Current:Home > ContactIowa teen convicted in beating death of Spanish teacher gets life in prison: "I wish I could go back and stop myself" -AssetTrainer
Iowa teen convicted in beating death of Spanish teacher gets life in prison: "I wish I could go back and stop myself"
View
Date:2025-04-18 01:32:45
An Iowa teen convicted in the 2021 beating death of a high school Spanish teacher was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison with a possibility of parole in 25 years.
A judge sentenced Jeremy Goodale for his role in killing Nohema Graber, a 66-year-old teacher at Fairfield High School. Goodale, 18, and a friend pleaded guilty earlier this year to first-degree murder in the beating death of Graber.
The two high school students used a bat to kill Graber after stalking her as she took her daily walk in a large park in Fairfield, a small Iowa city about 100 miles southeast of Des Moines.
Before being sentenced, Goodale apologized to the teacher's family, the community and his own family.
"I'm sorry, truly sorry. What I've taken can never be replaced," Goodale said, at times through sobs. "Every day I wish I could go back and stop myself, prevent this loss and this pain that I've caused everyone."
After speaking, and still crying, Goodale's nose started to gush blood for several minutes before the hearing was put on pause, CBS affiliate KCCI-TV reported.
Prosecutors said Goodale and his friend Willard Miller, both 16 at the time, decided to kill Graber because of a bad grade she had given Miller. Prosecutors have said Miller first suggested the two kill Graber after becoming worried that the poor grade would prevent him from participating in a study abroad program.
Judge Shawn Showers ticked through 25 factors he had to consider before issuing his sentence of life with a 25-year minimum. He said it was clear Goodale was remorseful and didn't consider the repercussions of killing Graber, but Showers noted the teen is a smart person who could easily have stopped it from being carried out.
The judge's decision matched a requested sentence by prosecutors. Goodale's lawyer had said he should be sentenced to life with no mandatory minimum sentence before he is eligible for parole.
The two students were charged as adults, but because of their age they were not subject to an Iowa requirement that those convicted of first-degree murder serve a mandatory sentence of life without parole.
In July, Showers sentenced Miller to life in prison with a possibility of parole after 35 years in prison.
Goodale and Miller pleaded guilty in April to killing Graber. After killing Graber, they used a wheelbarrow to move her body to a spot near railroad tracks, where they covered it with a tarp and placed the wheelbarrow and a railroad tie over the tarp.
Graber was born in Xalapa, Mexico. After graduating from high school, she worked as a flight attendant and later earned her license as a commercial airline pilot. Following her marriage, she moved to Fairfield in 1992 and later got a teaching certificate. She had worked at Fairfield High School since 2012. Her husband, Paul Graber, died of cancer after his wife's death. The couple had three children.
Speaking before Goodale was sentenced, 10 members of Graber's family gave victim impact statements or had statements read by a court official. During those statements, Goodale appeared to struggle to maintain his composure and hold back tears.
Tom Graber, the brother of the victim's husband Paul, said the killing devastated their family and hastened his brother's death. He said Goodale sounded and looked remorseful in his court statement, but he questioned the authenticity of those statements.
"I must say your actions to me undercut that," Graber said. "You're now an adult. You're over the age of 18, and yet you have your counsel to represent you ... arguing on your behalf to escape punishment for this horrific crime. That doesn't sound like remorse to me."
KCCI-TV reported that Graber added: "Murdering a teacher to avoid an F, that was apparently enough for you to go along with the crime."
As Judge Showers handed down his ruling, he said he thought Goodale was more likely to rehabilitate than his co-defendant, Miller, because of his cooperation and sincerity, KCCI-TV reported.
"I wish you luck, Mr. Goodale, and I hope everyone in this room can heal as well," Showers said.
- In:
- Iowa
- Murder
veryGood! (27)
Related
- House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
- Two years after Surfside condo collapse, oldest victim's grandson writes about an Uncollapsable Soul
- American Climate Video: On a Normal-Seeming Morning, the Fire Suddenly at Their Doorstep
- OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush said in 2021 he'd broken some rules in design of Titan sub that imploded
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- How Late Actor Ray Stevenson Is Being Honored in His Final Film Role
- Nevada’s Sunshine Just Got More Expensive and Solar Customers Are Mad
- Supreme Court allows Biden administration to limit immigration arrests, ruling against states
- The FBI should have done more to collect intelligence before the Capitol riot, watchdog finds
- Two years after Surfside condo collapse, oldest victim's grandson writes about an Uncollapsable Soul
Ranking
- Brianna LaPaglia Reveals The Meaning Behind Her "Chickenfry" Nickname
- The Grandson of a Farmworker Now Heads the California Assembly’s Committee on Agriculture
- Kaia Gerber and Austin Butler Double Date With Her Parents Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber
- Remembering David Gilkey: His NPR buddies share stories about their favorite pictures
- New Mexico governor seeks funding to recycle fracking water, expand preschool, treat mental health
- Lily-Rose Depp and 070 Shake's Romance Reaches New Heights During Airport PDA Session
- California Utility Says Clean Energy Will Replace Power From State’s Last Nuclear Plant
- Exxon’s Sitting on Key Records Subpoenaed in Climate Fraud Investigation, N.Y. Says
Recommendation
Juan Soto praise of Mets' future a tough sight for Yankees, but World Series goal remains
Missouri woman imprisoned for library worker's 1980 murder will get hearing that could lead to her release
Go Under the Sea With These Secrets About the Original The Little Mermaid
Defense arguments are set to open in a landmark climate case brought by Montana youth
Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
Overdose deaths involving street xylazine surged years earlier than reported
India's population passes 1.4 billion — and that's not a bad thing
Purple is the new red: How alert maps show when we are royally ... hued