'You did not win': After killer's sentencing, victim's son vows to fight chance of parole

WORCESTER — Steven M. Foley was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday in Worcester Superior Court for the murder of Cynthia L. Webb.

“Steven Foley, you didn’t win, nor did you get away with the violent crime,” Brad Webb, the woman’s son, said to Foley. “My mom’s love and impact will carry on.”

Webb, 59, was found dead by firefighters inside the trunk of her burning vehicle at Hope Cemetery Dec. 12, 2017.

Jurors Friday convicted Foley, 62, of second-degree murder and malicious destruction of a vehicle following a trial that began the previous Monday.

Tuesday, Superior Court Judge Daniel M. Wrenn, after lauding Brad Webb for his words, set parole eligibility for Foley at 25 years, the longest period allowable under law.

Prosecutors argued Foley, a Level 3 sex offender with multiple rape convictions, violently murdered Webb after meeting her at Mario’s Showplace in Webster, where she danced, and taking her to his Northborough home.

Webb’s body had to be identified using dental records. The medical examiner, noting her DNA was found in blood underneath the floorboards, ruled she had died by violence of unknown means.

Prosecutors presented video, cellphone and witness testimony they argued implicated Foley, whose defense primarily consisted of criticizing the thoroughness of authorities' investigation and suggesting Webb could have died from cocaine use.

Brad Webb, who drove from his home in Kentucky this week for the trial, focused his victim impact statement Tuesday on his mother’s life and impact.

Cynthia Webb described as 'most of all' a fighter

As he told the Telegram & Gazette in 2018, Cynthia Webb — who went by Cindy — had struggled with trauma including the death of her father and her husband in the same week before age 21.

“That rocked her and put her life in shambles,” he said. “After time, she fought to get her life back and we were able to get to know each other better and grew to love each other.”

Webb said he was glad his mother, who came back into his life in his teens, got to see him overcome his own demons and build a successful life with a wife and two children.

His wife, Diana Webb, in an impact statement read in court by a prosecutor, recalled how her future mother-in-law treated her with love from early on in her relationship.

“Even when Brad and I did break up for a short time, she would still call and message me telling me how much she loved me,” she wrote, adding that Webb always tried to help others, despite her own struggles.

Brad Webb described his mother as funny, quick-witted, caring, nonjudgmental and, "most of all," a fighter.

“That’s why I never judged her job or her lifestyle choices,” he said. “She was trying to survive the only way she knew how and for that I’ve always respected her.”

Webb said his mom was not defined by the job she did or the choices she made.

“The unconditional love she shared with those who knew her was who my mother was,” he said.

Her impact will not be forgotten

Brad Webb, who was very young when his father died, was supported in court Thursday by a close friend and several family members.

He said his family had endured more than its share of losses and that one thing he dearly loved, and needed, was hearing his mother tell him how proud she was of him.

“I will never hear those words again and that’s a very painful thought,” he said. “It’s crushing to know that my mother fought so hard and endured so much, just to have her life brutally taken away.”

Still, Webb and his wife said, her impact will live on in his family and their children. While she made many mistakes, Webb said, she always fought hard to correct them.

“That is the biggest lesson I learned from her: To never give up and always keep fighting for better days,” he said.

Webb closed by saying he wished Foley suffered “worse than the suffering you put my mother through, although I bet my mom put up one hell of a fight because at her core, that’s who she was: A fighter.”

Foley, who sat chained hand and foot at the defense table, did not look back at Webb as he spoke.

His lawyer, Sarah Hamilton, told the judge Foley had directed her to make no statement on his behalf, saying he is focused on an appeal.

Wrenn praised Brad Webb for his remarks, which he called “very moving.

“You, to your credit, chose to focus on the value and quality of your mother,” he said. “Thank you.”

Prosecutors in their sentencing argument noted that Foley’s record includes three rape convictions including a 20-year sentence for a case in which he threatened to kill the victim.

Assistant District Attorney Brett Dillon noted that Essex County prosecutors tried unsuccessfully to have Foley held as sexually dangerous in 2008, saying at the time he was considered a “medium to high” risk to reoffend.

Dillon noted that Foley, prior to Webb’s murder, did reoffend, receiving a 30-month sentence for indecent assault and battery that might have been longer if the victim had wished to testify.

Brad Webb told the T&G Tuesday he would fight any proposed parole in the future.

“I will do everything in my power to make sure he doesn’t see the light of day again and is not able to hurt another person,” he said after the hearing.

Webb said he appreciated Wrenn’s comment and for the opportunity to tell the world that his mother was far more than her job.

“I’m happy I was able to speak on my mother’s character,” he said.

Verdict: Steven M. Foley guilty of second-degree murder in death of Cynthia Webb

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Steven Foley sentenced to life in prison for murder of Cynthia Webb