By The Associated Press
GRAND RAPIDS – A judge imposed a life prison sentence on a 65-year-old Michigan truck driver who drugged, kidnapped, tortured and sexually assaulted two young men, killing one of them.
James Donald Moore apologized to the surviving victim and to the men's families during his sentencing hearing Oct. 27 in Kent County Circuit Court.
"I am very, very remorseful," Moore said. "I don't know how else I can say how sorry I am."
The separate assaults left Justin Bogdanik, 18, of Grand Rapids, dead and injured D.J. Dempsey, then 19, of Grand Haven.
Bogdanik was beaten and sexually tortured after accepting a ride from Moore on June 25, 2003, in downtown Grand Rapids. A passer-by found Bogdanik face-down in a ditch along Interstate 96 in Livingston County's Genoa Township, his wrists bound by duct tape and his eyes and genitals glued.
He died in a hospital 12 days later.
Investigators said when Moore met Dempsey, he offered a cure for his stuttering. Instead, Dempsey was given up to 48 Benadryl pills that rendered him unconscious, then he was assaulted and dumped alongside a highway near Jackson on Sept. 1, 2003.
Dempsey's recollection of events helped lead to Moore's capture a short time later.
Dempsey's father said during the hearing he didn't want an apology from Moore. He wanted to see Moore dead.
"You don't ever need to be on the street again because you'll just hurt someone again," David Dempsey said.
Moore, who is from LeRoy in Osceola County, pleaded no contest in August to second-degree murder and kidnapping in Bogdanik's death and to kidnapping and first-degree criminal sexual conduct counts in the other attack.
Defense attorney Tonya Krause-Phelan sought leniency from Judge Dennis Leiber, saying since Moore's arrest more than two years ago, he has spent his time in jail offering "friendly counsel" to other inmates and leading Bible studies.
"He wants to do something positive with his remaining days," she said.
Kent County Assistant Prosecutor Helen Brinkman, who said she has handled sexual-abuse cases for 17 years, sought the most severe penalty for Moore, calling the assaults among "the most disturbingly perverse cases I've had to prosecute."
Jeffrey Montgomery, executive director of the Triangle Foundation, said Moore deserves to spend the rest of his life in prison.
"We certainly believe that he shouldn't be allowed to roam and repeat the horrendous crimes that we already know he's been involved in," Montgomery said. "Whether he was right or wrong, the assumptions about his victims were that he would gain their confidence and gain access to them, playing on some sort of fact or perception that they were gay."
Leiber also imposed sentences on the other charges that are to be served concurrently with the life sentence.
Members of Bogdanik's family declined to speak during the hearing.
After the sentencing, Joe Moore said he was astonished to hear his brother admit in court to committing such heinous acts. He said he now sees him as two entirely different people.
"I don't know this guy," said Joe Moore, 59, of Westland. "That was another life he had."
He expressed hope that his brother will receive psychological help while in prison and offered sympathy to the victims' families.
"I can only imagine what they feel like," he said.
