Murder in The Villages-That's it for Justice

This happened on Tuesday, but I'm a little behind on my posting.

Well, it's finally over. The third murderer of Diana Miller was sentenced on December 16th.

OCALA - Theodore Houston, the youngest of the three men charged in a Villages slaying, and who testified against his co-defendants during their trial earlier this year, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday.

Houston, 19, pleaded no contest in late October to second-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder with a firearm and robbery with a firearm for his role in the July 2006 killing of 63-year-old Villages resident Diana Miller and the nonfatal shooting of her husband, James.

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Lambert, after listening to nearly an hour's worth of testimony from family members and mitigating arguments from the defendant's lawyer, told Houston before he was fingerprinted: "Your sentence was a little lighter than I thought I was going to impose, and that's thanks to your attorneys. I've taken into consideration that you did help the state."

Under the terms of his deal, Houston could have faced 40 years in prison.

And of course:

Family members of the defendant, who struggled to maintain their composure during Tuesday's hour-long hearing, wailed and burst into sobs as Circuit Judge Brian Lambert issued the sentence.

Afterward, they clustered in the hall outside the courtroom, crying and consoling each other.

"Ridiculous," muttered Curtis Houston, the defendant's 23-year-old cousin, regarding the 20-year sentence.

But what about the victims of this murder?

James Miller and a family member were present for the hearing, leaving quickly and without comment following the hearing.

That's right. One sentence.

Folks, that is it as far a justice can be obtained. Daughter Sheila Miller apparently will escape. Maybe there's justice in a next life.