September 6 – Ami Strahan has returned to court for seven years to represent her son Sam, who was murdered in 2017 when a 15-year-old boy opened fire at Freeman High School.
It doesn’t matter what the court does, she said. The nightmare of losing Sam, who confronted Caleb Sharpe in the hallway that day, will never be over.
“I don’t know anybody who thinks justice was done,” Strahan told the court. “Luckily it was just one, right? The one you took? That was mine.”
On Friday, Spokane County Superior Court Judge Breean Beggs was ordered to re-sentence Sharpe, her son’s killer, to 25 years to life in prison.
Sharpe previously pleaded guilty to murdering Sam Strahan and wounding three other teenagers during his rampage. He was sentenced to a minimum of 40 years in prison.
Attorneys and judges at Sharpe’s 2022 sentencing apparently missed a requirement in Washington law to sentence a juvenile to a maximum of 25 years to a minimum of life in prison, prompting Sharpe to appeal and the U.S. Court of Appeals Division III to order a judge to resentence Sharpe a second time. The law also requires judges to consider a 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that declared life sentences for juveniles unconstitutional, prompting teens across the U.S. to appeal their sentences.
“The fact that they all missed it is pretty horrific,” Deputy District Attorney Michael Jolstead told the court on Friday.
Sharpe was also sentenced to 260 months for each count of attempted murder in the three wounded girls. Those months will run concurrently with his minimum sentence of 25 years, which was part of the agreement between the prosecution and the defense. In order for Sharpe to reenter society, he must convince a parole board after 25 years that he has been rehabilitated and will not harm anyone again.
According to defense attorney Matthew Harget, Sharpe was advised to seek a lesser sentence, which is allowed under Washington’s sentencing laws. Sharpe disagreed.
“He doesn’t want to prolong the suffering,” Harget said, but asked Beggs to remember: “You’re not condemning the 22-year-old sitting before you, you’re condemning the 15-year-old boy.”
Harget reminded the court that a Spokane County school shooter is being sentenced the same week as another school shooting in the U.S. A 14-year-old boy is accused of fatally shooting four people at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia.
“How can we possibly explain the mass shootings that are happening in our country, every single day?” Harget said. “…Our country couldn’t even get through the first week of school without a school shooting.”
Sharpe apologized for his actions and claimed he had turned his life around. He plans to spend the rest of his sentence strengthening his faith and earning a bachelor’s degree, he said. He also changed his name to “Kahlev J. Elkhanan,” documents show.
Sharpe said in his statement that he hopes it is clear that he has “rejected” the way he was when he was 15 and that he “will never walk down these evil paths again.”
Sam Strahan’s mother disagrees. Sharpe is a coward, she says, who only preaches because he hides behind a veil of religion.
“I can only hope that the Lord Almighty will show you that you are not worthy,” Ami Strahan said. “I hope the universe kicks your ass for good measure, and I hope my son chases your dreams until your last breath.”
In a statement issued Friday, Freeman School District Superintendent Randy Russell said they hope this is “the last time our families have to appear in court” over the shooting.
“Your kindness and support will always be remembered,” he wrote. “We remain Freeman Strong.”
