Judgement in Joseph Lester's Case Sends Fists Flying in Courtroom, Shockwaves Through Community

Last week's sentencing of a man who stabbed his pregnant girlfriend to death didn't sit well with the people in the Pierce County courtroom, or UP Patch readers.

Joseph Lester, 25, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for stabbing his 21 year-old girlfriend Keisha Lewis to death on Halloween 2011.

Lester will be a free man again at the age of 47.

The Tacoma News Tribune reports that immediately after the judge read the sentence in this case, fists started flying in the Pierce County courtroom. Over a dozen Sheriff's deputies and corrections officers rushed into the galley to restore order and protect the family members in the courtroom.

Lester didn't speak, but Lewis' mother did, saying the loss of her daughter has damaged her family beyond repair.

Patch user Musique had this to say on the Patch story regarding Lester's sentencing:

"Makes me want to scream! Average life is approximately 70 years, times it by two. This murderer should never be able to see outside the walls of a prison ... and the judge should lose his job! 

I sure hope the family of the woman and unborn child fight this decision! I was not at the trial, but murder in cold blood is murder. It was NOT an accident! In a way, this domestic violence victim is blamed even in her death. Pretty typical."

A standard range sentence in this case would have been 14 to 23 years for second-degree murder. Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Angelica Williams and James Curtis requested an exceptional sentence of 50 years because the defendant knew the victim was pregnant and the crime occurred in the presence of a minor child. 

During the trial, Lester claimed that he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder when the attack occurred and that he was defending himself from the victim.

The jury rejected this claim and found him guilty of intentionally murdering Lewis. The autopsy performed on the victim showed that she had been stabbed multiple times and suffered fatal wounds to the head and throat. She was at least two months pregnant when she died.

The Pierce County Judge in this case believes Lester "snapped," and said the "killing was kind of out of character, I think, for Mr. Lester."

Lester's defense attorney has said he plans to appeal the sentence in this case.

Do you think this sentence is deserving of the crime? Tell us in the comments.