MN: Killer of 12-year-old girl is sentenced to life in prison
Patty
Warren Wolfe / Minneapolis Star Tribune
WASECA, MINN. -- Nearly two years after an intruder bent on burglary raped and killed
12-year-old Cally Jo Larson, family members said Tuesday that their healing has begun.
It happened when Lorenzo Sanchez, 29, admitted Monday that he killed the girl, and on
Tuesday, in a courtroom packed with about 90 of Cally Jo's family members and friends,
when he asked for the family's forgiveness.
"Forgiveness -- well, I have to leave that in God's hands. I'm unable to forgive an evil
man who committed an evil act," said Connie Larson, Cally's mother, a few hours after
Sanchez was sentenced to life in prison.
"But I am grateful that Lorenzo did the right thing and took responsibility for what he
did," she said. "And I believe him. I think he's truly sorry for what he did."
Until this week, "All we could do was try to cope with our anger and grief over Cally's
unresolved death," she said.
"Today I feel lighter," she said Tuesday with a bright smile.
"A huge weight has lifted off us. Before today, I wanted Lorenzo to suffer through a
trial -- even though it would have been incredibly painful for us. Today, I know God took
care of all of us. He gave us the right ending."
She thanked many friends who have supported the family. Among them in the courtroom
Tuesday were Pam and Steve Poirier, whose daughter, Katie, was killed by Donald Blum in
Moose Lake a month after Cally was killed.
Lost innocence
In court, five family members read statements expressing their fond memories of Cally.
"I turn and see my children, beautiful, grieving. They bring me so much joy, and for a
moment I have life again," Connie Larson said, her voice breaking. "Then I see their pain.
"They have lost their innocence, their softness. They have put in shields and are ready to
fight."
Said her daughter, Jayme, 18, who found Cally's body, "I can't even stay home alone in my
own house. My life will not be the same."
But now, Sanchez "will do nothing to me or to society or to the world. I know he will pay
for his crime for the rest of his life while the rest of us will get to enjoy the everyday
pleasures of life."
Also speaking were Larson's former husband, Paul Larson of Litchfield, Minn.; another
daughter, Contessa, 23, and Paul Larson's stepdaughter, Laura.
Sanchez, an illegal immigrant, had been living in Waseca for about two years under a false
name before the murder on April 20, 1999.
On Monday he admitted in court that he had burglarized the Larson house and left, but
returned because he thought he had left his ID.
Minutes later, Cally Jo got off the bus from school and walked into the house, confronting
Sanchez. He said he tied her hands and feet, stabbed her and then hung her from a banister
to be sure she was dead.
On Tuesday he stood before District Judge Lawrence Collins of Winona and apologized to the
Larson family in Spanish through an interpreter.
"If you could see how I feel for all that I have done. Maybe not even God can forgive me,"
he said.
"I know I have no forgiveness from you, your husband or your family. I know I should pay
for this with my life. If I had something to take my life away, I would take it."
Sanchez won't be eligible for parole until February 2030. He was returned to the Oak Park
Heights prison and is expected to be sent to one in Texas. He also is serving a four-year
sentence for burglary, which will run concurrently.
After the sentencing, Miguel Sanchez told reporters that he doesn't think that his brother
committed the crime and that he confessed because he was depressed and was being pressured
to get the matter resolved.
Time to heal
The Waseca murder has changed life for children and adults far beyond the city's borders,
several people said Tuesday.
"Adults and children have lost their innocence. We used to think that these things
couldn't happen to us, but they do," said Connie Larson's sister, Bette Schweer of
Clarkfield, Minn.
Now, Larson said, it's time for family members to heal, to take back control of their
lives.
In November she was appointed by Gov. Jesse Ventura to the Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines
Commission, and last year lobbied legislators for money to link law enforcement agencies
by computer.
She also started Cally Jo's Children's Fund to support student gymnasts with the costs of
their sport, help families with special needs and grant two $500 scholarships a year to a
student in Waseca and another in Litchfield, Minn., where Cally Jo was born and is buried.
"I want to find Cally in my heart again -- the laughing, giggling, dancing, singing
Cally," she said Tuesday. "That's the Cally we lost. I think we can find her again."
DedNdogYrs
child, and thinks to himself, "Oh what a great find-a child to have sex with!"
and then murders her. What in the hell motivates these mutations? Is their sex
drive really so great that it's worth killing someone for sex?
Dogs & children first.