MUNISING, Mich. (WZMQ) – Wednesday afternoon, a three-year ordeal came to an end for the family of the late Tim Mozader. Mozader, 58 at the time, was killed in May 2019. His roommate Jason Sadowski was arrested, and now, three years later, has been sentenced to life in prison.
Judge Brian D. Rahilly of the Alger County Court sentenced Sadowski to life in prison, with a minimum of 50 years, following a four-hour sentence hearing.
“You [Sadowski] have quite frankly forfeited your rights to be in our society,” Rahilly said to Sadowski before issuing the sentence.
The defendant’s public defender, Mark Dobias, was fighting to get a sentence of 15-30 years while Alger County Prosecutor Rob Steinhoff petitioned for a life sentence.
During closing statements, Steinhoff referred to Sadowski as a “violent habitual offender, a registered sex offender, and now a convicted murderer.”
The prosecutorial team was also pushing to have Sadowski convicted of first-degree murder, which the jury agreed with, although Judge Rahilly lowered his conviction to second-degree under lack of evidence for premeditation.
Two of Mozader’s children were also given the chance to give statements. Whitney Lightfoot and Dustin Mozader were able to attend the hearing via Zoom, where they spoke to Sadowski directly.
Lightfoot addressed Sadowski as “a liar, a coward, and a murderer.”
Sadowski, in his own closing statement, said that he had no wish to speak to the family members of the victim directly, or address their statement, since they were “bereaving” and suffering from the “trauma of the experience.”
Sadowski went on to give a closing statement that was over 45 minutes long, where he addressed his past, including numerous references to a supposed ‘set-up’ by the Ishpeming Police Chief, referring to a former arrest and conviction that he was acquitted of.
Sadowski continued to plead self-defense through his testimony.
