No parole for young killer for at least 20 years

POLSON — Aaron Jess Spang, the Polson teen who murdered his mother’s boyfriend, learned Wednesday that he will sit behind bars until he is 39 and could potentially remain there until he is well into his 60s.

“Because of the violent nature of the crime — stabbing an unarmed victim nine times until he was dead — the court sentences you to 40 years in the Montana state prison with none of that time suspended,” Judge C.B. McNeil said to the 19-year-old, adding that Spang will not be eligible for parole for at least 20 years.

In addition to deliberate homicide, Spang was convicted of felony possession of dangerous drugs for a marijuana grow police discovered in his bedroom closet. That crime earned him an additional five years in the state prison.

McNeil said he sentenced Spang to the long prison term because “the defendant was convicted, by a jury, of one of the most serious crimes in the state of Montana. His claim of self-defense was not accepted by a jury, nor is it accepted by this court.”

Spang, who showed little emotion during his five-day trial in late April, had no visible reaction to the sentence.

Moments before sentencing, Spang read from a several-page letter that offered the courtroom a brief glimpse into the young man’s mind.

“I had plenty of options on the morning of November 27,” Spang said. “I made a horrible mistake, I chose the wrong road. Now I will have to endure the consequences.”

McNeil heard more than an hour of testimony from a number of witnesses, including Dr. Vincent River, a psychologist who evaluated Spang; Virginia HeDoesIt, mother of victim Frank HeDoesIt; and June Spang, grandmother of the defendant.