Judge gives 4 life terms plus 280 years for Rockford murders

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) - A northern Illinois judge has sentenced a Rockford man to four life terms plus 280 years in prison in the 2014 killings of his ex-girlfriend, her two young sons and her boyfriend.

The Rockford Register Star reports Associate Judge Fernando Engelsma appeared emotional Friday as he sentenced 24-year-old Calvin L. Carter III, who did not appear in Winnebago County court. The judge called the quadruple killing "cold and calculated" and said the children were executed.

Carter's defense attorney immediately filed an appeal. Carter was convicted in July on 133 counts.

Investigators said Carter fatally shot 24-year-old Martia Flint, along with her sons - 6-year-old Tyrone Smith III and 4-year-old Tobias K. Smith - in a Rockford apartment. Also killed was 24-year-old Demontae Rhodes.

Carter's defense argued the case was built on circumstantial evidence.

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Information from: Rockford Register Star, http://www.rrstar.com