March 15, 2012 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - DNA evidence convinced a jury to convict a Stockton man of first-degree murder Tuesday in San Joaquin County Superior Court.

Rudolph Delsie, 47, used a baseball bat to beat Todd Phillps, 42, to death - hitting him three times in the head and four times in the back - inside his North Commerce Street apartment the weekend of Oct. 1, 2009, the jury decided.

"The victim's blood was on the barrel of the bat, and the defendant's DNA was on the grip of the bat," said Deputy District Attorney Thomas Testa, who prosecuted the case. "It was (Phillips') own bat that he kept around for protection."

A motive for the murder was never fully pronounced in court, Testa said. Delsie claimed to have not known Phillips, but witnesses testified that he did. At some point in their past, Delsie is said to have felt "ripped off" in some kind of pact, possibly a drug deal, the two had agreed upon.

The verdict came after seven hours of deliberation Monday and Tuesday, following a 12-day trial.

Delsie will be sentenced to 75 years to life in prison without the possibility of parole April 30.

Phillips' family expressed relief with the verdict and were pleased to have some closure. The father of five - three daughters and two sons ranging from ages 7 to 20 - is remembered as a kind and caring man who came to a crossroads in his life and battled drug problems.

His mother, Ellen Donaldson of Stockton, knew what it was like to lose a child before her son's brutal beating. She lost a daughter in 1966. The 3-year-old had health problems and died during surgery.

"With my daughter, I felt like that was in God's hands. This was so violent. Nobody should have to go through that," Donaldson said. "This verdict brings some closure, so I'm happy for that. But murder changes your whole life, because it is not a natural death."

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DNA helps win conviction in brutal baseball bat death