The latest on the sentencing hearing for a Wisconsin man accused of kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killing her parents (all times local):
5:05 p.m.
The family of Jayme Closs says they are satisfied that the man who kidnapped her and killed her parents will be spending the rest of his life in prison.
Jake Patterson was sentenced Friday to life in prison without release. He had previously pleaded guilty to the Oct. 15 killings of James and Denise Closs and to Jayme’s abduction.
Jayme’s aunt, Jennifer Smith, said after the sentencing that this was an important step in helping Jayme to move forward. She said the family believes the outcome will give Jayme some “much needed peace of mind.”
Smith said Jayme has made progress, but has much work left to do. She has spent time with her friends, is doing homework, and hanging out with her dog.
Prosecutor Brian Wright says the case has always been about the courage of a 13-year-old girl who overcame incredible odds to escape and return home.
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3:50 p.m.
The Wisconsin man who abducted 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killed her parents wrote that he fantasized “about keeping a young girl, torturing her and controlling her.”
Jake Patterson’s writings were summarized by Judge James Babler shortly before he sentenced Patterson to life in prison without any chance of release.
Babler said Patterson had written that “fear of hell” initially stopped him, but he stopped believing in God and began looking for an opportunity. Patterson wrote that he drove around looking for a girl to take but soon realize that wouldn’t work, then conceived of doing it in a home invasion.
Patterson told investigators he carefully planned and carried out his attack in October on the Closs family home near Barron.
Babler called Patterson “the embodiment of evil.”
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3:35 p.m.
A Wisconsin man will spend the rest of his life in prison for kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killing her parents.
Twenty-one-year-old Jake Patterson was sentenced Friday in Barron County. He pleaded guilty in March to two counts of intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping. He admitted to abducting Jayme in October and killing her parents, James and Denise Closs.
The teen was held captive in a remote cabin for 88 days before she escaped.
Patterson was sentenced to life in prison without release on each homicide count and 25 years in prison on the kidnapping count. The sentences will be served consecutively.
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3 p.m.
A prosecutor says a Wisconsin man who kidnapped 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killed her parents should never be released from prison.
Barron County District Attorney Brian Wright told a judge during Jake Patterson’s sentencing hearing Friday that Patterson would never stop trying to find and possibly kill Jayme if he gets out of prison.
He said Patterson can never get another opportunity to kidnap another girl and kill her or anyone with her.
Patterson’s attorney, Charles Glynn, countered that Patterson has pleaded guilty to two counts of intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping to spare the community a long, painful trial and allow the Closs family to heal.
Patterson is accused of abducting Jayme from her home near Barron after killing James and Denise Closs in October. He held Jayme captive in a remote cabin for 88 days before she escaped.
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This item has been updated to correct that commenting defense attorney is Charles Glynn, not Richard Jones.
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2:10 p.m.
Wisconsin teenager Jayme Closs says she wants to see the man who kidnapped her and killed her parents “locked up forever.”
Jayme’s words were read Friday at the sentencing hearing for Jake Patterson. The 21-year-old admitted kidnapping her and killing her parents in a carefully planned attack last October.
The 13-year-old didn’t appear in court Friday, but her guardian read a statement from her.
Jayme wrote that Patterson “thought that he could own me, but he’s wrong. I was smarter.”
Patterson held Jayme for 88 days at his isolated northern Wisconsin cabin before she escaped.
She says Patterson “thought he could make me like him. But he was wrong.” She also said Patterson “will never have any power over me.”
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1:50 p.m.
Members of Jayme Closs’ family are asking a Wisconsin judge to sentence the man who kidnapped her and killed her parents to the maximum amount of time in prison.
Twenty-one-year-old Jake Patterson pleaded guilty in March to two counts of intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping.
He admitted to abducting Jayme from her home near Barron after killing James and Denise Closs, in October. He held Jayme captive in a remote cabin for 88 days before she escaped.
Jayme’s aunt Sue Allard began a sentencing hearing Friday by telling the judge that she fell to the ground and screamed when she got learned Jayme had vanished and her parents were dead. She says Jayme lost everything.
Aunt Jennifer Smith said Jayme no longer has a 13-year-old’s life. She says her family lives in fear every day.
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8 a.m.
A Wisconsin man could spend the rest of his life behind bars for kidnapping 13-year-old Jayme Closs and killing her parents.
Twenty-one-year-old Jake Patterson pleaded guilty in March to two counts of intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping. He admitted to abducting Jayme after killing her parents, James and Denise Closs, in October.
Jayme was held captive in a remote cabin for 88 days before she escaped.
A judge will sentence Patterson on Friday. He faces up to life in prison without release on each homicide count, and up to 25 years in prison on the kidnapping count. Wisconsin does not have the death penalty.
Members of Jayme’s family are expected to speak at Friday’s hearing. Patterson also has the option of addressing the court.
