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Man admits random killing of Seattle father, Justin Ferrari

Andrew Patterson, the man accused of shooting a father of two who was driving in a minivan with his parents and kids, pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder.

Justin Ferrari was killed as he drove through Seattle's Central District with his family in tow, including his kids, ages 4 and 7. Prosecutors said the 20-year-old Patterson was in an argument with another person when he opened fire from across a street. One of the bullets struck Ferrari in the head and killed him instantly.

Prosecutors filed a firearm enhancement with the murder charge, meaning that if Patterson is convicted as charged, he faces a sentence of 15-23 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for August.

Ferrari was a software development engineer at Zillow.com who had previously worked at Microsoft.

At the time of shooting, Zillow staff said in a statement they were "deeply saddened to learn about this tragedy."

"Justin began working at Zillow three months ago, and worked at Expedia and Microsoft for many years before that. His passing will be felt deeply by his co-workers and friends. Our hearts go out to his family," the statement said.

Friends and co-workers remembered Ferrari as a smart, loving family man who was committed to the community.

Brett Marl worked with Ferrari for year at Microsoft and started a tech company that Ferarri joined before he worked at Zillow. Marl was with Ferrari's parents as they consoled one another on the porch of Ferrari's home.

"Nicest guy you could ever imagine. He loved his kids, loved his wife. He was just an amazing guy," Marl said in 2012. "He was an amazing engineer. Very smart guy, very talented."