Maine Man Who Killed 4, Shot at Cars Pleads Guilty

A man who confessed to killing his parents and two of their friends and wounding three people in a highway shooting pleaded guilty to murder and other charges on Monday, and a judge sentenced him to the maximum term of life in prison. Joseph Eaton has never provided an explanation for the crimes he admitted to committing in Maine last year, and police have not publicly announced any motive, the AP reports. Eaton withdrew an insanity defense late last year.

• Defense lawyer Andrew Wright said Eaton chose to plead guilty to take responsibility, believing it was the "reasonable and moral" thing to do.

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• Anguished family members described sleepless nights, nightmares and loss of innocence during emotional testimony given before Eaton's sentencing. One of them called Eaton "a selfish little boy" who took the lives of the very people who cared most for him.
• Eaton looked down at the defense table during much of the testimony and apologized afterward. "I wake up every day regretting what I did," he said. Of his life sentence, he added, "I honestly think I deserve more. All I can say is, I'm sorry."
• Law enforcement officials say Eaton, now 35, confessed to fatally shooting his parents and two of their friends at the friends' property in the rural town of Bowdoin. He also confessed to shooting at vehicles on Interstate 295 in Yarmouth, which left three people wounded. The crimes took place in April last year, days after Eaton was released from a Maine prison for unrelated crimes. He has been in jail since his latest arrest.
• Superior Court Justice Daniel Billings noted that Eaton killed the very family and friends who were waiting to welcome him back into society after he was released from prison. "It leaves me without words," he said.

(More Maine stories.)