DUBLIN — A Hayward man was sentenced to 13 years in prison for killing his friend, but not until after he heard from the victim’s family, court records show.

In a July court hearing, 38-year-old Steven Velasquez listened to two of Robert Lee Saffold loved ones speak before he was formally sentenced. At an earlier court date, Velasquez pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter in a plea deal with prosecutors, who dropped a murder charge in return, court records show.

“We will never receive a call from Robert singing or just checking in to see how someone is doing or just to make us laugh. Robert was a loving and giving young man,” Saffold’s mother, Mary Ann Brooks, said in court. “If you needed help, he would come if he could. Robert had been starting to move forward in a positive mann

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