Ariel Castro Sentence: Life in Prison Without Parole for Cleveland Kidnapping of Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight
An Ohio judge on Thursday sentenced Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro to life in prison for abducting, raping and holding captive three women for over a decade.
Castro faces life in prison without parole, plus 1,000 years. The court also imposed a fine of 100,000. He is also now a registerd sex offender. He cannot contact his victims - no letters, phone calls or trying to get in touch with them. The judge said he will not be permitted to contact them, including his daughter Jocelyn. She is also considered a victim, the judge said Thursday, under the count of child endangerment.
Castro impregnated one of his victims during captivity and forced her to give birth to Jocelyn in his basement.
Cuyahoga County Judge Michael Russo imposed the prison sentence after the court hearing during which one of Castro's victims, Michelle Knight, addressed the court and said the former school bus driver put her through a "life of hell."
Michelle Knight Testimony in Court: 'I Can Forgive But I Will Never Forget'
"Ariel Castro, you took 11 years of my life away. I spent 11 years in hell. Now your hell's just beginning," she said. "You will face hell for eternity."
The 53-year-old abducted Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Knight individually in Cleveland between 2002 and 2004 when they were 14 to 20 years old. Castro pleaded guilty on July 26 to 937 counts of kidnapping, rape, assault, and aggravated murder. He starved and physically abused one of his victims to have an abortion about he impregnated her during her captivity.
Castro addressed the court on Thursday, saying he was a sick man but said, "I am not a monster." He broke up during his testimony and said his behavior was "wrong." He turned to Knight in the court room and representatives of Berry and DeJesus' families and asked for their forgiveness. He also told them to "look up" addiction, so that they would further understand his behavior.
Berry, 27, DeJesus, 23 and Knight, 32, all went missing from the west side of Cleveland between 2002 and 2004. They were discovered on May 6