Man sentenced for shooting Phoenix officer 8 times

The man who shot a Phoenix police officer receives two life sentences. Essa Williams was found guilty of attempted murder and aggravated assault for the 2021 shooting of Phoenix police officer Tyler Moldovan. Fox 10's Nicole Christine was in court this afternoon, and she joins us live with what was said in that courtroom. Nicole. Well, Steve, as you can imagine, emotions ran high during today's sentencing. Victim impact statements really shedding light on how the events of that one December night nearly five years ago, have forever altered countless lives. I've dreamed of being a police officer since I was a teenager. That dream was taken from me on December 14th, 2021. Former Phoenix police officer Tyler Moldovan speaking in a full Maricopa County courtroom Tuesday during the sentencing of Essa Williams. Williams shot Moldovan eight times in December 2021, after officers showed up to reports of a car doing donuts near 19th Avenue and Camelback Road. The then 22-year-old officer nearly lost his life. Moldovan using a walker to move around the courtroom, his recovery an ongoing process. Everything from my vision and my hearing to my sensation and balance, not one part of me was left unaffected. The burdens are so heavy, the problems are so big. Moldovan and his high school sweetheart Chelsea had been married just seven months before the shooting. Her victim impact statement centered around the ways the shooting altered milestones for the young couple. I spent our first Christmas married, sleeping on a recliner in the ICU. We spent our first wedding anniversary at Craig Hospital in Denver. Several police officers, including Moldovan's former partner, Zach Johnson, spoke about the ripple effects of the shooting. Moldovan's mother offering a message of mercy to Williams. I forgive you, we forgive you, we do not hate you. Not because what you did was acceptable, it was not. Not because the pain is gone, it is not. Not because there shouldn't be consequences, there must be. I forgive you because God who saved my son's life is also the God who taught us to forgive. Williams, during a nearly 20-minute speech, told the judge he acted out of fear and self-defense. I was never going to make it home, not because of what I willingly or intentionally did, but because of what was forced onto me. Moldovan's wife summing up her thoughts on William's chance to turn his life around. As far as eternal justice, I pray he finds Jesus, but he can do so from a prison cell. And before handing down this sentencing, Judge Sam Myers said he doesn't usually remember a ton of the witnesses from different cases that he tries after the fact. It's just the nature of the job. But this case, he said he remembers all of the witnesses and he was particularly moved by the officer's commitment to not just to the community, but also to each other. As for Williams, he said he was disappointed in what he considered a lack of remorse and responsibility taken by the defendant. Now, Essa Williams will be eligible for parole in 25 years. Live in downtown Phoenix, Nicole Christine, Fox 10 News.