VANCOUVER, Wash. (Court TV) — A former fire battalion chief addressed the judge and members of the victim’s family at his sentencing, maintaining his innocence despite his murder conviction.
Kevin West appears at his sentencing on Feb. 27, 2026. (Court TV)
A jury found Kevin West guilty of both first-degree and second-degree murder in the death of his wife, Marcy West. While Kevin’s defense had argued the victim suffered a medical episode, prosecutors convinced the jurors that he strangled his wife and then staged the scene to cover up the crime.
The couple’s two children addressed the court at Friday’s sentencing. Ted West, their son, asked for leniency on his father’s behalf, describing him as an “empathetic, kind and loving” person. But the couple’s daughter, Megan West, told a very different story when she testified on Friday.
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“I’d rather honor my mother than stay quiet to protect a version of events that isn’t true,” Megan said. Addressing her father, she said, “You were too busy with your mistress to care that your daughter was falling apart. You made my pain an inconvenience.” She further accused him of trying to embroil the children in his cover-up. “You didn’t just take our mom from us, you tried to use us to save yourself,” she said. “A father is supposed to shield his children from harm. Instead, you used us to shield yourself.” At trial, Kevin’s defense had suggested that an aggressive massage Ted gave his mother the night before could be responsible for her death.
When Megan stepped down from the witness stand, she was met with loud applause and cheers from the gallery. “This is not a performance, it’s a criminal sentencing,” Judge Robert Lewis admonished the gallery. “I will not tolerate another outbreak like that again.”
Kevin addressed the Court at Friday’s sentencing, offering an apology — but not for his wife’s murder. “I am truly sorry for having an affair,” he said. “I know that it was wrong, and I should have waited for the divorce to be final. However, that was my only wrongdoing.”
Prosecutors had asked for a 320-month sentence, the maximum allowed under the law, while Kevin’s defense urged Judge Lewis to sentence him to the minimum of 240 months. Judge Lewis sentenced him to 300 months (25 years) in prison, with time served.
