UPDATE: John Ragin has been sentenced to life in prison for killing his wife and three step children.
He received three life terms for killing his step children and 40 years for the murder of his wife Crystal Ragin.
He also received another life sentence for arson and five years on each count of unlawful stabbing.
The clerk tells NewsChannel 3 that the jury was unable to make a unanimous decision on the death penalty so by law the judge had to sentence him to life.
The jury started deliberating yesterday after convicting John Ragin last week.
Police said Ragin escaped to South Carolina with the son he shared with his wife.
According to court documents obtained by NewsChannel 3 over the last few years, Crystal Ragin begged a judge to protect her from her husband before the murders. More than than 24 hours after a judge signed off on a protective order, a Newport News sheriff’s deputy finally tried to serve John Ragin, but instead of finding him, the deputy walked into the crime scene.
