Verdict
About twenty minutes ago, Mom gave me a call on the way out of the courthouse. The judge had come to a decision on Bill's sentence:
12 years.
It's hard to describe how enormously relieved we are. The prosecutor had given us the impression that the maximum sentence was 10 and it was highly unlikely that he would get even that. We'd heard opinions all across the board from the legal community, some telling us we should prepare ourselves for the reality of Bill being free in 2-1/2 years. Horrifying, but we tried our best to steel ourselves for the worst.
I asked Mom how much of those 12 years he'd have to physically serve and she assured me that the only thing that could reduce his sentence is good behavior... one month earns him one day. So, with absolutely spotless behavior, the very least he can hope to serve is a shade over 11-1/2 years.
And Bill's no spring chicken. He's 68 now, which puts him at a very ripe 80, come 2016.
I'm really regretting not being there for it. I wish I would have just made it work somehow. Mom said she'd make sure we obtained a copy of the court transcripts.
Everyone made statements: Mom, obviously, and Bill. I contributed a few words to a statement Erin and Lauren had put together and read also. Apparently, there were even a couple of folks that stood up in Bill's defense and felt it important to point out that he'd taught Sunday School and, I don't know, had a really smokin' golf game or something. To no effect, though, as the judge had prepared a lengthy statement of his own.
Mom tells me that the judge was fair and focused and gave terrific attention to the support system around Mom in the form of friends and family. He told Bill that he should have known, being a lawyer, that the consequences of planning, researching, premeditating and orchestrating an act so savage would be substantially harsher than a spur-of-the-moment crime of passion sentencing.
A lot left to say and it'll surely be all over the news, so be on the lookout (I'll continue to update BeckySpellman.com with media links as I get them).
Mostly, thanks again for the overwhelming amount of prayers and support. This sentence is more than we'd hoped for and, most importantly, it's meant the world to my dear mom's peace of mind.
12 years.
It's hard to describe how enormously relieved we are. The prosecutor had given us the impression that the maximum sentence was 10 and it was highly unlikely that he would get even that. We'd heard opinions all across the board from the legal community, some telling us we should prepare ourselves for the reality of Bill being free in 2-1/2 years. Horrifying, but we tried our best to steel ourselves for the worst.
I asked Mom how much of those 12 years he'd have to physically serve and she assured me that the only thing that could reduce his sentence is good behavior... one month earns him one day. So, with absolutely spotless behavior, the very least he can hope to serve is a shade over 11-1/2 years.
And Bill's no spring chicken. He's 68 now, which puts him at a very ripe 80, come 2016.
I'm really regretting not being there for it. I wish I would have just made it work somehow. Mom said she'd make sure we obtained a copy of the court transcripts.
Everyone made statements: Mom, obviously, and Bill. I contributed a few words to a statement Erin and Lauren had put together and read also. Apparently, there were even a couple of folks that stood up in Bill's defense and felt it important to point out that he'd taught Sunday School and, I don't know, had a really smokin' golf game or something. To no effect, though, as the judge had prepared a lengthy statement of his own.
Mom tells me that the judge was fair and focused and gave terrific attention to the support system around Mom in the form of friends and family. He told Bill that he should have known, being a lawyer, that the consequences of planning, researching, premeditating and orchestrating an act so savage would be substantially harsher than a spur-of-the-moment crime of passion sentencing.
A lot left to say and it'll surely be all over the news, so be on the lookout (I'll continue to update BeckySpellman.com with media links as I get them).
Mostly, thanks again for the overwhelming amount of prayers and support. This sentence is more than we'd hoped for and, most importantly, it's meant the world to my dear mom's peace of mind.
posted by Jeremy Bear at
9:36 AM
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