Kyle Ricke receives life sentence for killing Algona police officer Kevin Cram

Kyle Ricke said he was sorry for killing Algona police officer Kevin Cram.

“Every night I pray for forgiveness for the family,” Ricke said. “I deeply regret the pain and suffering I have caused them, and I pray that one day they can forgive me for my terrible actions.”

A Dickinson County jury took about an hour in July to find the 44-year-old Algona man guilty of first-degree murder in the Sept. 13 shooting death of 33-year-old Cram. The mandatory sentence in Iowa is life in prison without parole.

In her verdict, Judge Nancy Whittenburg said the crime was “like an earthquake” that shook the foundations of many lives.

“The repercussions of your actions will be felt by your family and friends for a lifetime and even for generations to come – because this leaves an indelible mark on all of them, including your family members,” Whittenburg said. “Your act was cowardly. It was heinous. It was reprehensible. It was beyond selfish – and it was immoral.”

Before the verdict was announced, the courtroom heard statements from family members of the victim, including Cram's two brothers, a son, his father, his grandmother and his wife.

“With your selfishness, you have not only destroyed the lives of a family and children, but your own family and an entire community,” said Lara Cram, Kevin Cram's wife. “You should have just taken your own life, like you said, but you are so pathetic that you couldn't even do that.”

The policeman's widow expressed her feelings during the verdict

Lara Cram expressed her deep sadness and even anger over the loss of her husband due to Ricke's actions. She spoke about the emotional toll on the family, including missing important milestones.

“Your youngest son is the same age as ours, so every time he talks to you he tells you he loves you, wishes you 'Happy Father's Day' or 'Merry Christmas,'” Cram said. “I want you to think of our son who will never be able to speak to his father again.”

Cram said her husband would have done anything to help Ricke – if he hadn’t been shot instead.

“You didn't even know the man you killed. He would have taken you,” she said. “He would have given you every penny and advice to mend your poor excuse for a relationship. The things you take for granted today, we won't get for the rest of our lives.”

Father called Officer Cram a great son, father and husband

Kevin Cram's father, Mark Cram, echoed this sentiment, calling Kevin a wonderful son, husband and father who never failed to read his children a book before bed – even while on duty.

“He would park his police car and call home to read them a story before bed,” Cram said. “He was truly a great father. He was their teacher, their best friend and their hero.”

Cram also said Kevin always showed compassion, even at work. He told the story of a young meth addict who Kevin convinced to go to rehab and get clean. And that caring spirit continued the night of his death, when he came to arrest Rick on a harassment warrant in nearby Emmet County.

“He did you a small act of kindness by letting you park your skid steer before he took you away. The difference is that everyone else appreciated him doing them a favor. On the other hand, you used his small act of kindness as an opportunity to ambush and execute him,” Cram said. “That makes you a truly worthless, despicable piece of [expletive]”Our son did you a favor and in return you killed him. The way you killed him speaks volumes about you.”

Autopsy photos presented during the trial showed that Kevin had been shot eight times.

“As he lay defenseless on the ground, you put three more bullets in his back. That is the very definition of a yellowback shooting coward, and that is you. Even after that act of cowardice was accomplished, you got in your pickup truck and ran,” Cram said. “When they put up his autopsy pictures, you stared at the ground. You put eight bullets in his back, but you couldn't even look at the damage you had done. Those pictures will remain in our memories forever. Your name is linked in one capacity or another to 46 court records. When you killed Kevin, you were 43 years old. Clearly, you did not learn from your mistakes like a normal human being does.”

Mark Cram also expressed his disgust when he saw the bodycam video showing Ricke “ambushing and executing” his son – and what happens next – before fleeing to his sister's house in Minnesota.

“The second most disgusting thing I've ever seen is watching you and your mother hugging while our son lays dying on the ground not ten feet away,” he added. “What kind of sick, disgusting people hug each other while a young man lays dying ten feet away? I'd say you're just trailer trash, but you don't even have a trailer. You're 43 years old and you live with your mom. What's trailer trash without a trailer? Just trash.”

Mark Cram then left Ricke a final statement.

“Burn in hell, [expletive].”

A family affected by a murder

The packed courtroom also heard Kossuth County Victim Witness Coordinator Cinnamon Mawdsley read a letter from Kevin Cram's seven-year-old son, Weston.

“I am saddened by the passing of my father. I loved him very much. He showed me how to rodeo and he taught me how to fish and when I was older he wanted to show me how to hunt. I miss him every day,” the statement said.

Prosecutors then played a heartbreaking recording that brought tears to the eyes of some, including veteran police officers, who heard one of Kyle Cram's three sons cry for 96 seconds – the same amount of time that preceded the shooting.

“I know you will never see the outside world again, but I hope that every night when you close your eyes you hear the cries of my son missing his father, because that is what you did to his sons and to me,” Lara Cram said.

Judge Whittenburg also ordered Ricke to pay $150,000 in restitution to Lara Cram and up to $18,000 in attorney fees. Ricke has 30 days to appeal the ruling. The day before the verdict was announced, the judge denied a request for a retrial from Ricke's legal team. They argued that the level of premeditation in the case did not warrant a conviction for premeditated murder.