SOUTH BOSTON, Mass. (WHDH) — For the family members of Whitey Bulger’s victims, Thursday’s sentence was a day they were waiting for.
“I’ve been waiting 31 years for somebody to getting convicted of killing my dad. Finally it was said he’s convicted, he was charged, he was sent out of there in his nice jumpsuit that he’ll be dying in. It's a good feeling,” said Tommy Donahue, son of Bulger victim.
Sandra Patient said she brought a picture of her uncle, a Bulger murder victim Arthur 'Bucky' Barrett, to look on as the man who killed him was sentenced.
“A lot of families have been given closure to know what happened and when. I think we'll never know really why,” Patient said, niece of Bulger murder victim.
The families praised Judge Casper for putting Bulger in his place.
“To watch him in that orange jumpsuit was awesome. We love that. All of us, we talked about that. He looked so tiny up there. Like I said he’s maggot. Everybody knows it. He is going to rot,” said Connie Leonard, daughter of Bulger murder victim.
Though the death penalty wasn't on the table, those whose lives were most affected by Bulger's crimes are satisfied with a sentence that means Bulger will spend what's left of his life behind bars.
Steven Davis, brother of murder victim Debbie Davis, confronted juror number 12; the juror who says prosecutors trampled the constitution.
“Are you crazy? Or just nuts? Forget the constitution, this is reality. These aren’t letters and notebooks, this is reality,” Davis said.
The judge ordered Bulger to pay more than $19 million to the families as restitution.