Sylvia Pardo, 43

Sylvia Pardo, a 43-year-old Latina, was killed by her ex-husband during a rampage at her parents'  annual Christmas Eve party in the 1100 block of Knollcrest Drive in Covina late Dec. 24, 2008. The incident also claimed the lives of eight other family members.

The attack began when her ex-husband, Bruce Jeffery Pardo, 45, went to the party uninvited and dressed in a Santa Claus suit about 11:30 p.m. The two had split after she discovered he had abandoned a brain-damaged son years earlier but continued to claim him as a tax write-off.

Sylvia had three children from a previous marriage, none of whom was at the party at the time of the assault.

When an 8-year-old girl opened the door after he knocked, Bruce Pardo shot her in the face, wounding her. Inside the home he shot 10 others, killing nine and injuring a 16-year-old girl whom he shot in the back.

Amid the chaos, Pardo doused the home in fuel and set it on fire. He left the scene and drove to his brother's home in Sylmar with severe burns. His brother found him dead from a self-inflicted gunshot and called police about 3:30 a.m. Christmas Day.

Police said Pardo launched the attack armed with four semi-automatic weapons and a canister of fuel. He appeared to have made multiple escape plans.

-- Joel Rubin, Ari B. Bloomekatz and Tami Abdollah