Waffle House shooting trial: Travis Reinking sentenced to four consecutive lifetimes in prison
A ruling, but no justice in a Nashville courtroom on Friday.
"It really doesn't matter how I rule, justice is not going to be done," Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Mark Fishburn said. Sometimes, laws and the courts "just fall short" of that "theoretical and beautiful concept."
Travis Reinking, 33, can expect to spend the rest of his life in jail.
He was convicted in February of multiple first-degree murder charges and four felony murder charges, as well as a suite of other charges.
Months later, everyone returned for the second sentencing phase of the trial.
Joe R. Perez Jr., 20; Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29; DeEbony Groves, 21; and Akilah DaSilva, 23, died after Reinking walked into a Waffle House restaurant just after 3:20 a.m. on April 22, 2018, and opened fire with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle. Three others, James Shaw Jr., Kayla Shaw, Sharita Henderson and Shantia Waggoner, were wounded in the shooting.
Reinking faced 16 counts in total and was found guilty on all charges.
The jury gave him four sentences of life without parole on the first-degree and felony murder charges.
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Fishburn's task Friday was to use victim impact testimony, along with guidelines in the law, to determine whether Reinking's sentences should be consecutive or concurrent, as well as the sentences on the other charges.
In the end, Fishburn determined the four life sentences should run consecutively, and Reinking was sentenced to an additional 114 years altogether on the remaining charges.
Reinking pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
He admitted he was the shooter. It was up to the jury to decide whether he was sane enough at the time of the shooting to be found guilty of murder.
Giving victims 'their due'
Two girls sat in the jury box on Friday morning in Nashville.
One, Fishburn's daughter, there to watch her father in action in one of his last and highest profile cases. He is set to retire from the bench this year.
For a few minutes, she was joined in the rows of leather chairs by the 8-year-old daughter of James Shaw Jr., a man hailed for his heroism in stopping the mass shooting in Antioch.
"As my daughter sits over there, as your daughter sits over there, know that their kids are not over there," Shaw told Fishburn, gesturing to the assembled family members, supporters and victims themselves who sat in the courtroom gallery.
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The state asked for the highest possible sentences on the lesser counts and consecutive life sentences that would put Reinking in jail for more than 200 years.
"Any concurrent sentence for any of the crimes this jury has convicted the defendant on... would be saying someone's life, someone's injury should just be merged, should not count," Deputy District Attorney Roger Moore argued.
"But that is not what the law says.... The most severe crimes can only be punished by the most severe punishments. Each victim in this case deserves their due."
Defense attorney Luke Evans disputed Moore's claim that the law or justice requires each count be stacked to hold Reinking to account or support the victims.
Reinking can only ever serve one life sentence, he argued. The judge must rely on the collective enhancement and mitigating factors, and public safety.
"As it stands, Travis Reinking will never leave a prison upright," Evans said. "He will never be a risk of committing another crime to the public by virtue of his convictions....
"This court can't be led by the emotion of the day. It can't be led by its desire to want to react to the emotional cries."
The convictions
Count 1
First degree murder: Guilty
Count 2
First degree murder: Guilty
Count 3
First degree murder: Guilty
Count 4
First degree murder: Guilty
Count 5
Attempted first degree murder: Guilty
Count 6
Possessing a firearm during commission or attempt to commit dangerous felony: Guilty
Count 7
Attempted first degree murder: Guilty
Count 8
Possessing a firearm during commission or attempt to commit dangerous felony: Guilty
Count 9
Attempted first degree murder: Guilty
Count 10
Possessing a firearm during commission or attempt to commit dangerous felony: Guilty
Count 11
Attempted first degree murder: Guilty
Count 12
Possessing a firearm during commission or attempt to commit dangerous felony: Guilty
Count 13
Felony murder: Guilty
Count 14
Felony murder: Guilty
Count 15
Felony murder: Guilty
Count 16
Felony murder: Guilty
Reach reporter Mariah Timms at mtimms@tennessean.com or 615-259-8344 and on Twitter @MariahTimms.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Waffle House shooter sentenced to four consecutive lifetimes in prison
