OLATHE, Kan. — Convicted killer Benjamin Appleby’s appeal of his Hard 50 sentence has been denied.
On Thursday, a Johnson County judge Thursday denied Appleby’s request that his sentence be thrown out.
Appleby had argued that his Hard 50 sentence was decided by a judge and not a jury, as required by an earlier U.S. Supreme Court ruling. Kansas law automatically required his sentence be modified.
In 2002, people around the Kansas City metro and the nation were shocked at the brutal murder of Kansas State student Ali Kemp. She was beaten, battered and strangled in the pump house of the Leawood neighborhood pool where she worked.
Appleby was arrested and charged with the crime two years later after a tip helped investigators find Appleby, living in Connecticut under a false name.
He was found guilty and sentenced to a Hard 50 sentence under Kansas law: 50 years in prison with no chance for parole until 2054.
In a previous interview with FOX4, Ali’s father, Roger Kemp, said that her killer should never be let out of prison.
“We have someone that goes against our society, that goes against our laws, that doesn’t care about the law, until he’s caught,” Kemp said.
“And then he wants every right under the book that he’s so willing to take away from someone else. He silenced Ali’s voice. She has no voice in this. She can’t speak, so I am speaking for her.”
It’s unclear whether or not Appleby will appeal the judge’s ruling.
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