Anthony Wells sentenced to life in prison
Posted by: Abigail Wood
awood@klkntv.com
"I feel justice has very definitely been served," Joshua Hartwig’s father, Doug, said after hearing the sentence Tuesday. "I mean it makes things a little bit easier, but it still doesn’t bring my son back."
A judge gave 35-year-old Anthony Wells, an Omaha man, life in prison for killing 2–year-old Joshua Hartwig of Lincoln. Police say Wells shot into a crowd of people outside an apartment complex near 19th and Knox after a fight broke out back in January of 2016. Hartwig, who was an innocent bystander, was shot in the neck.
"I was mad at him for what he did," Doug said. "This guy took my son’s life for no reason."
He says he thinks the sentence was just, and the closure helps a little with the grief. Joshua was a Special Olympian with the local Nebraska Storm team, coached by his father. Doug says he feels his loss most on the field, where Joshua most loved to be.
"It was tough, last year, to coach and carry this team on but I had to do it for him, this is what he wanted," he said.
Doug says he doesn’t want this to be the end of Joshua’s story. The young man leaves behind a strong legacy, and much of it centers around his beloved team.
"The night that he was murdered, about an hour before he was murdered he came out in the living room and sat down in the chair next to me and says Dad do you think I’ll make a good coach," Doug said, explaining that Josh went on to say: "’Well that’s what I want to do. I want to play for three more years and then I want to be on the sidelines with you I want to coach.’ And I said I’ll be proud to have you. And an hour later he was gone."
Again, wells will be serving a life sentence for the murder. And as for Joshua’s team, Nebraska storm, they went on this year to become the number one Special Olympics flag football team in the state of Nebraska.
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Anthony Wells was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of 25 year old Joshua Hartwig. He was found guilty of murder and several weapons counts related to the death of Hartwig in January. Wells shot into a crowd of people outside an apartment complex in January of 2016.
Hartwig was shot in the neck. Wells received an additional 50 to 80 years for the weapons charges.
