On Jan. 1, three white men abducted Christopher Wilson, a black stock brokerage employee from New York who was visiting his mother in Tampa, Fla.
A jury convicted two of the men, Charles Rourk and Mark Kohut, of robbing Wilson, taking him to a field, dousing him with gasoline and setting him ablaze.
Wilson was severely burned but survived and was the main prosecution witness against the two.
The judge exceeded sentencing guidelines in the case, citing the racial hatred involved in the crime. Rourk and Kohut were both sentenced to life in prison on the charge of attempting to murder Wilson. Rourk was given 40 additional years and Kohut 27 additional years for kidnapping and robbery.
