Alfred Irmer knew his granddaughter was in trouble the first time he laid eyes on her boyfriend, Joseph Oberhansley.
"I tried to run him out of the yard the first time I (saw) him," Irmer said.Irmer's premonitions were confirmed Dec. 9, 1998, when Oberhansley entered his grandmother's West Valley home and shot and killed Irmer's 17-year-old granddaughter, Sabrina Elder, who just days before had given birth to the couple's son.
Oberhansley then shot and wounded his own mother, Brenda Self, and turned the gun on himself.
Oberhansley's suicide attempt failed, but Irmer's emotional wounds since losing his granddaughter were reopened Monday after hearing Oberhansley's sentence.
Based on the recommendation of prosecutors, 3rd District Judge Judith Atherton sent Oberhansley to prison for up to 15 years. Originally charged with first-degree felony murder and attempted murder, a second-degree felony, prosecutors allowed Oberhansley to plead guilty to manslaughter and attempted murder, both second-degree felonies, on Jan. 7. Atherton gave Oberhansley one to 15 years on each count, but ordered the sentences to run concurrently instead of consecutively.
Atherton also ordered Oberhansley pay $4,000 restitution and a $5,000 fine.
"He's going to get out in five to seven years to do it again," Irmer said. "They didn't give us our day in court."
Irmer said he wanted a jury to decide whether or not Oberhansley was guilty of first-degree murder, but prosecutors took the "cheapest way out" by offering Oberhansley a plea deal.
Prosecutor Paul Parker said the state's plea agreement, which included recommending concurrent prison terms, was the "appropriate penalty in this case."
Oberhansley's mother and grandmother, both eyewitnesses to the crime, and other family members were hesitant to cooperate with the investigation. Oberhansley's state of mind at the time of the shooting would have made a murder conviction unlikely, Parker said. Oberhansley, 17 at the time, had just endured his father's death. His brother had previously committed suicide.
"I didn't think we could get a murder conviction," Parker said.
At Monday's sentencing, Oberhansley, now 19, spoke of his love for Elder and asked her family for forgiveness.
"I'd give my life for hers," Oberhansley said. "I will take responsibility for my acts, not only today but for every day until I die."