The man who killed a Port Alberni nurse has been sentenced to life in prison with no parole for 20 years, provincial prosecutor Gordon Baines said.
Supreme Court Justice R. McKinnon handed down the sentence in Port Alberni provincial court on Tuesday.
Kim Winslow Rothgordt, 43, was found guilty in January of second-degree murder in the 2008 killing of Port Alberni nurse James Shannon, 52.
Only the issue of Rothgordt's parole eligibility needed to be determined.
He appeared in court in person with his new counsel - Robert Mulligan of Victoria.
The prosecution sought a 20-year term for parole ineligibility, which was consistent with the jury’s recommendation, Baines said.
Tuesday’s proceeding included Shannon’s sister Margaret reading the Shannon family’s victim impact statement aloud in court.
The delay in parole rendering happened after Rothgordt discharged his lawyer Ray Dieno in January.
McKinnon agreed to the adjournment to allow Rothgordt to seek new counsel, and Mulligan subsequently represented him.
The prosecution staff had a job to do, Baines said, but it was one that also intrinsically rewarding.
“We’re pleased that the trial process has given the Shannon family some closure after the loss of their loved one.”
Police discovered Shannon’s body in his Second Avenue house on Feb. 25, 2008.
He was first discovered by a friend who went to check on him after he missed several shifts working as a nurse at West Coast General Hospital.
Police subsequently arrested Rothgordt and recommended one count of second-degree murder against him.