Man who killed Willcox woman in '95 gets life
Web Producer: Taylor Avey
SIERRA VISTA, Ariz. (AP) - A man who had his death sentence for brutally raping and killing a Willcox motel manager in 1995 set aside has been re-sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole.
The Sierra Vista Herald reports that 42-year-old Kyle David Sharp was sentenced Friday in Cochise County Superior Court in Bisbee.
Sharp was convicted in 1996 of kidnapping, sexually assaulting and murdering 50-year-old Judith Coughlin.
A judge threw out his death sentence in 2010, saying the lawyer representing him at sentencing didn't present mitigating facts.
The state Attorney General's Office planned another death penalty phase but agreed last month to agree to a natural life sentence.
Judge Ann Littrell said Friday that the life sentence is appropriate because Sharp experienced a "horrific childhood" that included being beaten and raped.
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