BRIGHTON — A judge today sentenced a convicted killer to the maximum possible sentence for the murder of an Aurora Police detective.
Judge C. Vincent Phelps handed down an 80-year prison sentence to 29-year-old Brian Washington, who was convicted last month of second-degree murder in the death of Aurora Police Det. Mike Thomas.
Washington was quiet during the sentencing and hung his head throughout most of the day’s proceedings.
At one point during the sentencing, one of Washington’s aunts turned to Thomas’ family and offered an apology. However, Thomas’ mother said they did not accept it.
Thomas was on duty, driving his personal car and was not in uniform when he was shot at the intersection of Peoria Street and Montview Boulevard in 2006. He was heading from one training center to another at the time. Thomas was pronounced dead about a half hour later at the hospital.
Washington admitted to the killing, but a jury rejected his insanity defense.
Last month, Washington was also found guilty of attempted first-degree assault on a peace officer and second-degree assault on a peace officer, stemming from an altercation with officer Scott Osgood, who arrived on scene after the shooting.
Washington received a 48-year sentence for the second-degree murder conviction and a pair of 16-year sentences for the assault charges, totaling 80 years behind bars.
The judge ruled the 80-year sentence will run consecutively to a 26-year sentence Washington is already serving for an unrelated shooting that happened two days before Thomas was shot and killed. That means Washington must complete his 26-year sentence before he can begin serving time on his 80-year sentence, all but guaranteeing he will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Thomas’ family was pleased with the sentence on Monday, but still unhappy Washington was convicted of second-degree murder, rather than first-degree murder.
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