Sentence shortened in Holt slaying

SANDPOINT ­­­— A Sagle man convicted of shooting Elvin "Eli" Holt to death in 2008 is receiving a shortened sentence against the impassioned objections of Holt's family.

James Matthew Anderson was serving a 10- to 20-year prison sentence for the killing, but he petitioned for post-conviction relief on grounds that his defense counsel prohibited him from taking the stand to defend himself when he was tried in 1st District Court.

A Bonner County jury convicted Anderson of second-degree murder.

The petition for relief culminated in a settlement agreement in which Bonner County Prosecutor Louis Marshall agreed Anderson should be granted a new trial because his right to due process was violated when his defense counsel refused to let him testify, according to court records.

Anderson, 35, entered an Alford plea to second-degree murder on Oct. 9. Under the plea, Anderson admits no wrongdoing but acknowledges the state has sufficient evidence to gain a conviction.

An Alford plea is regarded no differently than a plea of guilt at sentencing.

Under the terms of a plea agreement, Anderson was re-sentenced to a 14-year prison term, the first seven years of which are fixed.

The settlement and plea agreements drew strong objections from members of Holt's family. They, in no uncertain terms, portrayed Anderson as a cowardly and remorseless subhuman for shooting Eli Holt in the face with a .44 magnum during an argument.

Holt's uncle, Delwyn Goff, called the agreement "ludicrous" and dismissed Anderson's remarks at a previous sentencing hearing that he understood the pain his family was enduring.

"You will never have any idea how we feel unless somebody murders one of your children and you have to look at the pictures and deal with the aftermath," Goff said.

Holt's sister, Anna Blackford, considered a seven-year term insufficient given the weight of Anderson's offense.

"I don't believe that this is how the law is supposed to work for someone who murdered another human being," Blackford said in a choked-up voice.

Holt's mother, Alice, called Anderson's years-long efforts to reduce his sentence cowardly and said the killing continues to haunt her family.

"You broke the hearts of our family and a lot of other people," Holt said.

Paul Vogel, Anderson's post-conviction counsel, acknowledged that the case's outcome may appear unjust to Holt's family.

"The reality is this case could have proceeded to a new trial and Mr. Anderson may have been acquitted at that trial. At that point, the victims would be asking the same thing, 'How has justice been served?'" said Vogel.

Anderson said his shame and remorse for killing Eli Holt is indeed real, although it may not be evident to Holt's family.

"I told them before I'm sorry and I truly am. My life is dedicated to being a better man - a better husband, a better father, a better member of society - than the one that went into prison," Anderson said.

Judge Jeff Brudie called Anderson's crime needless and said he's seen too many cases where people resort to firearms to resolve a dispute.

"It ends in very bad situations, as this one did. Those kind of impulsive actions have some very long-term consequences for many people and those people are here. Not just you," Brudie said.

However, Brudie found that the plea agreement was reasonable under the circumstances and agreed to adhere to its terms.

Anderson has been incarcerated since the 2008 shooting. As a result, he is eligible for parole this year under the terms of the new sentence. Anderson does not have a parole hearing pending, according to the Idaho Commission of Pardons & Parole's website.

Anderson is not guaranteed parole when he does go before the commission.

After the hearing, Marshall said it's unfortunate that prosecutors are increasingly compelled to defend hard-won convictions years after the fact.

"In this case, we weighed the risk of potentially having to retry the case seven years after the murder with the downside of agreeing to a sentence reduction. I felt the sound decision in this case was to enter into an agreement whereby there would be some finality for the victim's family, and where Mr. Anderson would have to take accountability for his actions with a guilty plea," Marshall said in a statement.