his horrific actions.”