Nathaniel Brazill was sentenced to 28 years in prison Friday for the shooting death of his seventh-grade English teacher, Barry Grunow, on the last day of school last year.

Though the sentence might seem like an eternity to the 14-year-old boy, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Richard Wennet's decision was a major victory for the defense. Brazill faced a minimum of 25 years and a maximum of life in prison.

The teen remained largely stoic as Wennet imposed the sentence, but shared several grins with his attorneys in the aftermath as they whispered with him about the good news.

Victim Barry Grunow

Waves of emotion crossed the face of Polly Powell, Brazill's mother, as she sat behind her son in a mustard-colored dress.

"On behalf of the family members, we have had a long journey and I'm just so glad its over," Brazill's half sister said afterward. "We are victims just like [the Grunows] are too."

The Grunow family sat completely rigid and still, clearly unhappy with the outcome.

"It's devastating," family friend Barbara Kozlow told Court TV. "From what they have had to go through, what their friends have had to go through, what this community has had to go through, this type of sentence is just unacceptable."

Most of the Grunows asked Wennet to send the boy to prison for life during an emotional sentencing hearing on Thursday. Brazill's family members and supporters, equally broken up, requested 25 years without parole, the minimum punishment the boy could receive.

The judge also gave the teen credit for the 428 days he has spent behind bars, bringing his sentence to a little less than 27 years.

Brazill was convicted on May 16 of second-degree murder for killing Grunow with a single shot in a Lake Worth Middle School hallway on May 26, 2000. His trial as an adult for the shooting became a flashpoint for a growing controversy about juvenile justice in Florida and nationwide. Only 13 at the time of the shooting, Brazill was charged with first-degree murder and faced a mandatory life sentence without parole.

Prosecutor Marc Shiner

Sent home early from school for throwing water balloons on the day of the shooting, Brazill returned to campus with a gun. He went straight to Grunow's classroom and, after demanding that the teacher let him speak to two girls in his class, shot him after a brief standoff.

Prosecutor Marc Shiner argued that the killing was premeditated, calling several witnesses to testify about threatening statements an enraged Brazill made after being sent home early. The defense said the shooting was an accident and that Brazill merely wanted to scare Grunow into letting him talk to a girl on whom he had a teenage crush.

Lead defense lawyer Robert Udell said he was happy with the verdict, but not with the judicial system in general that brought Brazill to this point.

"I don’t agree that a 28-year sentence is the proper thing to do. I estimate that we’ll spend about $1.2 million housing Nathaniel Brazill. Give me that money and let him come home with me and I’ll give you a college graduate," said Udell. "Given where we are, given that the family and state wanted to impose life, given that the judge ruled there would be a minimum 25-year sentence, I'm thrilled."

Defense lawyer Robert Udell

Shiner, the prosecutor, said outside the courthouse that he believed justice had been served.

"I hope Nathaniel Brazill will never harm another human being again," Shiner said. "And I hope that people will deal with their kids better, they'll search their rooms, they'll talk to them, because there were warning signs in Nathaniel Brazill's case."

In addition to sentencing Brazill, Wennet imposed several other provisions on the teen's incarceration. He mandated that the boy attain his graduation equivalency diploma and successfully complete an anger management class before leaving prison.

Brazill will also spend two years in house arrest after getting out of prison and then spend five years on probation.

Wennet recommended that Brazill serve time at Hillsborough Correctional Institute, a juvenile justice facility he described as having "a variety of programs, including aggression management, life skills, education and the like."

Defense lawyer Lance Richard and his client after the sentencing

A spokeswoman from the Bureau of Prisons said that Brazill will be evaluated in the next two weeks and sent to one of four juvenile detention centers depending on his needs.

Udell wasn't optimistic about his client's welfare behind bars.

"He's going to get eaten up in prison. He's not going to be able to defend himself where they're sending him," said the lawyer, shaking his head. "Of course he will be [worse when he gets out]. What are the chances that 28 years in prison are going to do anybody any good?"