Girlfriend of US dentist who killed wife in 2016 sentenced to 17 yrs in prison

The girlfriend of an American dentist convicted of killing his wife in 2016 was sentenced to 17 years in prison on Friday (June 23) for being an accessory to the crime during a hearing where relatives of the victim said she destroyed their family. In August last year, dentist Lawrence Rudolph was found guilty of murdering his wife Bianca Rudolph during a hunting trip in Zambia in 2016. His sentencing, which was originally set for last week, has been postponed.

According to a report by the news agency Associated Press last Friday, Bianca's daughter Ana said that Lawrence's girlfriend Lori Milliron had plotted to eliminate her mother.

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"Lori, you have taken my parents. Despite everything you have done you will never take my soul. This might be difficult to understand ... because you don’t have one," Ana told the woman.

Last year, Milliron, 65, was convicted of being an accessory to murder after the fact and obstructing a grand jury in the case. She was charged alongside Lawrence.

'Milliron's prison sentence excessive': Lawyer

John Dill, an attorney for Milliron, said that the 65-year-old's prison sentence was longer than what is typically dolled out for such charges. Calling the sentence excessive, Dill argued the convictions were merely based on Milliron’s perjury charges and did not implicate her in the execution of the crime, as per the report.

However, Judge William J. Martínez argued that the sentence was deserved as evidence pointed to Milliron “encouraging” the crime. Judge Martínez highlighted that Milliron seemed “unrepentant” in part because he judged her emotionally unmoved when she was shown graphic images and listened to the testimony during the trial.

The woman insisted she was innocent and was sympathetic to the Rudolph family.

Lawrence too has maintained his innocence, claiming Bianca accidentally shot herself while packing to leave Zambia for the United States. But prosecutors countered that evidence showed that that was impossible because the wound to her heart came from a shot fired from 2 to 3.5 feet away.

(With inputs from agencies)

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