One of the two cousins who killed a retired New York Times newsman was sentenced Wednesday to 26 years in prison.
Michael Hamlin, 24, apologized and asked for forgiveness from the family of slain journalist David Rosenbaum, who was beaten to death near his Gramercy Street home in Northwest Washington one year ago this week.
Hamlin had pleaded guilty in October to second-degree murder and testified before a D.C. Superior Court jury that he and his cousin, Percey Jordan, robbed Rosenbaum, but that Jordan was the one who swung the heavy plastic pipe that killed him.
A jury convicted Jordan, 42, of first-degree murder, and his sentencing is scheduled later this month. Hamlin’s attorney asked Judge Erik Christian to take into consideration Hamlin’s cooperation with the prosecutors. Rosenbaum’s family members asked the judge for a harsh sentence.
“It’s something we’ll be living with forever,” said Rosenbaum’s son, Daniel.
Rosenbaum, 63, was attacked while taking an after-dinner stroll in the cool January night to get rid of his hiccups.
The Rosenbaum family has filed a $20 million lawsuit against the District of Columbia and Howard University Hospital.
The lawsuit closely follows an D.C. inspector general’s report that found multiple failures in the city’s response, including claims that emergency crews believed Rosenbaum was drunk rather than a crime victim.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this story.
