In November of 2007, 24 year old Redskins player Sean Taylor was fatally shot during a botched robbery attempt at his Miami home. On Thursday, his killer was finally sentenced.
23 year old Eric Rivera will be spending the next 57 years of his life behind bars. Rivera confessed to police on video tape that he shot Taylor after the NFL player confronted them at his bedroom door with a machete. Three other accomplices in the burglary are still awaiting trial. Rivera admits they did not know Taylor was going to be home when they attempted to rob him.
Despite a video confession, during his trial Rivera said the confession was false and improperly coerced. The judge wasn’t buying it and he was charged with first-degree murder only missing out on the death penalty because he was just 17 years old at the time.
“I live with his death every day. I’m going to have to deal with the consequences,” Rivera said in a statement.
60 years is a long time to spend in prison over something you did as a dumb teenager. I bet he would have wish he listened when his elders were telling him to calm down.
