Joseph gets two life sentences in murders of wife, son

Judge Benjamin Lewis showed no leniency in sentencing George Joseph to prison Friday afternoon.

Joseph, who was convicted in July of the shooting deaths of his wife, Mary, and son, Matthew, will serve two life sentences plus one 50-year sentence without eligibility for parole. The terms will run consecutively.

Two counts of first-degree murder each carried a life sentence, while the 50-year sentence is for one count of armed criminal action.

At the outset of Friday's hearing, Lewis overruled a defense motion for a new trial.

Mary Joseph's brother, Robert Griffith, read a victim-impact statement on behalf of the family.

"I've accepted the fact that Matthew and Mary have been murdered," Griffith said. "... However, I was not prepared for the emotional roller coaster our family has been on since May 30, 2013."

Griffith described the ways in which the family feels Mary and Matthew's absence, such as picking up the phone to call Mary about a TV show she might like, and how his 87-year-old mother was affected.

"Parents never expect to outlive their children and grandchildren," he said.

Griffith asked Lewis to impose consecutive terms, as assistant prosecuting attorney Angel Woodruff also recommended on behalf of the state, to "see to it that the person who murdered Mary and Matthew never gets out of prison."

Defense attorney Cynthia Dryden requested the court allow the sentences to run concurrently, because it was George Joseph's first time in trouble with the law.

Before pronouncing the sentence, Lewis asked Joseph whether he had anything he would like to say. Joseph just shook his head slightly.

"I'll take that as a 'no,'" Lewis said.

Joseph has 10 days to appeal.

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