Renard Carter sentenced to nearly 90 years for triple homicide

Dec. 10—In an emotionally charged hearing Thursday afternoon in Olmsted County District Court, a Rochester man who killed a young pregnant mother and her toddler was sentenced to more than 89 years in prison.

Renard Carter, 31, was sentenced Thursday in Olmsted County District Court by Judge Lisa Hayne to 1,078 months in state prison — three consecutive sentences.

"You will be in your 90s when you are released, if you make it that long," Hayne said in handing down the sentence. "The goal here is to hopefully not have you out of prison so you can't hurt any other family like you've hurt the families here."

As Carter was led out of the courtroom, the families of 2-year-old Miyona Zayla Lee-Miller and her mother, 23-year-old Keona Sade Foote, clapped and cheered. At one point, a person in the gallery attempted to get at Carter, but was stopped by court deputies. When given the opportunity to speak on his own behalf, Carter only got a few words out before family and friends in the court's gallery began to yell at him.

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Carter pleaded guilty on July 15, 2021, to charges of second-degree murder, second-degree murder with intent, and second-degree murder of an unborn child.

As part of the plea, Carter admitted that on Sept. 10, 2020, he killed Miyona and Foote, who was in her first trimester of pregnancy, at the Olympik Village Apartments at 402 31st St. NE, where they lived. Portions of the incident were video recorded and posted on social media. Both were strangled. Foote was found with a phone cord tied around her neck.

"This is a case which honestly, doesn't lend itself well to description, the facts of this case are so egregious, so monstrous, it's a bit challenging to come up with accurate adjectives," Chief Deputy Olmsted County Attorney Eric Woodford said.

At the sentencing hearing, as well as during previous hearings, Carter gave conflicting versions of how Foote and her daughter were killed, but Woodford said the evidence police gathered did not support Carter's assertions.

"No matter how it happened, this is one of the most horrific crimes I can imagine," Hayne said.

Carter had attempted to withdraw his guilty pleas, arguing that he felt he was coerced by his attorneys into making the pleas and that he did not understand the court proceedings. In November, Hayne denied his request. A competency evaluation also was conducted and Carter was found competent.

Rochester Police Chief Jim Franklin said in a statement that the department would never forget the these murders.

"There is no amount of prison time that will erase the pain Renard Carter has caused," Franklin said. "We hope that his sentence to nearly 90 years in prison is a step forward in the healing process for the victims' loved ones."

Miyona and Keona's families speak

Michelle Miller, who told the court that Miyona was her niece, was the first to speak Thursday afternoon. Miller told the court that it was her daughter who climbed through a window of the apartment where Miyona, Foote and Carter lived, and found the toddler lifeless.

"Keona and Miyona were part of our family and we loved them with all of our heart," she said. "They didn't deserve the pain they went through."

Miyona's father, Matthew Rasheed Miller, was next to speak, telling the court that his dreams have been taken from his family.

"It's like a nightmare come true," he said.

Foote's aunts, Sabrina Beauregard and Koliza Lee, spoke of the relationship they shared with Foote and her daughter.

"The defendant will never know the pain he has caused or I don't know, maybe he does," Beauregard said. "He has hurt many people. When he took Keona and Miyona's life, he robbed them of their future."

Beauregard called Miyona a "2-year-old angel," whose smile would light up any room and make you fall in love with her.

"Only a punk would attack a defenseless baby and a young woman who barely stood 5 feet tall," Lee said.

In a soft voice, barely audible at times, Foote's grandfather, Lester Simpson, said he begged his granddaughter not to move to Rochester with Carter.

"I don't know if I'll recover from it," Simpson said. "Keona was loved. She was loved. Your honor, I don't know what to say, but I do ask that you take into account that he took someone that was loved."

"A man would have walked away, a real man. Whether his heart was broken or his pride was hurt, a real man would have walked away," Simpson said. "(Carter) had no mercy for my grandkids so I'm going to ask your honor, have no mercy for him. Don't let no other family feel the pain that I feel."

Foote's father, Dante Williams, said Foote was the type of person who saw good in everyone.

"Keona and Miyona were very special to me and as a father and a grandfather, I felt like I let them down," Williams. "I'm sorry, my little ladies, for letting you down. I know in my heart you are with the King, where you don't have to stress and worry no more."

Last to speak was Foote's mother, Brandy Lee Williams.

"It has been a year and I still have a hard time believing our precious Keona, Miyona and our unborn grandchild were taken in such an unimaginable way," she said. "I will never, ever believe that such evil existed until this happened to our loved ones and to us."

Helping to care for Miyona while Foote was at work, Lee Williams said she felt it was a gift and an honor to be able to help in such a way.

"They were jokesters, they would dance together. They would bring us so much laughter and fun," Lee Miller said. "We don't have that anymore. All we have are pictures, little videos."