A former U.S. soldier was sentenced Tuesday to 30 years in prison for the murder of a pregnant, 19-year-old fellow soldier on a U.S. Army base in Germany over 22 years ago.
On May 7, a jury in Pensacola, Florida, found Shannon L. Wilkerson, 44, guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Amanda Gonzales.
According to court documents, Wilkerson beat and strangled Amanda Gonzales to death on Nov. 3, 2001, in her barracks room at Fliegerhorst Kaserne, then a U.S. Army base in Hanau, Germany.
Court documents also noted that Wilkerson feared he was the father of Gonzales’s baby, believing this would lead to consequences due to Wilkerson being married to another soldier.
“While nothing we can do will reunite Amanda with her family, we hope today’s sentencing brings closure and comfort to Amanda’s loved ones,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
This case highlights not only the complexities of military justice, but also the enduring pain felt by those left behind.