The teenage killer of beloved Montrose bartender Michael Adam Milam has been sentenced in a New Orleans criminal court. On January 30, 2026, 19-year-old Thomas Riggio of Chalmette, Louisiana, was sentenced to nine years out of a maximum possible 10 years by Orleans Parish Judge Kimya Holmes for the charge of hit-and-run resulting in death.
During the sentencing, Michael’s siblings and roommate spoke on his behalf and gave victim impact statements to the court. Michael’s older brother, Jeffry Faircloth—a founding member of the City of Houston’s LGBTQ Advisory Board and a former president of PFLAG Houston—forgave Riggio from the witness stand. He testified how he shared a very special and unique bond with his brother Michael because they were both gay men.
Faircloth expressed to OutSmart that he hoped Riggio would build the strength and courage to uncover his self-worth and hoped that Riggio will make the choice to ask for help and do the necessary work to become a better human being and a better man while in Louisiana prison…