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10 victim impact statements shared during Willard Miller’s sentencing hearing

10 victim impact statements shared during Willard Miller’s sentencing hearing
NOW"> <<307-313, "WILLARD NOBLE CHAIDEN MILLER SHOULD BE SENTENCED TO LIFE WITH A POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE AFTER 35 YEARS.">> TONIGHT, ONE OF THE IOWA TEENS WHO ADMITTED TO KILLING HIS HIGH SCHOOL SPANISH TEACHER NOW KNOWS HIS FATE. WILLARD MILLER WILL SPEND LIFE IN PRISON. HE HAS A CHANCE FOR PAROLE AFTER 35 YEARS. THE DECISION COMES AFTER THE DEFENSE AND PROSECUTION SPENT THE ENTIRE DAY REVIEWING EVIDENCE IN NOHEMA GRABER'S 2021 MURDER. KCCI'S KAYLA JAMES IS HERE WITH THE EMOTIONAL DAY IN COURT. A LONG DAY FOR EVERYONE IN THAT JEFFERSON COUNTY COURTROOM -- WHERE HOW INVESTIGATORS PIECED EVERYTHING TOGETHER CAME TO LIGHT -- AND GRABER'S SON SPOKE TO MILLER FROM THE HEART. WILLARD MILLER -- WALKING OUT OF A FAIRFIELD COURTROOM THURSDAY -- NEARLY EIGHT HOURS AFTER HIS SENTENCING HEARING BEGAN. <VIDEO 2; 13:02-13:05; 13:07-13:09> <"THE PHOTOS THAT WE'RE OFFERING GOES TO." /SPLICE/ "THE SEVERITY OF THE OFFENSE; THE NATURE OF THE OFFENSE."> PROSECUTORS ARMING THEMSELVES WITH VISUAL EVIDENCE AFTER EVIDENCE -- <VIDEO 4: 16:47-16:49> <"THIS WOULD BE AN EMAIL."> LIKE THIS E-MAIL INVESTIGATORS SAY WAS CREATED BY MILLER -- <VIDEO 4: 17:08-17:14> <"LISTING DIFFERENT ITEMS AND THAT SORT OF THING THAT WOULD BE USED ON THE ATTACK ON NOHEMA GRABER."> INVESTIGATORS SHARING FURTHER DETAILS -- LIKE JUST HOW MILLER AND JEREMY GOODALE KNEW NOHEMA GRABER WOULD BE AT CHAUTAUQUA PARK. <VIDEO 4; 9:58-10:04> <"THEY WERE ACTUALLY WATCHING HER TO DETERMINE WHAT HER ROUTES WERE."> INVESTIGATORS SAYING -- GRABER'S MURDER WAS MORE THAN A SPUR OF THE MOMENT PLAN. <VIDEO 4; 8:39-8:47> <"ACCORDING TO GOODALE, THAT PLANNNG BEGAN ROUGHLY 10 DAYS TO TWO WEEKS BEFORE HER DEATH."> <JEREMY GOODALE/CO- DEFENDANT; THU0195; :04-:10> <"WHEN I GOT UP TO BUST MY LUNCH TRAYS HE KIND OF PULLED ME ASIDE AND SAID..."> PROSECUTORS GOING FURTHER -- SHARING THIS CLIP OF GOODALE DURING AN INTERVIEW -- <JEREMY GOODALE/CO- DEFENDANT; THU0195; :14-:17> <"WOULD YOU HELP ME IF I KILLED MS. GRABER."> GOODALE LATER GOING ON TO SHARE HIS ACCOUNT OF WHAT OCCURRED THAT DAY. <JEREMY GOODALE/CO- DEFENDANT; THU0195; :53-1:00; 1:13-1:16> <"ME BEING LOOKOUT AND HIM STANDING ON THE ACCESS TRAIL WITH THE BAT IN HIS HANDS." /SPLICE/ "AND THEN SHE WALKED BY AND HE HIT HER IN THE BACK OF THE HEAD."> MILLER WATCHING ON -- MOST OF THE DAY -- WITH VERY LITTLE EMOTION ON HIS FACE -- AS THE STATE CONTINUED TO SHARE EVIDENCE: FROM INTERVIEWS WITH FRIENDS OF MILLER AND GOODALE TO SNAP CHAT MESSAGES -- <CHRISTIAN GRABER/NOHEMA GRABER'S SON; THU0214; :02-:03> <"I WANT TO TALK TO YOU DIRECTLY."> AND TEN VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENTS SHARED INCLUDING ONE BY GRABER'S SON, CHRISTIAN. <CHRISTIAN GRABER/NOHEMA GRABER'S SON; :32-:40> <"I STILL THINK THAT THERE'S POTENTIAL FOR YOU TO BECOME A DECENT PERSON AS WELL. I DON'T SEE IT IN THE MOMENT, BUT I REALLY HOPE THAT ONE DAY YOU CAN BE."> WILLARD MILLER DID SPEAK TODAY IN THE COURTROOM. HE APOLOGIZED TO GRABER'S FAMILY, THE COMMUNITY, HIS AND GOODALE'S FAMILIES, AND INVESTIGATORS
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10 victim impact statements shared during Willard Miller’s sentencing hearing
The first of two Iowa teenagers who pleaded guilty to beating their high school Spanish teacher to death with a baseball bat was sentenced Thursday to life with a possibility of parole after 35 years in prison.A judge sentenced Willard Miller after a sentencing hearing that lasted more than seven hours.Miller and another teen, Jeremy Goodale, had pleaded guilty in April to the 2021 attack on Nohema Graber. The 66-year-old teacher was fatally beaten while taking her regular afternoon walk in a park in Fairfield.During the sentencing hearing, prosecutors showed evidence pointing to the severity of Nohema Graber's death, including emails, a police interview with Jeremy Goodale, interviews with peers of Miller and Goodale and social media messages.Details shared by investigators show that Nohema Graber's murder was premeditated."According to Goodale, that planning began roughly 10 days to two weeks before her death," one investigator said during his time on the stand. Ten victim impact statements were shared during the sentencing hearing, including one shared by Nohema Graber's son, Christian Graber."I want to talk to you directly," Christian Graber said to Miller. "I still think that there's potential for you to become a decent person as well. I don't see it at the moment, but I really hope that one day you can be."Miller's sentencing comes the day after Paul Graber, the ex-husband of Nohema Graber, was buried. He died on June 29 from cancer. According to his obituary, he was 68 years old.Paul Graber had wanted to share a victim impact statement during Miller and Goodale's sentencing hearings.Goodale's sentencing hearing is currently scheduled for August. His lawyers asked for a delay for psychiatric evaluation.Information from the Associated Press was used in this article.
FAIRFIELD, Iowa —

The first of two Iowa teenagers who pleaded guilty to beating their high school Spanish teacher to death with a baseball bat was sentenced Thursday to life with a possibility of parole after 35 years in prison.

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A judge sentenced Willard Miller after a sentencing hearing that lasted more than seven hours.

Miller and another teen, Jeremy Goodale, had pleaded guilty in April to the 2021 attack on Nohema Graber. The 66-year-old teacher was fatally beaten while taking her regular afternoon walk in a park in Fairfield.

During the sentencing hearing, prosecutors showed evidence pointing to the severity of Nohema Graber's death, including emails, a police interview with Jeremy Goodale, interviews with peers of Miller and Goodale and social media messages.

Details shared by investigators show that Nohema Graber's murder was premeditated.

"According to Goodale, that planning began roughly 10 days to two weeks before her death," one investigator said during his time on the stand.

Ten victim impact statements were shared during the sentencing hearing, including one shared by Nohema Graber's son, Christian Graber.

"I want to talk to you directly," Christian Graber said to Miller. "I still think that there's potential for you to become a decent person as well. I don't see it at the moment, but I really hope that one day you can be."

Miller's sentencing comes the day after Paul Graber, the ex-husband of Nohema Graber, was buried. He died on June 29 from cancer. According to his obituary, he was 68 years old.

Paul Graber had wanted to share a victim impact statement during Miller and Goodale's sentencing hearings.

Goodale's sentencing hearing is currently scheduled for August. His lawyers asked for a delay for psychiatric evaluation.

Information from the Associated Press was used in this article.