SANTA ANA, Calif.—A 38-year-old man was sentenced Jan. 31 to 15 years to life in prison for the beating death of his friend, a drummer for the local punk rock band Knightenders, in Anaheim.

Arthur Fenwick Williams of Santa Ana pleaded guilty Jan. 23 to second-degree murder in the July 20, 2019 killing of 48-year-old David Patrick McCabe of Dana Point in the 1500 block of West Center Street, according to court records. Mr. Williams, who was about to go on trial for the murder when he entered his plea, was given credit for 1,653 days behind bars awaiting trial.

Orange County Deputy District Attorney Harris Siddiq read aloud in court on Wednesday statements from the victim’s family members.

Mr. McCabe’s father said he planted a “beautiful tree” a day after his son’s funeral.

“It sits by the window where on the inside I sit to play my drums and often think of you, dear son,” he wrote.

Mr. McCabe’s stepmother, Merry Jo, said the drummer “had a big heart and would do anything for the ones he loved or even a complete stranger.”

She recalled meeting him when he was 5.

“He ran to the car wearing his Army clothes, carrying a toy tank and with a huge smile,” she said. “He said, ‘Hi, I’m David! I’m in kindergarten. You’re so pretty. Are you my dad’s girlfriend?’”

Growing up, Mr. McCabe “loved football, especially the Dallas Cowboys,” and his favorite band was Kiss, she said.

“He sang their songs jumping off the bed, playing air guitar and drums all the time,” she said.

Mr. McCabe “was only in middle school when his mom and stepdad died in a tragic accident,” she said. “He was devastated and heartbroken. He came to live with his dad, me and my daughter. He was always the big brother and defender of my daughter who he always said was his baby sister.”

Mr. McCabe had two sons of his own and was a family man, she said.

“His music was his biggest passion,” she added.

The Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana, Calif., on Oct. 22, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Mr. Williams and Mr. McCabe had been at the Doll Hut bar that night and were hanging out at Capistrano Beach earlier in the day, according to a prosecution trial brief. Shauna Kuhn, a friend of Mr. McCabe’s who was with them, said Mr. Williams “repeatedly brought up drug use and said he had been up for a week and was using methamphetamine,” according to the trial brief.

Mr. Williams was found unconscious in Santiago Park on July 20, 2019, and was taken to a hospital in Orange, prosecutors said. Mr. Williams attempted to leave the hospital on July 24, 2019, against medical advice, but his family said he had “suicidal ideations” so the defendant was placed on a psychiatric hold, prosecutors said.

Mr. Williams’s family was aware that police wanted the defendant so they called authorities and he was placed under arrest.

Mitchell Timbanard of the Alternate Defender’s Office said in his trial brief that his client “killed his friend David McCabe after a long day and night of drinking. By all accounts, David and Arthur were friends, but something occurred at the end of a long day of drinking that caused Mr. Williams to kill his friend.”

After spending time earlier in the day in the Dana Point area, they went to see a punk band at the Doll Hut, where Mr. McCabe was well-known, Mr. Timbanard wrote in the brief.

After they left the bar “things got ugly,” the defense attorney said.

“Surveillance video from the parking lot shows Dave and Arthur walking around and talking side by side in a seemingly normal manner,” according to Mr. Timbanard. “At some point that changes and Arthur becomes very aggressive toward David, headbutting, pushing and striking David. ... Mr. McCabe appears to make no effort to protect himself and never appears to throw a punch at Mr. Williams.”

Mr. Williams then took Mr. McCabe’s car and was aimlessly driving around for about an hour, Mr. Timbanard said. Police eventually found the victim’s car in a Rowland Heights strip mall parking lot.

Mr. Williams got his mother to get him an Uber ride to Santa Ana “where he showed up crying at his old friend’s home,” the defense attorney said. He told his friends he thought he killed the victim and the dispute was over whether Los Angeles or Orange County is better, he said.

Mr. Williams was found overdosed in the park and was revived by paramedics and doctors at the hospital, Mr. Timbanard said.