Widower who lost young family watching trial closely

Leonid Milkin imagines being in love again and the sound of children running through his Kirkland home.

It's a future he foresees with an almost religious fervor, a time when he can again feel whole and share his life with someone else.

But Milkin insists that day cannot happen until the man accused of killing his wife and two young sons 3 1/2 years ago is condemned by a jury. Only then, said Milkin, 33, can he put the painful past behind him and begin to look forward to a new life.

Death-penalty case

Milkin was a National Guardsman serving in Iraq when a Red Cross chaplain told him that his wife Olga, and sons Justin, 5, and Andrew, 3, were dead back home in Kirkland. The horrific details about what really happened on July 17, 2006, weren't relayed to him until days later when he returned home.

The remains of 28-year-old Olga and her sister, Lyubov Botvina, 24, were found in an upstairs bedroom in the Milkin home, which had been destroyed in a fire. The remains of the boys were found in an adjacent hallway.

All had multiple knife wounds.

The fire was considered suspicious from the outset. There was no 911 call from the home and no evidence that the victims had tried to escape the flames.

Conner Schierman, who lived across the street, was quickly arrested. He told authorities that he found himself covered in blood "amongst the deceased" after awakening from an alcohol-induced blackout, according to court documents. His face and neck had deep scratches and his left arm bore a puncture wound.

Schierman, a self-described recovering alcoholic and drug addict, had worked at a pet store and was a maintenance worker in Kirkland. Until his arrest, he had no criminal record.

Now 28, Schierman will face a jury Wednesday for the start of his trial on four counts of aggravated first-degree murder and one count of first-degree arson. If convicted of the murder charges, he could face the death penalty.

The trial is the first death-penalty case heard in King County since 2001, when Dayva Cross was sentenced to death for killing his wife and two of her daughters in Snoqualmie in 1999.

Milkin, who has dutifully attended nearly every court hearing, said he wholly supports Schierman's being sent to death row.

"I think he is an evil, selfish, cowardly person. I don't think his life is any more valuable than their lives," Milkin says.

Struggling to go on

After a recent court hearing, Milkin spoke about recurring nightmares in which his children plead for help in their final moments. He is convinced that had he not been overseas the killings never would have happened.

"He saw something in my family that he wanted. He took advantage of me being away at war," said Milkin. "If I ... killed somebody, I would not be able to live with myself."

With his family slain and his home destroyed, Milkin moved in with his parents in Mill Creek and fell into a deep depression. A devout Christian, he questioned God, wondered why he would be put through so much agony and felt like he "wasn't going to make it."

Milkin, who grew up in Estonia, had met Olga Botvina while they attended services together at a Russian Pentecostal church as teenagers. They were both students at Mariner High School in South Everett, and married shortly after graduating.

"She was just very kind, very positive and very optimistic," Milkin recalled about his wife.

Milkin adored his boys, Justin and Andrew. They loved to trot around the house dressed in their father's uniform.

During spirit week at Justin's elementary school, when students were told to dress in sports uniforms, the boy showed up in his father's National Guard flak jacket, a beret and dog tags.

Lyubov Botvina, 24, was staying with her sister for the summer, helping with the two boys. She was a sophomore at Seattle Pacific University, planning to obtain a degree in linguistics. She worked as a Russian interpreter at local hospitals and was active in the Christian Faith Center in Everett.

Rebuilding his life

Milkin's Kirkland home, the one destroyed by fire, is being rebuilt. He said he plans to live there again — hopefully with a new family.

"This is where I feel like the best time of our lives happened," he said recently. "It reminds me of the good times."

Milkin hopes the home is finished by the time the trial concludes. At that point, he believes that he can start dating again.

In recent months, Milkin, who still works for the National Guard at Camp Murray, has recommitted himself to his faith and even regularly attends services at several different churches, in hopes of meeting his next wife.

He said he rarely sleeps. Instead, he reads the Bible and self-help books, thinks about his faith, watches videos and stares at photos of his family and plans the future.

"If I would see the right person, I would marry her tomorrow. I really, really want a new family," Milkin said. "I feel like God is going to come through for me."

But, he quickly adds, he's "just very conscious and aware of my family. I'm their advocate and the most I can do is be in court and see that justice is done, and see that the man who killed them is held accountable."

Information from The Times archives is contained in this report.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com