A man who fessed up to stabbing a 9-year-old boy as the third grader slept inside his Discovery Bay home back in 2015 was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison Friday.
William "Billy" Shultz, who was a friend of Jordan "Jordy" Almgren's older brother, was sleeping over at the Almgren family home in April 2015 when the then-teenager allegedly used a hunting knife to stab Almgren several times. Almgren was rushed to the hospital, but he later died.
Almgren's mother on Friday clutched a necklace her child made for her after the sentencing and said it's now time to move forward.
"There are no winners," Melissa Almgren said. "There aren't. Just healing for the defendant's family and our family."
Jordan Almgren's father added that the ruling offered mixed feelings.
"It's kind of bittersweet," Jon Almgren said. "We still don't have our son."
From the case's opening statements, Shultz's defense team argued that the then-18-year-old was in a chaotic mental state. They argued that he was obsessed with the thought that the world was ending, and when nuclear bombs did not detonate during the sleepover, Shultz was allegedly convinced that he had to kill someone in order to test his ability to survive an impending apocalypse.
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In a jailhouse interview with the Bay Area News Group, Shultz said, "I wanted to see what it was like to take a life before someone tried to take mine."
Just one day before the stabbing, Shultz was briefly hospitalized after his family requested that officials evaluate the state of his mental health. Contra Costa County Sheriff's Department officials originally responded to the family's home before deciding that the teenager did not meet the criteria to be placed on an involuntary mental hold, according to the East Bay Times. Shultz still voluntarily went to the hospital, but a doctor later released him before the sleepover.
Shultz did not speak in court, but his mother said what her son did will haunt him forever. Shultz's attorney added that her client is sorry.
"He has told me that he is extremely remorseful for what he did to his second family," defense attorney Cynthia Scofield said.
The joy Jordan Almgren brought to his family has aided them since the killing, and Almgren's brother said that Friday's ruling gives them added satisfaction.
"We've been able to stay strong and keep our heads up, keep smiling, and so, in the end, (Shultz) didn't win," Evan Almgren said.
Scofield plans to appeal the sentencing ruling.