Tim Holland's tears won't reduce his sentence

Holland gets up to 60 years for death of his son
Karen Bouffard, Detroit News, Nov. 16, 2006, Metro section.

LANSING -- Tim Holland sobbed uncontrollably and told a judge "my life is over" when he was sentenced this morning to 30 to 60 years in prison for the second-degree murder in the July 2005 death of his adopted son Ricky.Ingham County Circuit Judge Paula Manderfield exceeded sentencing guidelines that called for a maximum of 22 years in prison. Prosecutors said the sentence was more than they expected because conceivably Holland could have been eligible for parole in 15 years under the guidelines.

Manderfield's voice cracked and she momentarily lost her composure as she spoke to the Williamston man who pleaded guilty in September and testified last month during the trial of his wife Lisa. She faces life in prison after being convicted of murder and child abuse in late October.
"You knew what was going on," Manderfield said.

"You knew how Ricky was being mistreated and abused in that household. You knew exactly what was going on and you could have saved Ricky Holland's life. You said, 'I was trying to protect (my) family,' but you did not protect Ricky. Wasn't he part of your family too?"

Holland wept inconsolably when he addressed the court.

"What I did was wrong," he said. "I failed my son. I failed as a father and I failed as a human being."

"That choice will haunt me the rest of my life. My life is over. My honor has been waylaid. My reputation is gone and most importantly my children are no longer with me. My actions and what I did will be a (cross) to bear and bear them I will."

State workers took custody of the Hollands' remaining children after Tim Holland led authorities to the body of Ricky Holland this January in an Ingham County swamp. Initially, the couple told police the 7-year-old ran away in July 2005, prompting a massive manhunt.

During last month's trial, Tim Holland said Lisa struck the boy with a tack hammer after years of abuse and allowed him to linger and suffer until he died several days later.