Jamie Hahn's family uses 'evil' to describe Jonathan Broyhill during his sentencing hearing
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- The family of prominent North Carolina Democratic Party strategist Jamie Hahn finally got the chance to let her killer know how they feel Thursday during the sentencing phase of Jonathan Broyhill's murder trial.
Broyhill was convicted of first-degree murder in Hahn's brutal stabbing death on Wednesday after less than 90 minutes of deliberations.
He was also convicted of attempted first-degree murder for attacking Hahn's husband Nation when he came to her rescue in April 2013. He was also found guilty of assault with a deadly weapon.
Before the judge sentenced Broyhill Thursday to life in prison without parole and additional years for the attack on Nation Hahn, Jamie Hahn's mother told a crowded courtroom that "Today is finally about (Jamie)."
Broyhill did not look at the witness stand as Jamie's family talked about what he took from them until her father asked his daughter's killer to look at him.
When Nation Hahn spoke, he kept urging Broyhill to look up. Broyhill did look up briefly the first time he urged him to, but would not keep eye contact.
"Jon, you killed her," Nation said. "You tried to kill me, but you can't kill her spirit."
There was not a dry eye in the courtroom gallery as Nation Hahn reminisced about his wife and how his life has been since her murder.
"Nothing is just or fair about life without Jamie," he said. "We lock our doors to keep evil out ... but what happens when evil has a key."
Nation said he wanted to die after his wife was taken from him and thought about jumping off buildings. He said he would give anything to hold her in his arms again.
Before Nation Hahn's emotional comments, Jamie's father thanked everyone in detail who came to his daughter's aide after she was attacked and since her death.
He, along with Jamie's mother and stepmother, also described the pain they have felt since their daughter's death.
"The despair is overpowering," Jamie's father said. "Jon, you gave Jamie a death sentence. You gave all of us a life sentence. Now you can share in that life sentence."
Her stepmother said she is "lonely for Jamie."
"I am shattered to my core ... I now know there is evil in this world, and he sits here before us," she said.
Broyhill worked for Jamie as a bookkeeper. Broyhill was also a childhood friend of Nation's and served as best man at the couple's wedding.
However, Broyhill spent years deceiving the Hahns, claiming he had several diseases including multiple sclerosis, required gall bladder surgery, and had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He also embezzled more than $46,500 from the campaign of Congressman Brad Miller - which Jamie was responsible for running.
It was at a meeting at the Hahn's home where Jamie was confronting Broyhill about the missing money that the stabbings occurred.
Many thought the dramatic closing argument from Defense Attorney Joe Arbour may have influenced the jury.
Arbour said the motive for the crime was not the tens of thousands of dollars Broyhill embezzled from a campaign account he managed for the political consulting company of his close friend, Jamie Hahn.
He said Broyhill's self-inflicted stab wounds happened before Broyhill stabbed Jamie Hahn.
"He had finally reached a point where this is it, I'm going, I'm checking out and these people are trying to stop me," said Arbour. "Look at that crime scene. Look at her injuries, front, back, side, face all over. This is an act of wild violence. This isn't somebody who just has some specific intent to stab somebody in the back. This is a guy gone wild."
The prosecutor fired back pointing out that Broyhill confessed but never said he stabbed himself first, and he asked who would buy a knife to commit suicide and, if they did, who would stab themselves to death at their best friends' house.
He called Broyhill a master manipulator who planned the killing and the jury apparently believed it.
Broyhill's attorney said Thursday following the sentencing that they will appeal. State law requires an automatic life in prison sentence.
