March 25, 2000

VISTA -- An Oregon man whose Internet romance with a Vista woman turned sour after he came for a visit and then attacked her was convicted of premeditated attempted murder yesterday.

Jurors found that Thomas Abney, 31, used a claw hammer and a steak knife in a May 12, 1999, attack that left Elizabeth Wadsworth, 44, unconscious and bleeding in her studio apartment.

Abney, a former Navy enlistee who lived with his mother in Newberg, Ore., faces a life sentence plus eight years for his conviction on other charges, including mayhem and robbery.

Wadsworth, who works for a company that makes orthodontic products, cried after the verdict and said she would never again consider dating someone she met on the Internet.

"I would advise others not to," she added. "If they do, it could cost them their lives."

She testified at the trial that she met Abney over the Internet through a mutual friend and the two began an online romance. In May he decided to come for a visit in San Diego and their first face-to-face meeting.

A few days into the visit she became disenchanted and told him to book a return flight to Oregon. On the morning of his departure, he attacked her, choked her until she passed out, stole her purse and car and left for the airport, she testified.

Prosecutor Christine Trevino argued that Abney decided to attack her because he did not have the money to get back to Oregon. He meant to kill her, but botched the job, she said.

Abney's lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Scott Cadzow, said his client never intended to kill Wadsworth. Cadzow said Abney attacked her on impulse because he was distraught that she didn't seem to like him anymore.

Superior Court Judge Joan Weber scheduled sentencing for April 26.