TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) — The man found guilty of dousing his ex-girlfriend in gasoline and lighting her on fire outside a Tim Hortons in Tonawanda was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Jonathon White and Jessica Cameron dated for more than seven years, becoming the parents of three children.
By December 2018, the two had gone their separate ways. During that month, prosecutors say White lured Cameron outside during her shift at the cafe and attempted to kill her.
Cameron suffered burns across 30 to 40 percent of her body. White also suffered burns, but not nearly as bad as Cameron’s.
Following a trial, White was found guilty of attempted murder and assault this past October.
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During his sentencing, White claimed he is not guilty of the crimes for which he was convicted, telling the judge he feels guilty about Cameron’s injuries, but also saying he feels the “situation has been blown out of proportion.”
White says he tried to set himself on fire, not Cameron. The judge replied, saying neither he nor the jury believes that.
Asking that he receive the maximum sentence possible, Cameron said “My sweet little boy doesn’t need to know the true horrors…and someday, I will have to tell all my children the whole truth of what their father did.”
The 25-year sentence was indeed the maximum possible.
Cameron and Erie County District Attorney John Flynn spoke following the sentencing.
“December 9th, 2018, I turned 25. December 17th, 2018, Johnathon White attempted to take away any more years that I would have, which would have left me with 25 years of life…Having this conviction and this sentencing to me is poetic justice that he now has to serve those 25 years in retribution for the years he attempted to take from me and our family…It’s not about winning and losing because even receiving the maximum sentence and getting the conviction we were all hoping for, there are no winners here. I’ve still lost. My children have still lost and Jonathon has lost. Our family will never be the same as it was.”
Jessica Cameron