One of the articles mentioned earlier in this thread is misleading. Its says : "He will no longer face any chance of getting the death penalty, as he will no longer face a July capital murder trial for Graham's murder."
That may be true in Hannah Graham and Morgan Harringtons case but it does not exclude JM from the death penalty if other victims are found.
Im pretty angry right now. Justice has not been served IMO.
After the verdict and sentencing ( it was all done at the same time ) for my nieces murder trial , myself and another family member were leaving the courthouse together, it was late evening,they had kept us late ....a juror stopped us and offered his condolences , he told us that although he did not receive the death penalty, he felt it was deserved, but for us .to ." Just remember , justice was not served today in that courtroom, but will be served everyday and every night for the rest of his life , he will go to sleep and wake up in the same stinky cell in the same miserable place knowing what he did to put himself there and know that nothing is ever going to get him out of that miserable existence .He Will have to think about Kaitlin everyday because what he did to her is what put him there ."
Little did we know that just over a year later he would be charged with the murder of another young lady years before he ever met Kaitlin and thought he got away with it, but the DNA from Kaitlin's case when entered into CODIS matched him up with the DNA that was collected in that case...he ended up getting another life term for her murder , to run consecutively , I will never forget that juror approaching us and have never ever read much into how people try to figure out a jurors actions , as this particular juror was the subject of many lunches and long breaks and rides home,aawe just KNEW he was NOT paying attention and even accused him of sleeping during testimony.
Turns out he was very tuned in it was just his mannerisms to close his eyes and try to absorb all that was being said...he actually turned out to be a huge influence in that jury room when a couple of jurors got a little side tracked and questioned Kaitlin's character due to the testimony of the type of underwear she was wearing ...
He was a high school teacher and set those jurors straight that none of that had anything to do with him being guilty of her murder.
Anyway, my point being that although we sometimes wish for the death penalty, as he said , that would give him a time to look forward to as such in that he would finally have an escape from the hell that is prison life and would know that he will never, ever be free.
So although I'd like to see the Death Penalty handed down more often, I do think that a life sentence is a very fitting punishment ...no day to look forward to your release..just Father Time and Mother Nature calling the shots ...
the icing on the cake for us is the fact that AFTER he spends his life sentence for one murder, he has another one awaiting him...bwahaha !
I know it's disappointing,but he will be forced to think of these young ladies every day for the rest of his miserable existence ...and what he did to them to put him there...I think that's a pretty fitting punishment .
Then there's also the matter of all those lengthy appeals that are afforded one who is given the death penalty..most with court appointed attorneys that cost him not a penny....and the family having to show up and relive the nightmare all over agin every time there is a court appearance...that's tough...
With LWOP they get one appeal...at no expense...the attention they so often seek will soon end and he will be left alone in his cell, forgotten about by most except a few close family members who will likely eventually quit showing
Up as often on visiting day ....
I realize it is a bitter pill to swallow, but I have come to terms with it and can see both sides of the coin and feel there is good and bad with either one..
But...that's just my opinion...and don't think that I wouldn't love the have seen the day when our Kaitlin's murderer was put to death...but I know that he is living a life of hell stuck in a cell in a place that no matter the luxuries he is able to afford, he will never, ever be free to make his own choices of where to go, what to wear or eat...but most of all I rest assured that he will never ever hurt another young lady again in his miserable lifetime ....so I am good with Mr.Matthews receiving a few consecutive life sentences....
Mr. Matthews,they say that life is what you make it...this is your life, you reap what you sow....you are going to live exactly what you made of your life ...until they carry you out feet first, and I can live with that...
