Willard Chaiden Miller sentenced to probation

DES MOINES, Iowa (KCRG) – Friday morning, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled on cases, including one involving a teenager convicted of murdering his Spanish teacher.

In September, Willard Miller’s attorneys argued that the sentence imposed in his case was unconstitutional. The Fairfield teen had pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the 2021 death of Nohema Graber. Miller was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 35 years.

Miller’s lawyers argued that it was an abuse of power for such a long sentence because the judge did not believe Miller was a minor at the time of the crime.

In Friday’s decision, documents show that the “Iowa Constitution does not categorically prohibit sentencing juvenile offenders to minimum prison terms.” The court also found that the trial court correctly applied the sentencing factors and ultimately affirmed his sentence.

Chief Justice Christensen began the decision with this paragraph: “Concerned that his poor Spanish grades might prevent him from studying abroad, the sixteen-year-old defendant recruited a friend and devised a plan to kill his Spanish teacher. Together, the defendant and his friend surveilled the teacher for weeks and developed a plan to ambush and kill her. After carrying out this plan, the suspect bragged to another classmate about his actions, lied to police about his participation, and later downplayed his role in the teacher’s death. He ultimately entered into a deal to plead guilty to first-degree murder and admit to facts supporting every element of the charges. As part of this agreement, the defendant agreed that he could only challenge his sentence and not his guilty plea or conviction.

Miller isn’t the only teen facing decades behind bars in this case. He and Jeremy Goodale were both sentenced in November 2023. A judge sentenced Goodale to life behind bars with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

Miller and Goodale were 16 in November 2021 when they followed their teacher, Nohema Graber, as she walked in a Fairfield park. They beat her to death with a baseball bat because of a bad grade.

The Fairfield community has rallied behind Graber’s family and friends and honored the teacher with an annual walk. Graber enjoyed spending her time walking in Chautauqua Park, where the teenagers killed her.

“This tragedy cannot stop people from coming to this park,” said Lee Muntz, one of those who took part in the walk in April 2023.

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