SAN DIEGO -- A jury recommended Wednesday the death penalty for a man responsible for one of the most brutal child murders in San Diego history, 10News reported.

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Erskine Faces Death Penalty

The same day closing arguments concluded in the sentencing phase retrial of Scott Erskine, a man who sexually assaulted and murdered two South Bay boys in 1993, a jury decided he deserves the death penalty.

Erskine, (pictured, right), 41, was convicted last October of two counts of first-degree murder and special circumstance allegations for the deaths of 13-year-old Charlie Keever and 9-year-old Jonathan Sellers.

Two months later, jurors deadlocked 11-1 for the death penalty and a new trial penalty phase was ordered.

Judge Kenneth So, who will consider the jury's recommendation, will determine a sentencing date Friday.

The mother of Jonathan Sellers, Melina Sellers, expressed gratitude for the jury's decision.

"The jury knew. There is no excuse for what he did. And, I thank God he got the death penaly because anything less than death would not have been justice. Thank God justice was done today," said Sellers.

Attorneys for Erskine did not contest the fact that their client committed the murders.

In her retrial closing argument, Deputy District Attorney Valerie Summers showed photos of a makeshift "fort" where the victims were sexually assaulted and strangled.

"The facts are horrific," Summers said. "The photos are something you'll remember for the rest of your life. The pain that the victims' families feel is real."

Summers said one of the murders by itself is deserving of the death penalty.

"It is absolutely beyond the pale," Summers told the jury. "A verdict of death is clear."

In 2001, Erskine, whose history of sexual assaults goes back to when he was only 10, was serving a 70-year sentence for the rape of a San Diego woman in 1993 when DNA evidence linked him to the murders of the boys.

Defense attorney Larry Ainbinder told the jury Erskine was a psychologically damaged boy whose condition worsened after he was hit by a car at the age of 5.

One doctor said Erskine as a boy faced psychological problems "that very few 12-year-olds face."

The combination of an unhealthy family life, a learning disorder, mood swings, depression and the failure of prosecuting agencies to lock Erskine up for previous crimes led to a "Perfect Storm" scenario in which a "sick" defendant committed "terrible crimes," Ainbinder said.