80-Year-Old Woman Sentenced to Jail for Killing 'Monster' Husband as He Slept
An 80-year-old Nebraska pensioner was sentenced to up to 10 years behind bars after she shot her husband of 50 years dead while he was sleeping.
Lavetta Langdon was handed the sentence at Red Willow County Court on July 12 after she was convicted of murdering her husband in August last year.
According to KNOP, Lavetta claimed she had been abused by her husband for over 50 years. The murder was captured on video and that was viewed by the judge, David Urbom.
Prosecuting attorney Paul Wood, who presented evidence from doctors, said there was a motive behind the killing and that there were elements that would suggest first-degree murder.
According to KNOP, Wood told the court: "While she was forthcoming about the crime, it is not a rationality fair base to settle this case. There is no way under Nebraska law that this is a legal defense nor does it excuse or explain her conduct."
Acting on behalf of the state, Wood recommended a sentence of 12 to 18 years.
Defending attorney Brian Davis said Lavetta was a "victim," sharing his client's accounts of abuse, including one case where she was forced to eat dog food in front of their four daughters.
Davis added: "We don't know if she would have been acquitted for self-defense. Mrs. Langdon is a victim as well as Mr. Langdon."
KNOP also reported that Lavetta told the court she had called the police on multiple occasions over the years, but that they hadn't responded. The pair married in 1960.
The court also heard Lavetta had divorced Langdon and moved to Georgia. She subsequently remarried him, according to reports.
Eugene Langdon, the brother of the murder victim, spoke out against his sibling and added he had a split personality.
According to the outlet, Eugene said: "I know what my brother was like and he was not a nice person. He had a dual personality. He had a public personality and he would make people believe he was high, mighty and a great person.
"You take him back home and he was the monster you all hear about in your closets. I feel like when you live through years of hell, which Lavetta did, it is very heartbreaking for her to go through more years of hell."
Possible Parole in Four Years
Despite the pleas, Judge Urbom sentenced Lavetta to eight to 10 years with the possibility of parole after four years.
KNOP reported that he said: "I have to consider what is fair to you, protect the public and rehabilitate you. I have to consider many factors: age, criminal history, education, etc.
"Involuntary manslaughter carries a maximum of 20 years. There is no question that you, Lavetta, suffer from battery woman's syndrome. No question that you lived in hell, but my review of reports and security camera footage sees the murder unjustified."
He added: "Your attorney argued domestic violence. The bottom line, you killed a man in cold blood. There is no way I can put you on probation. No one deserved to be murdered. Any less of a sentence I would impose would not be good."
Lavetta reportedly didn't have anything to say, according to KNOP. She also was said to have hugged her friends and family as she said goodbye after being sentenced.
