PORTLAND, Maine (WGAN) A man who shot and killed Somerset County Sheriff’s Corporal Eugene Cole will spend the rest of his life behind bars.

The sentence was handed down by a judge Thursday afternoon for 31-year-old John Williams, who confessed to shooting Cole last year in Norridgewock. The shooting prompted a massive, days-long manhunt.

During his sentencing Thursday afternoon in court, Williams gave a statement expressing remorse for the killing, saying the shooting “was not borne out of malice or hatred for Corporal Cole or law enforcement” and that what followed afterwards was “immediate sorrow and regret.”

Coporal Cole’s colleagues and family members offered victim impact statements. Members of Williams’ family also gave statements before the sentencing.

Williams’ defense, who were pushing for a 40-year sentence, claimed that his life was spiraling out of control at the time of the shooting due to struggles with substance abuse, and that he had a tumultuous upbringing.