Four sentenced in Alimohamed case

Two receive life imprisonment Stiff sentences were handed down Thursday in the trials of four males convicted of killing fifth-year Mathematics graduate student Al-Moez Alimohamed. Describing the case as the "most tragic that this court has had," Common Pleas Court Judge James Fitzgerald sentenced two of the teenagers to life in prison, and two others to long prison terms. Antoine Saunders, 19, and Ollie "Homicide" Taylor, 17, were sentenced to life in prison as part of a plea agreement. The two had plead guilty to first-degree murder. The judge said the sentences "balanced punishment with rehabilitation." Anthony Archer, 16, was sentenced to 15 to 30 years, while Gregory Pennington, 17, was sentenced to 10 to 20 years. The two had been convicted on lesser charges of robbery and conspiracy. Archer had also been found guilty on a weapons charge. The fifth defendant, Khaalis Edmonson, 18, had earlier been convicted on juvenile charges, and will only remain in custody until he turns 21. Saunders and Taylor admitted in early January to being part of the group which robbed and killed Alimohamed, 27, as he walked to his apartment at 48th and Pine streets on August 29, 1994. The two also testified against the remaining defendants as part of their plea agreement. But in a decision that shocked and angered the University community, the jury acquitted Archer and Pennington of murder, believing that the two had crossed Pine Street before Saunders and Taylor -- who confessed to being the triggerman -- returned and shot Alimohamed. Mathematics Graduate Chairperson Wolfgang Ziller said at the time that he was "outraged by the trial. And Vice Provost for Graduate Education Janice Madden said she did not think justice had been served. The judge handed down the sentence Thursday after listening to emotional testimony from Richard Rosin, whose daughter Rebecca had dated Alimohamed, and took her own life after his murder. "Together they spread goodness wherever they went," Rosin told the judge. "You actually felt better about yourself being in their presence." He added that the "impact of this crime is more far-reaching and devastating than I can begin to describe." In a letter read to the court, University President Judith Rodin asked the judge to "give the criminals in your courtroom the lesson they deserve." Before handing down the sentences, Judge Fitzgerald told the courtroom that "this is an emotional case. Both families on both sides of the aisle are suffering." Assistant District Attorney Roger King said that while his office had not been happy with the original verdict, "we do not quarrel with this sentence," according to the article. The message the verdict sent, he added, was the most important thing. "It's the type of case that when you go home, if you have a loved one at home, you hug them a little bit harder and you hang on a little bit longer, because it could have been anybody," King said. The Philadelphia Inquirer contributed to this article.