Jewish Center Shooter: 'I'm Sorry'

Nineteen months after shooting up a Jewish Center and killing a Filipino-American postal worker, Buford O. Furrow was sentenced Monday to life in prison, without parole, reports CBS News Correspondent David Dow.

U.S. District Judge Nora Manella imposed two life sentences without possibility of parole, plus 110 years in prison and payment of $690,294 in restitution.

"Your actions were a reminder that bigotry is alive," the judge told him. "If you've sent a message, it is that even the most violent crimes can strengthen a community."

On Aug. 10, 1999, Furrow stormed into the North Valley Jewish Community Center, which was packed with children attending day programs, and fired more 70 bullets. Three boys, a teen-age girl and a woman were injured.

He then headed into the San Fernando Valley neighborhood and killed mailman Joseph Ileto, who was shot nine times.

Furrow, of Olympia, Wash., had a history of involvement with anti-Semitic groups in the Pacific Northwest, among them the Aryan Nations.

He also had a history of mental problems and had tried to get help without success, his lawyers said when they argued to spare his life.

Gary Zidell, whose son, then 6, was one of five wounded in the Jewish Center, wasn't pleased with the sentence.

"I'm disappointed it took 19 months and we're not at an execution," he said.

Zidell was one of 16 relatives and victims who made tearful appearances in court to denounce Furrow, as he was sentenced.

AP

Joseph Ileto's mother, sister and brother

Added Ileto's mother, Lillian, in court, "when he killed my son, he also killed a part of me."

Furrow was sentenced under a plea bargain, prompted by a past of mental illness.

When arrested the day after the shootings in Las Vegas, Bufurd Furrow allegedly told authorities he'd been sending a "a wake-up call to Americans to kill Jews." In court, he read a statement — an apology — stating: "I think of what happened every day and will grieve for the rest of my life."

Furrow said he harbors no ill feelings toward anyone of any race or religion. What does prosecutor Michael Genaco make of the statement?

"If, in fact, it's a genuine statement, it's an important first step in regard to this particular defendant," he said. "It cannot, as the vitims say, replicate or bring back the victims and bring back the innocence of the children who were affected by this incident."

Mindy Finkelstein, who was a 16-year-old camp counselor at the Jewish Center, was wounded in the attack.

"I've been to hell and back," she told the judge. "Buford Furrow tried to kill me and he failed. But in a way he succeeded."

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