Man sentenced to 31 years in soldier's stabbing death

TACOMA, Wash. — A 30-year-old Washington man has been sentenced to 31 years in prison for the 2014 stabbing death of a Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier who intervened when a woman was being attacked.

In April, a Pierce County jury convicted Chase Devyver of second-degree murder and related charges in the death of 38-year-old Shawn Woods.

The victim's wife told the court Friday that her husband was a hero.

The judge said she was imposing the high end of the sentence in part because Devyver showed no remorse. He told the judge he didn't remember what happened.

Early on Jan. 19, 2014, Devyver and his girlfriend had been arguing in a parked car outside their home in the Puyallup area. Prosecutors say when she got out and walked into the house, the man followed and stabbed her. Her screams woke Woods, who was sleeping in another room. He intervened and Devyver stabbed him as well.

The court record shows Devyver stole his girlfriend's car and fled. Pierce County deputies arrested him after a high-speed chase.