I know I am innocent, before my God, and believe the physical evidence conclusively supports that. – Johnny Brickman Wall
SALT LAKE CITY — Johnny Brickman Wall was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years to life in prison for the death of his ex-wife, Uta von Schwedler.
Wall, however, continues to insist that he did not kill the woman who was found dead in an overflowing bathtub of her home with a toxic level of Xanax in her system.
But 3rd District Judge James Blanch called the death "a despicable crime" and said he imposed the sentence based on what the jury found, even though Wall still maintains his innocence.
"This is a sad day, and it's with a heavy heart I impose this sentence," Blanch said. "But I think it's a just sentence."
There was little emotion in the courtroom as the sentence was announced.
"I did not kill Uta. I am innocent of this crime," Wall told the judge before he was sentenced. It was similar to a proclamation he wrote in a letter he wrote to Blanch last week.
"I did not murder Uta or in any way contribute to her death," Wall wrote.
In that eight-page letter, Walls goes over in detail why he believes all the physical evidence from the trial three months ago proves he did not kill her, as well as repeatedly maintaining his innocence.
"I am a nonviolent man, raised in a profoundly nonviolent family, with our pacifist Mennonite tradition as a foundation," he wrote. "I know I am innocent, before my God, and believe the physical evidence conclusively supports that."
Von Schwedler, 49, a University of Utah researcher was found dead in her Sugar House home, 1433 E. Harrison Ave. (1625 South), on Sept. 27, 2011. It appeared as though she drowned in her bathtub after taking a toxic level of Xanax. A medical examiner could not determine whether her death was murder or suicide.
Prosecutors successfully convinced a jury that Wall and von Schwedler's tumultuous relationship reached a boiling point and Wall killed his ex-wife whom he despised.
Wall's defense painted a picture, however, of someone who cared about his ex-wife, even though she was self-destructive.
Defense attorney Frank Metos spent considerable time during Wednesday's sentencing hearing asking the judge to throw out the verdict. He said the contention that she was forced to take the Xanax was "incredibly dubious" and said there was also no proof she had been injected.
He said the idea that she was killed was nothing more than a theory and made additional arguments questioning the DNA evidence used in the trial.
But the judge denied Metos' motions and said there was plenty of evidence the jury relied on to reach its verdict.
In preparing for sentencing, the judge had received many letters from friends and family of both Wall and von Schwedler. Many of Wall's siblings wrote letters to Blanch saying they don't believe he is guilty.
"I remain firmly convinced of my brother's innocence," Wall's sister, Wendy Wall, wrote to the judge.
On the other side, Malkie Wall, who was 16 when her mother died, wrote a letter to the judge saying at first she did not believe her father could kill her.
"I never wanted to believe that my father killed my mom. For a long time, I tried to convince myself that he was the victim of baseless accusations as he claimed. I invented excuses for erratic behavior, tried to ignore flaws in the stories he told, and refused anyone’s efforts to convince me otherwise," she wrote.
But when her older brother Pelle gained custody of his siblings and get them out of their father's home, she said she was able to see how Johnny Wall was manipulating her.
"In truth, I hate to imagine anyone in prison, let alone the person who raised me. But I also believe firmly in justice, and prison is the only recourse I know of for my father. He has inflicted deep, lasting emotional damage that will likely affect me for the rest of my life. I have lost homes, pets, friends, and at times even my sense of self," Malkie Wall wrote.
"Most of all, I have lost my mother — not only her physical being, but also a lifetime of shared experiences. My father, however, still claims to be innocent. He has created a reality for himself in which he is the victim. That refusal to take responsibility is what makes me fearful. If he were released from prison, I don’t doubt that he would seek (what is in his mind 'justified') retribution."
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