A Prince George’s County judge sentenced Roger Byron Hargrave on Friday to spend the rest of his life in prison for dousing his wife with gasoline and setting her on fire in front of co-workers and customers last year.
Yvette Cade, 32, who was severely scarred in her face and upper body, watched quietly as her former husband was sentenced. Earlier, she had asked the courtroom to close their eyes as she recited the Lord’s Prayer.
Cade was attacked in October, a few weeks after Prince George’s County Judge Richard Palumbo removed a protective order from Hargrave that barred him from visiting his wife. Palumbo was accused of ridiculing Cade and other domestic violence plaintiffs during court hearings and faces an ethics hearing later this summer. Hargrave’s attack on Cade got national attention and Cade recently appeared on “The Oprah Show.”
“You never once said, ‘I am sorry for what I did to my wife at the time,’” Judge William D. Missouri told Hargrave after listening to the convicted man’s tearful statement in an Upper Marlboro courtroom. “You avoided responsibility for doing what you did.”
Friday’s sentencing hearing was brief, with statements from lawyers, victims and members of Cade’s family.
Hargrave’s lawyer, public defender Gary Ward, told Missouri that Hargrave is currently on anti-depressant and anti-psychotic medications at the Prince George’s County Detention Center and sought further psychiatric help forhis client as part of any sentence.
“I ask the court to exercise some compassion and to sentence Mr. Hargrave and not just warehouse him,” Ward said.
Prince George’s County States’ Attorney Glenn Ivey told Missouri that Hargrave showed no sign of remorse or understanding of the magnitude of his crime.
“There’s an evil intent under a regular exterior,” Ivey said.
The courtroom was silent as Missouri announced a single sentence of life imprisonment for Hargrave’s three charges in the incident — first-degree assault as well as first- and second-degree attempted murder. Hargrave will be eligible for parole in 15 years, but any parole request will have to be approved by both the parole board and the governor.
Medical care fund
Yvette Cade still faces additional surgeries to help her recover from the attack where she sustained third-degree burns over 60 percent of her body. Her family has set up a fund for Cade. For more information, visit www.yvettecadefund.org.
