27 more years in prison, that's how long the convicted killers, Milton Maza and Eli Avila Lopez, will spend for the 2010 double murders of husband and wife, Richard and Maria Stuart.
A week ago, Justice Collin Williams adjourned their sentencing for today. He wanted time to consider the submissions that Crown Counsel Kileru Awich and defense attorney Oscar Selgado made.
Arriving at the final prison sentence, the judge noted the minimum time period for a murder conviction, the mitigation and aggravating factors working for and against the two men, the time they've already served, and the sentencing guidelines for such a case.
One mitigation factor in their favor is that they had no prior violent criminal history.
Moving on to the aggravating factors, Justice Williams noted that both Maza and Avila did not testify in their trial, and that they did not show any sympathy or remorse for the murders. Touching on the crime itself, the judge commented that the double murder of the Stuart couple was the product of a planned home invasion, and that it was executed with deliberation. Also, both men journeyed many miles to the home to carry out the attack. The judge also commented, quote, "The manner of execution of the crime was particularly vicious, if not horrific: a total of fifty stabs were administered to the bodies of the two deceased persons." End quote.
Justice Williams also noted that the attack was carried out inside their home, where there is a reasonable expectation of safety, and that their pleas for their lives to be spared went unheeded by the killers. The babysitter heard the Stuarts screaming out, "Why? Why?"
The judge also took into consideration the victim impact statements of the only child of the couple's 4 children who still lives in Belize, Richard Stuart's father, and and Maria Stuart's brother. He noted the extremely negative impact that the death of the couple has had on their children, and their other family members. He specifically took notice of the Maria Stuart's brother, who explained the the court, quote, "…The death of their parents in the sanctity of their home has had a serious physiological, emotional and health effect on the Stuart children. The children now struggle with behavioral problems." End quote.
Having considered all this, Justice Williams sentenced them to serve 35 years in prison, but he subtracted the 8 years from the sentence that they spent on remand while awaiting trial. That means that they will spend 27 more years in jail.
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