Shoemaker's case benefited by the delay in his trial. His attorney, Michael Black, capitalized on hazy memories and re-remembered testimony that emerged not only in Acevedo's trial, but also in an unsuccessful civil lawsuit in which the victims sued Paradise Valley Mall. New information that could have been detrimental to Shoemaker was apparently judged by prosecutors too weak to build a case on. Furthermore, in a deposition for the civil lawsuit, Paul Richardson claimed for the first time that he'd seen Shoemaker striking or stabbing his brother Danny after Acevedo had finished with him. That assault was never corroborated by witnesses.
Prosecutors say the facts justify the disparity in sentences.
It's a light sentence, but it's still tough to do. McCarville's mother, Theresa, takes a more passionate stance, which has estranged her from the mothers of the other victims. It was tragic. He was a little child going into the mall, and within three minutes his whole life changed. She didn't want the same to happen to Shoemaker, even if he did stab her son.