MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) –- Although convicted killer Jeffrey Willis got his wish to walk out of the courtroom during his sentencing Monday, authorities made sure he still heard the powerful words from the family of the woman he murdered.
Muskegon County Sheriff Michael Poulin has confirmed Willis listened to statements from Rebekah Bletsch’s sisters and mother as he was transferred from the Muskegon County Jail to an inmate processing center in Jackson Wednesday morning.
In a Facebook post shared more than 1,400 times, bail bonds company owner Tony Laskowicz said Willis “got to listen to them 5 times via CD in the police car on the way to prison.”
The courtroom erupted in calls of “coward” Monday after Willis asked the judge to dismiss him from his sentencing for Bletsch’s murder. The judge agreed, pointing out there was no law requiring Willis to be present for the proceedings. As Willis walked out, he turned to blow a kiss.
Willis will spend the rest of his life in prison for the June 2014 murder of Bletsch, whose body was found along the rural Muskegon County road she was jogging.
Willis is scheduled to stand trial for the kidnapping and murder of Jessica Heeringa on March 6 – nearly five years after the 25-year-old mother disappeared from the Norton Shores gas station where she worked.
>>Timeline: The search for Jessica Heeringa