Body found in woods; Waukesha man sentenced to life in prison
Waukesha man sentenced to life in prison
A Waukesha County judge sentenced Matthew Pahl on Tuesday, Nov. 11, to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
WAUKESHA, Wis. - A Waukesha County judge sentenced Matthew Pahl on Tuesday afternoon, Nov. 11, to life in prison without the possibility of parole. This, after Pahl was found guilty of first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse in the death of his girlfriend three years ago.
Stephanie Pavlons, Matthew Pahl
Pahl maintains innocence
What they're saying:
Pahl was given the opportunity to make a statement prior to sentencing.
"I am the only victim here – I’m the one being murdered," Pahl said. "We still loved each other and would have taken a bullet for each other."
Matthew Pahl statement prior to sentencing
Matthew Pahl was given an opportunity to make a statement prior to being sentenced to life in prison in the death of his girlfriend three years ago.
8-day trial ends with convictions
Dig deeper:
Pahl's eight-day trial ended last week with convictions. It took a jury less than an hour to find Pahl guilty of homicide and hiding a corpse.
"He killed her and he left her to rot in the woods as if she was roadkill," said Judge Ralph Ramirez.
Judge Ralph Ramirez
Pahl killed Pavlons and hid her body along Golf Road in the Town of Delafield back in 2022. Her remains were found 17 days later. Pahl never reported Pavlons missing.
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Prosecutors admit their case was circumstantial – and Pavlons' cause of death was never determined.
What they're saying:
"There’s a history of domestic violence – the history continued with Ms. Pavlons entire dating history," said Kristi Gordon, prosecutor.
On Tuesday, Gordon read a statement from Pahl and Pavlons' daughter, Layla Pavlons.
"You took an innocent woman’s life – I hope you rot in jail," Gordon read.
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The state also brought up Pahl's criminal history. But ultimately, Judge Ramirez pointed to Pahl's own words at sentencing as a key factor in his ruling.
Matthew Pahl
Ramirez sentenced pahl to life in prison without the possibility for release on the homicide conviction. Pahl got another seven-and-a-half years in prison for hiding Pavlons' body.
Body found in woods; Waukesha man found guilty of homicide, hiding corpse
A Waukesha County jury found Matthew Pahl guilty on Tuesday, Nov. 4 of first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse in the death of his girlfriend three years ago.
Pahl is also ordered to pay more than $8,000 to cover Pavlons' funeral costs.
The Source: Information in this post was provided by Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, the criminal complaint associated with this case as well as previous FOX6 News coverage.