While few tears were actually shed on the stand as loved ones looked Eric Williams in the eye to share their victim impact statements, the words chosen by those who spoke were clear and powerful.
"You got what you deserve," was echoed several times from those who took the stand.
On Dec. 17, 2014, a jury sentenced Williams to death in the capital murders of Cynthia McLelland, and her husband, Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland. The trial was also connected to the fatal ambush of Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse, who was gunned down outside a Kaufman County courthouse on Jan. 31, 2013, two months before the McLelland murders.
Nearly two years later, sons, daughters and mothers of the victims were able to share their thoughts on the man who authorities say pulled the trigger in each of their violent deaths.
JUDGE MIKE SNIPES
After reading the death sentence handed down by the jury, Snipes turned to the group and revealed the Eric Williams trial was his last jury trial. "I'm retiring at the end of this year, and it's been a great honor for me to work with my juries over the years, and I'll never forget this one."
With that, he turned to Williams...
"You make yourself out be some sort of Charles Bronson, 'Death Wish' vigilante in this case. I never thought that. And any deluded souls out there who may have bought it, at the end of the day, you murdered a little old lady. And you would have murdered two other innocent people if you had the opportunity, that puts you right there with Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer and Richard Speck. People of Kaufman County, I know you've been scared for the last couple of years, there's no reason to be scared anymore."
CLICK LINK BELOW TO WATCH FULL STATEMENT:
J.R. MCLELLAND, SON OF MIKE MCLELLAND
Taking the stand with reddened eyes, J.R. McLelland spoke directly to Williams, at one point goading him to look him in the eye.
McLelland questioned whether this outcome is what Williams wanted from the start after he failed to become a law enforcement officer. He then ended his statement with a reference to testimony made by Kim Williams the day prior to his sentencing. On the stand, Mrs. Williams recalled the mood 'joyous' after her husband shot down the McLellands in a "torrent of lead." She said that night, they both went to her parents' house where they ate a grilled steak dinner.
"And I was told not to cuss, and I'm trying not to. So, I'll just tell you this, tonight, while you're eating a bologna sandwich, I'm going to have steaks. Ribeye, baked potatoes, a big fat glass of sweet tea, while you drink water and [eat a] sandwich. And I'll be there to watch you die, along with the rest of my family. I don't know if this was what you were wanting, this is what you got. [Looks to jury] Thank y'all for your service. [Looks back at Williams] Have fun in Hunt."
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NATHAN FOREMAN, SON OF CYNTHIA MCLELLAND
Nathan Foreman sat tall and kept his composure as he addressed Williams. He took his time to share the impact and role his mother and stepfather played in his and the rest of McLelland and Foreman lives. He described his mother as the "center of our family" and Mr. McLelland as his ear during troubling times. He also depicted the energy and life that was taken from the family following their deaths.
"I grew up believing in the Golden Rule, that what you do will come back to you, and so I know and believe that you, Eric, will get your punishment.
...My grandmother died this last year right after Thanksgiving. And she told me after mom and Mike died that some of the spark of life had left. She was ready to die at that point. It broke my heart to watch a vibrant woman wither away after one of her kids were gone.
...I believe it's important not to hate and I work on that daily because I think that hate is corrosive, it can eat away your soul. So, I try not to hate, but I cannot forgive and I cannot forget."
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CHRISTINA FOREMAN, DAUGHTER OF CYNTHIA MCLELLAND
Mr. Foreman's sister, Christina, grabbed his hand and squeezed as he exited the stand and she took her place next to the judge. Her statement was shorter than her brother's as she looked to the jury to thank them for their time and then turned to Williams.
"Pretty much the only thing I have to say is [expletive] you Eric Williams, my apologies to the court, and I hope you get exactly what you deserve."
KRISTA BALL, ELDEST CHILD OF MIKE MCLELLAND
As Krista Ball spoke to Williams, she detailed the devastation left in the wake of her father's death. Like Nathan before her, she told the convicted murderer of the toll his death took on the elder survivors.
"I have watched my grandmother and Mark Hasse's mom dwindle to nothing because of you. You have gotten exactly what you deserve and I wish I could be happy that you got it, but our whole family is just torn up. And I have stayed up at nights thinking of the punishment you deserve and there's nothing just, so in the words of Wyvonne McLelland, who is Mike McLelland's mother, 'You're a sorry S.O.B. and we hope you rot.'"
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STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF MARK HASSE'S MOTHER
Sumer Wassef, a DPS victim services councilor, took the stand to read a victim impact statement for Mark Hasse's mother, who called Williams' "a small-town thief who regularly stole from the people of Kaufman County."
"And my son prosecuted you for that. You thought you could get away with it. You thought you were smarter than everyone else. You weren't very smart. You were caught redhanded. My son showed the world that you are a violent felon and a lousy lawyer. You killed him and the McLellands for that.
... And long after your corpse has been disposed of, and your name forgotten. This county, and state, will remember the good people — Mark Hasse, Mike McLelland, Cynthia McLelland, who gave their lives putting scum like you in prison."
CLICK LINK BELOW TO WATCH FULL STATEMENT:
