Known white supremacist gets 3 life sentences in Washington state slayings

VANCOUVER, Wash.  — A man has been sentenced to three life terms without the possibility of parole for killing three of his friends at a home in Washington state.

The Columbian newspaper reports that Judge Robert Lewis also sentenced 37-year-old Brent Luyster on Friday to 54 years for attempted murder and firearm possession.

Luyster killed Joseph LaMar, Janell Knight and Zachary Thompson, in July 2016, near the small town of Woodland. He tried to kill Breanne Leigh, who testified against him.

Prosecutors say Luyster, a known white supremacist, shot them because he was upset about felony charges in a different case that might send him back in jail.

In court Friday, Luyster denied killing the three.

A jury convicted him of three counts of aggravated murder, attempted murder and two counts of firearm possession.