Kirkland convicted killer of 4 asks for mercy from jury weighing death penalty

Convicted killer Conner Schierman scanned the packed courtroom, took a deep breath and apologized — but not for snuffing out the lives of four members of a Kirkland family.

Instead, a tearful Schierman, 28, said he was sorry the relatives of Olga Milkin, her two young sons and her sister, Lyubov Botvina, had lost their loved ones nearly four years ago and admitted he couldn't fully understand how they were feeling.

"I know it's a long time coming, but I wanted the victims' family to hear from me that I'm sorry for their loss," he said.

Schierman then turned toward jurors in the penalty phase of his trial Monday and asked them to spare his life.

"I want to be clear, I'm not asking for your pity or your sympathy," he told the jury through tears. "I may not have the right to ask anything of you, but I'm asking for mercy. If not for me, but for my family."

Schierman said that staff at the King County Jail, where he's being held, and fellow inmates often tell him he's going to hell. He said he's already there.

"I can't understand how all of this happened; I struggle with that," he said. "Being convicted of killing women and children is absolutely the most hateful thing to me. I have always loathed somebody who takes advantage of somebody weaker than him."

Schierman's 25-minute allocution, a chance to share his perspective without disclosing facts of the case, was the first time he has made a public statement since his arrest in July 2006 for killing the women and children and setting fire to their home.

The King County jurors convicted Schierman on April 12 of four counts of aggravated murder in the slayings of Milkin, 28; her sons Justin, 5, and Andrew, 3; and Botvina, 24. The same jury on Tuesday will begin deliberating whether he should be condemned to death row or face life in prison with no chance of parole.

The jury must be unanimous in its decision for Schierman to be sentenced to death. Otherwise he will be sentenced to life in prison.

Defense lawyers have claimed Schierman had an alcohol-induced blackout the night of the slayings and doesn't recall what happened. Schierman told a psychiatrist he awoke inside the Milkin home, with no recollection of how he got there, and found the bodies. He then decided to burn down the home with gasoline because he didn't think anyone would believe his story.

Defense attorney James Conroy said in his closing argument Monday that he has tried to give jurors a sense of his client's entire life during the penalty phase. More than 30 people — from Schierman's mother, his stepfather, his sister, his former boss — testified on his behalf.

"This second trial has been about Conner, who he is and how he has gotten here," Conroy said. "What happened in this case was so out of character ... it will never make any sense."

For nearly two hours, Conroy praised Schierman for being a loving son and brother despite lifelong substance-abuse problems. He said Schierman deserves mercy because he lacked any criminal record at the time of his arrest and because of his addiction issues.

In their requests for leniency, both Conroy and Schierman told jurors that life in prison is a horrible enough option.

"This experience has broken my heart, it has broken my spirit," Schierman said. "Being locked up is a dehumanizing, pride-swallowing siege."

Senior Deputy Prosecutor Scott O'Toole countered by calling Schierman a mass murderer undeserving of any punishment other than death.

"This man, Conner Schierman, killed all of those people. He stabbed them at least 15 times before cutting their throats," O'Toole said. "You decide whether this defendant has gone too far. All societies have rules, what you can do and what you can't do. Murder is not a line you can cross."

Pavel Milkin, whose daughter-in-law and grandsons were killed by Schierman, cried throughout Schierman's testimony Monday morning. He said it was the first time Schierman addressed their family.

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