Jesse Matthew Sentenced to Life in Prison for 'Vicious' Attack of Woman in Fairfax City

Charlottesville resident Jesse Matthew has been sentenced to three life prison terms for the 2005 attack of a young woman in Fairfax City, according to several media reports.

Jesse L. Matthew Jr., 33, of Charlottesville, showed a “complete and utter lack of responsibility” for the brutal attack, The Washington Post reported Prosecutor Ray Morrogh as saying Friday.

Matthew’s mother Debra Carr was at the sentencing and screamed “No!” and yelled “Rot in hell!” to the judge, as she heard her son sentenced to three life prison terms, according to a report by WTOP.

Matthew, accused in the murders of Hannah Graham, a University of Virginia student from Fairfax County, and Morgan Harrington, a Virginia Tech student, was sentenced Friday to three life sentences for the 2005 attack. The Graham trial is scheduled for next summer, when Matthew will face the death penalty.

The Washington Post reports the sentences are based on Matthew’s separate conviction for abducting, sexually assaulting and attempting to kill a woman in Fairfax in 2005.

The woman, who now lives overseas, returned to Fairfax to testify in the trial. In 10 minutes of testimony, the woman from India gave a frightening account of the sexual assault she endured nearly 10 years ago in Fairfax City.

During his trial on June 10, Matthew entered an Alford plea to the charges, claiming his innocence but acknowledging that prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him.

In the victim-impact hearing, the victim described how the crime has affected her, helping Judge David Schell determine an appropriate punishment, WTTG-TV Channel 5 reported.

The victim described how, on the night of the attack on Sept. 24, 2005, she was grabbed from behind as she was walking home from a grocery store on Jermantown Road, the Washington Post reported. The attacker fled the scene, possibly startled by the lights of a car pulling into a nearby parking lot.

The woman also talked about the physical and emotional injuries she suffered from the attack, saying she was depressed and in denial about what had happened, the Post reported.

She eventually moved back to India and started a family of her own. But when Matthew was charged with the attack, she agreed to fly back to the U.S. to testify at his trial.

PHOTO of Jesse Matthew courtesy of Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office

Also read:

• Grand Jury Returns Indictments Against Jesse Matthew in Morgan Harrington Case
• Jesse Matthew Charged with First Degree Murder in UVA Case
• Jesse Matthew to Be Charged with First Degree Murder: Report
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• Jesse Matthew Booked Into Fairfax County Adult Detention Center; Hearing Friday
• VIDEO: Charlottesville, Albemarle Police Discuss Discovery of Human Remains
• Remains Found in Hannah Graham Investigation
• Hannah Graham’s Parents Release Statement
• VIDEO: Parents of Missing UVA Student Hannah Graham: ‘Help Us End This Nightmare’
• State Police Link Jesse Matthew to 2009 College Student Murder
• Suspect in Hannah Graham Disappearance Won’t Fight Extradition from Texas
• Police Charge Jesse Matthew with ‘Abduction, Attempt to Defile’ in Hannah Graham Case
• Police Issue Wanted Poster for ‘Person of Interest’ in Missing College Student Case
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• Charlottesville Police Reveal Name of ‘Person of Interest’ to Media in Hannah Graham Case, No Charges Filed
• Police: Missing College Student Hannah Graham Left Bar with ‘Person of Interest’
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