HEARNE, Texas (KBTX) -A former U.S. soldier received a 30-year prison sentence last week for the 2001 murder of Amanda Gonzales, a pregnant, 19-year-old Army soldier who was killed in her barracks at a U.S. military base in Germany. The conviction of 44-year-old Shannon L. Wilkerson ends a 22-year pursuit of justice led by the Gonzales family and federal authorities.
In May, a Pensacola jury convicted Wilkerson of second-degree murder after hearing evidence that he had beaten and strangled Gonzales on November 3, 2001, at the Fliegerhorst Kaserne in Hanau. Prosecutors argued that Wilkerson feared her pregnancy would harm his military career and his marriage to another soldier stationed at the base.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on November 3, 2001, Shannon L. Wilkerson, 43, beat and strangled Amanda Gonzales to death in her barracks room at Fliegerhorst Kaserne, then a U.S. Army base in Hanau, Germany.(KBTX)
Gonzales, who was born in Hearne and raised in Madisonville, is being remembered by family members, who called the sentencing “relief” and “justice long overdue.”
Her parents traveled from their home in Wylie, Texas, to attend. They described the experience as bittersweet, as the anniversary of Gonzales’ death approaches.
“We finally got justice,” said her stepfather, Mike Bates, noting that his daughter could “finally rest in peace.”
READ ALSO: Nearly twenty years later, the family is still searching for answers to the murder of a local soldier
Her mother, Gloria Bates, echoed the sentiment: “It’s like we’ve read the book and now we can put it on the shelf.”
Amanda Gonzales(KBTX)
The long-stalled case received renewed attention following an investigation led by the FBI’s New York and Jacksonville Field Offices with support from the Army’s Criminal Investigative Division. Key to the conviction was DNA evidence linking Wilkerson to the crime scene. Despite this evidence, Gonzales’ family says Wilkerson maintained his innocence throughout the trial and sentencing, refusing to offer any apology.
Wilkerson will serve his full sentence under federal law, with parole eligibility only after 30 years. For Gonzales’ family, the sentencing marks the end of a 20-year battle, a journey they felt obligated to complete.
“Never give up on your children. Never give up,” Gloria said. “There is always hope.”
Press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, below
“WASHINGTON – A former U.S. soldier was sentenced today to 30 years in prison for the murder of a pregnant, 19-year-old fellow soldier at a U.S. Army base in Germany more than 22 years ago.
On May 7, a jury in Pensacola, Florida, found Shannon L. Wilkerson, 44, guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Amanda Gonzales.
According to court documents, Wilkerson beat and strangled Amanda Gonzales on November 3, 2001, in her barracks room at Fliegerhorst Kaserne, then a U.S. Army base in Hanau, Germany. Evidence presented at trial showed that Wilkerson feared that he was the father of Gonzales’ unborn child and that her pregnancy would hinder his military career and his marriage to another soldier on the base. Wilkerson was a member of the U.S. Armed Forces at the time of the offense but was later discharged.
“Shannon Wilkerson brutally murdered Amanda Gonzales, a fellow soldier who Wilkerson knew at the time was pregnant,” said Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, chief of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “While there is nothing we can do to reunite Amanda with her family, we hope that today’s sentencing provides some measure of closure and comfort for Amanda’s loved ones. I am proud of the dedicated and hardworking members of the Criminal Division and our law enforcement partners who are committed to pursuing justice for victims of violent crime, no matter how challenging that pursuit may be.”
“The murder of Amanda Gonzales and her unborn child was a heinous act of violence,” said U.S. Attorney Jason R. Coody for the Northern District of Florida. “This decades-long investigation and resulting prosecution demonstrate the unwavering determination of our law enforcement partners and their commitment to obtaining justice for the victims and their families. The defendant took the life of a 19-year-old woman who was serving her country far from home, knowing he was killing her unborn child. The verdict recognizes the brutal, selfish nature of his crime and imposes a just sentence.”
“Justice for victims is not just a promise, it is a commitment, no matter how long it takes,” said Assistant Director Chad Yarbrough of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division. “This sentencing comes just as the family of Amanda Gonzales will celebrate 23 years since she and her unborn child were brutally murdered by Shannon Wilkerson on November 3, 2001. While no amount of prison time will bring the young Army soldier back, hopes We this will close a new chapter in the grieving process of the Gonzales family.”
The FBI New York and Jacksonville Field Offices investigated this case, with assistance from the Army Criminal Investigative Division, which originally investigated the case.
Attorney Patrick Jasperse of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights Division and Special Prosecutors and Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Goldberg for the Northern District of Florida prosecuted the case.”
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