Edna Weaver, whose daughter was murdered in New Jersey, expressed relief that the defendant was spared the death penalty. She said that she did not want William Severs Jr. executed for killing Tina Lambriola in 2002 because she wanted to spare his mother the pain of losing a child. “I’m so thankful it came out the way it did.… I wouldn’t want another mother to feel like I do — it’s a feeling I could never put into words.… At least his mother will be able to write to him, she will be able to send things to him,” Weaver stated.
Labriola’s daughter, Christina Woody, echoed her grandmother’s sentiments, adding, “I feel like a burden just went away. It’s just so much better.” Labriola’s brother, Bob Weaver, did not attend the trial, but does plan to speak out in favor of imposing a sentence of life in prision without parole during Severs’ October 21 sentencing hearing. “A weight has been lifted off our shoulders.… (The sentencing hearing will be) the last time I ever see him and that’s a great thing,” he said. (The Bridgeton Daily Journal, September 3, 2005). See Victims.
- Death Penalty Information Center (2025, March 14). Victim's Family Expresses Relief At No Death Penalty. Retrieved October 3, 2026, from https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/victims-family-expresses-relief-at-no-death-penalty
- Death Penalty Information Center. “Victim's Family Expresses Relief At No Death Penalty.” Last modified March 14, 2025. Accessed October 3, 2026. https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/victims-family-expresses-relief-at-no-death-penalty.
- Death Penalty Information Center. “Victim's Family Expresses Relief At No Death Penalty.” Death Penalty Information Center, 14 Mar. 2025, https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/victims-family-expresses-relief-at-no-death-penalty. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.
