Killer gets life for 3 deaths

Victims’ kin get apologies

— In an emotional hour-long hearing, a Memphis man was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday for shooting three women, one of whom was pregnant, after a drug deal went bad nearly a year ago.

Kevin Wolfe, 30, told Sebastian County Circuit Judge Stephen Tabor that he did not intend to shoot the women but decided to enter a guilty plea to all six charges against him tospare his and the victims’ families the trauma of a jury trial, which was scheduled to start Oct. 1.

Before Wolfe was sentenced,Tabor gave him an opportunity to make a statement. Standing at a lectern before the judge - dressed in an orange jail jumpsuit and heavily shackled - Wolfe turned to several members of the victims’ families, sighed, apologized and asked for forgiveness.

Some relatives of the murdered women already expressed forgiveness in statements they read in court describing their dead loved ones and expressing the pain of their loss.

Some said they hoped Wolfe would find comfort from God.

Others said they hoped that Wolfe would remember every day what he did to the victims.

Tabor adhered to the plea agreement with the prosecutor’s office and sentenced Wolfe to six life terms without parole to run concurrently.

The state had been seeking the death penalty against Wolfe.

Wolfe was charged in July 2011 with three counts of capital murder in the shooting deaths of 26-yearold Jada Moses and 21-yearold Aligene Seals. Seals’ unborn child A’zaelyn Seals died as a result of Aligene Seals’ death. Wolfe was charged with capital murder in the 29-week-old fetus’ death.

He was charged with one count of attempted capital murder in the shooting of Barbara Gowers, 25, who survived.

Wolfe also was charged with two counts of aggravated robbery. Police said he approached Janeen Murrell and her daughter Kennedy Perry, then 14, threatened them with the gun he used in the shooting and took their car.

Wolfe had gone to the apartment of Gerry and Aligene Seals at 3805 Presley St. on July 25 after hediscovered that he paid Gerry Seals $800 for a pound of marijuana that was more than half composed of rabbit food.

Wolfe told police he was high on cocaine when he went to the apartment looking for Gerry Seals. He also was nervous and said the gun went off accidentally, killing Moses instantly. He said he shot Seals and Gowers because he didn’t want to leave witnesses.

More than 20 people from the victims’ and Wolfe’s families attended the hearing.

Security was tight, with eight sheriff’s deputies stationed throughout the courtroom.

Several people wept as eight relatives of the victims read victim impact statements in court.

The first was Kahli Moses, 8-year-old daughter of Jada Moses, who read a statement that began “Kevin Wolfe, you just hurt me in so many ways. You took a big piece of my heart out.” She ended her short statement saying, “Even though you did that, I’m working on forgiving you.”

Before adjourning, Tabor offered condolences to the victims’ and to Wolfe’s families.

He said he would pray for them and hoped that Wolfe’s plea and sentencing would begin their healing.

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 07/12/2012

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