Man gets 30 years to life for stabbing mother of his children who slept upstairs

A judge handed down the punishment Wednesday for the man who stabbed to death the mother of his children while the young boys slept upstairs.

"Nothing anyone can say or do will bring Nat back to us. Nothing can take away the pain we feel every single day. There's one thing that can help ease that pain, and it's the knowledge that the animal right there will never see the outside world again," said the victim’s brother.

Family and friends of 37-year-old Natalie Urso faced the man who admitted to killing the mother of his two sons. Her loved ones are heartbroken and angry. They say they'll never forgive Benjamin Wozniak for this horrific crime.

"And he can say he's sorry, but there's no way in hell any of us are going to forgive him for this," McGrath said.

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On Jan. 10, Wozniak went to Urso's Hazel Park home to pick up some of his belongings. Before he left, he grabbed a knife and stabbed her several times, leaving her to die. Upstairs, their 10 year old and 7 year old were sleeping.

"If it wasn't for some great police work and officers, Natalie's boys would have found their mother dear in a pool of blood the following morning," said the victim's friend, Greg McGrath

During the trial, Wozniak's then-girlfriend, Tonya Crosslin, testified that she's the one who called 911.

"There should not have been blood on Ben's hands," she said during the trial.

After police arrested Wozniak, he told detectives that he and the victim had been arguing the day of the murder.

"Ben's decision to take the life of his children's mother, with no regard for the effect it may have one others is unimaginable, unimaginable," her brother said.

Wozniak took a deal, pleading guilty to second-degree murder.    

"I did what I did and I'll never forgive myself. I don't want mercy. I'm sorry," he said.

His attorney asked the court for a maximum sentence of 60 years. But despite claims of remorse, the judge told Wozniak that is only sorry for himself, sentencing him to 30 years to life in prison.

"I would suggest that you are heartless and repulsive, and I would say inhuman. However, I have to disagree with Natalie's brother and her father. They called you an animal. But you know what, animals protect their children," the judge said.