Man who killed 3 daughters gets life in prison

A Wisconsin man who killed his three daughters to get back at his ex-wife has been sentenced to life in prison with no parole.

Aaron Schaffhausen was convicted in April of killing his daughters, ages 11, 8 and 5, at their home in River Falls.

The 35-year-old Schaffhausen had admitted killing the girls in July 2012 to get back at his ex-wife, but argued he had a mental defect that kept him from knowing it was wrong.

“As parents we protect them, love them, and show them that the dark is not bad. The boogeyman does not exist and there are no monsters under the bed. Amara, Sophie and Cecilia learned that there is a boogeyman and the monster under the bed hides even more sinister places. The darkness is more than the lights being turned off. It is an emotional place that we hope no one ever sees,” said Mary Elizabeth Stotz, Schaffhausen’s sister-in-law.

Life sentences were mandatory in each girl’s death, but Schaffhausen had the prospect of supervised release after at least 20 years in prison. That was rejected by St. Croix County Circuit Judge Howard Cameron.

“In this situation, I have to send a message that each child is so important the sentences have to be consecutive of each other. All four will be consecutive. Each child has to be recognized as an individual girl,” said Cameron.