OCALA, Fla. – One of three teenagers accused in a triple homicide case from 2023 was sentenced by a judge in Marion County Tuesday.
Christopher Atkins, who was 12 when he was arrested, will spend the next 40 years behind bars, with an option to review at 25 years.
In April, Atkins pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder, as one of three people accused of murdering three other teens in 2023.
According Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods, Atkins and one of his co-defendants, Robert Robinson, confessed to shooting 17-year-old Camille Quarles, whose body was found in the trunk of a car that was partially submerged in a body of water.
[WATCH: Marion County sheriff announces arrests in 2023 triple homicide]
The other two victims — 16-year-old Layla Silvernail and 17-year-old Michael Hodo Jr. — were also found dead in the Ocklawaha area.
Family and friends of the victims gave emotional impact statements during sentencing on Tuesday.
“I am just broken,” said Lisa Windsor, Layla Silvernail’s grandmother. “Here Papa and I were already not in good health, and now this heartbreak feels like it’s slowly killing us from the inside out. The pain never ends. It never stops.”
Christina Stewart, Camille’s godmother, told News 6’s Emily McLeod that it was hard being in the courtroom.
“I see a 12-year-old boy in there who potentially could have the rest of his life ahead of him, but I also see the kid who shot and killed Camille and I feel very conflicted,” Stewart said.
As for the other two people involved in the case, Tahj Brewton is expected to be sentenced at 9 a.m. Wednesday and Robert Robinson is expected to be sentenced at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday.