ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- Somer Thompson's mother is speaking out after her daughter's killer was sentenced to life in prison.
Somer was killed on her way home from school in 2009. Jarred Harrell took a plea deal, giving him 6 life sentences in prison for her murder. "I wanted to fight him tooth and nail," said Diena Thompson.
Its been a week since Diena Thompson came face to face with her daughters killer. All she wanted for Harrell to look her in the eye. "He owed me that. Shameful coward," said Thompson.
It wasn't easy but she knew she had to face Harrell for Somer. But there are still unanswered questions. "I'd still like to know how he got her in the house. What did he say."
Somer's twin brother Samuel didn't plan on confronting Harrell. Diena says he wrote his powerful testimony just minutes before taking the stand. "I saw some relief after he got to confront the monster," said Thompson.
Diena says it was a tough decision to take the plea deal. She knew it was right for her family. She didn't want to risk Harrell's taped confession getting thrown out. The state attorney told her that was a possibility. But even scarier for her, she didn't want Harrell to be acquitted. "There wasn't a way to take the not guilty instead of a deal.
Now she makes it her mission to make sure another family doesn't go through this. Even though Harrell will spend the rest of his life in prison, it's not closure for Diena and her family. "Life won't ever be the same again," said Thompson.
