Combs-LaFleur Sentenced to Life

Steven Combs-LaFleur, 63, has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty last November to killing his wife, Catherine Combs-LaFleur, with a sledgehammer in 2010.

According to an article on Leesburg Today, Loudoun County Circuit Court Judge Burke F. McCahill sentenced Combs-LaFleur on Tuesday, April 10. Combs-LaFleur was also ordered to pay court costs.

Combs-LaFleur’s jury trial began Nov. 14, 2011. He testified that he was doing repairs on his home, located on Lime Kiln Road, in Leesburg, when the ladder he was standing on fell over and onto his wife.  

When Combs-LaFleur saw that his wife had a significant head injury, which was believed to be fatal, he told investigators he hit her in the head with a sledgehammer to put her out of her misery, according to the article.

Combs-LaFleur showed no emotion on Tuesday prior to his sentencing. However, he was quoted saying that he was “very, very sorry this happened.”

Visit Leesburg Today for the full article.