Bellevue man gets life in prison for murdering girlfriend
KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii (AP) — A Bellevue man who beat his girlfriend to death while the two were vacationing in Hawaii has been sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison.
Philip Howard Zimmerman, 47, was sentenced Tuesday for second-degree murder and kidnapping in the death of 44-year-old Susan Brockert at The Fairmont Orchid hotel in South Kohala last year. The couple was vacationing at the Big Island resort when Zimmerman killed his girlfriend.
The life sentence for murder plus another 20 years for kidnapping means Zimmerman will never be eligible for parole, West Hawaii Today reported Wednesday.
Brockert's daughter, Maddy Brockert, told the court that Zimmerman deserves to suffer in prison for the rest of his life.
"All my mom did was care for you," she said. "She wanted to believe behind that controlling personality there was good."
Resort employees testified that they rushed to the fifth-floor room where guests reported hearing screaming on May 23, 2011.
Hotel worker Ernest Valenzuela said he climbed onto the room's balcony from an adjoining room and looked through the sliding glass doors. He testified that he saw a woman lying in the hallway, and he saw her being hit in the head with a 2-foot-long piece of granite tile that he recognized as being a piece of room furniture.
Workers kicked in the door and found Susan Brockert lying in her bathrobe. Resort security supervisor John Overbook testified that he checked for a pulse but couldn't find one.
An autopsy found that Brockert died from multiple blunt force and sharp trauma to her head and neck.
Third Circuit Judge Ronald Ibarra said at the sentencing that the murder was especially brutal and heartless.
Philip Howard Zimmerman, 47, was sentenced Tuesday for second-degree murder and kidnapping in the death of 44-year-old Susan Brockert at The Fairmont Orchid hotel in South Kohala last year. The couple was vacationing at the Big Island resort when Zimmerman killed his girlfriend.
The life sentence for murder plus another 20 years for kidnapping means Zimmerman will never be eligible for parole, West Hawaii Today reported Wednesday.
Brockert's daughter, Maddy Brockert, told the court that Zimmerman deserves to suffer in prison for the rest of his life.
"All my mom did was care for you," she said. "She wanted to believe behind that controlling personality there was good."
Resort employees testified that they rushed to the fifth-floor room where guests reported hearing screaming on May 23, 2011.
Hotel worker Ernest Valenzuela said he climbed onto the room's balcony from an adjoining room and looked through the sliding glass doors. He testified that he saw a woman lying in the hallway, and he saw her being hit in the head with a 2-foot-long piece of granite tile that he recognized as being a piece of room furniture.
Workers kicked in the door and found Susan Brockert lying in her bathrobe. Resort security supervisor John Overbook testified that he checked for a pulse but couldn't find one.
An autopsy found that Brockert died from multiple blunt force and sharp trauma to her head and neck.
Third Circuit Judge Ronald Ibarra said at the sentencing that the murder was especially brutal and heartless.
if the death penaly was carried out swiftly it could easily be done on the cheap, ropes aren't that expensive, one bullet placed just so - isn't expensive, guillotines don't even use electricity, hatchets can be used more than once.
Well life in prison is cheaper than the death penalty. So at least his sentence will cost the tax payers less.
I really wish there were times that we could let the punishment fit the crime, and have some angry prisoner beat him to death the same way he murdered his girlfriend. Or worse.
SOMETIMES you get there...he might go in and hack off the wrong person and get beat to death. Its a possibility.
He should hang.
I was so taken in and amazed by the sentence until I realized this was out of state. No wonder!
It's what drew me in to. Here they would of said "Oh his mom didn't breast feed him so he has anger issue's 6Month's"
The only positive in this story is it happened in Hawaii and not the nanny state where he would be out in 18 months.
In wimpy Washngton, he could have plea bargained that down to disorderly conduct.....
 @Biggg Donnn He got life, is that too hard for your little mind to understand?
 @Biggg Donnn feel free to relocate to Syria I heard they have much harsher punishments
Did they ever determine a motive, or does this guy just have mental issues?
 @UtterReality I'm guessing from the statement that the victims daughter made about his controlling personality that this isn't the first time she had had issues with him. I imagine he is just an abusive person.
Being in prison in Hawaii has to be torture. Â Knowing that all that sand and sun is just outside the door and you can't be in it. Â Have a nice rest of your life in prison, jerk. Â What I'd like to call him is not acceptable on public forums.
 @stamperzann While Hawaii does have their own prisons, most of their male inmates are housed in out of state facilities run by Corrections Corporation of America. He'll likely be housed in Arizona so he will still have the sun and sand with no ability to enjoy it. :-)Â
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http://www.cca.com/
I used to work with this guy in about 1999-2001 if I remember correctly. Â Always seemed like a happy go lucky type, office prankster, but never violent. Â Hard to believe someone's life can change so drastically in 10 years after parting ways. Â May his victim RIP. Â
@CB - some people are different between work and home.