Santory Johnson gestures as he is led into the courtroom of Judge Tom Greenholtz as jury selection begins in his first-degree murder trial in Hamilton County Criminal Court on Oct. 27, 2015.
Christopher Jones
Weeping as she spoke, a mother told her son’s murderer at his sentencing hearing she forgives him, even as she described how his actions were destroying her family.
Santory Johnson, 37, was convicted Oct. 30 of second-degree murder in the 2013 slaying of his longtime friend, Christopher Jones, 24, during a party at Johnson’s home on 40th Street in Chattanooga.
Jones’ mother, Sarita Burch, took the stand in Hamilton County Criminal Court and said of Johnson that despite his actions, “I haven’t lost any love or compassion for this young man, because I still consider him part of my family.”
Looking straight at Johnson, Burch outlined how her family has suffered from what he did.
Her son’s two children have cried for their dad, she said. “He’ll never be able to take them to the playground again,” she said. “They’ll never be able to say, ‘Dad, I love you.'”