“Innocent” Michigan Woman Gets Life Sentence For 2007 Murder

I can't imagine what it's like to be sitting in the court room for a criminal trial in any capacity. I have never had to be the plaintiff or defendant, I'm definitely not a judge or a lawyer, and I've been lucky enough to avoid jury duty all this time. I can't even begin to think about what the nerves are like, how sweaty my palms would be, and if I would be able to handle all of that.

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For some people this is their everyday life as they choose to have a profession in this sector but for everyone else, it's not something that comes easily to us. Now, let's take it up a notch and think of the people who are affected by this the most, the defendant(s) and the plaintiff(s). In some cases, the plaintiff(s) are forced to either speak on and/or relive some traumatic event.

That's the case plus some for after a murder trial in Michigan that has been tried for the second time. Linda Stermer was convicted of murder back in 2007 after her house burned to the ground and they found her husband inside with severe burns and lacerations to his head.

Michigan Woman Sentenced To Life In Prison Again After Trying To Prove Innocence

Stermer has always said, believed, and stood on this being a tragic accident rather than a murder. She says that the trial should prove that it was just a tragedy that took him away from everyone rather than a crime and that she stands innocent and wrongfully convicted but his ready for the battle ahead.

Stermer's original trial was 3 weeks long and was full of testimony from her three sons who said they all believe she is guilty of murder and don't consider her to be their mother anymore. Alongside testimony there was forensics, fire analysis and personal accounts from her friends and neighbors, all of which explored her actions before and after the fire.

This conviction would be thrown out in 2018 after an appeals court ruled her defense attorney provided ineffective counsel and the prosecution misrepresented her testimony. After hearing the case this time around, jurors would deliberate for 11 hours before finding Stermer guilty of both murder charges.

She was convicted of First-degree murder in the perpetration of arson which has a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.