JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville man has been sentenced to 70 years in prison after murdering his former teacher and a woman at a Westside hotel over the holidays in 2019.
In March, Zebulon Perkins pleaded guilty to the murders of Leah Kline and Vivian James between Dec. 25-26.
During impact statements, James' sister said the beloved Atlantic Coast High teacher referred to her students as her children.
"I will never get back my sister but I will also have her spirit with me," she said. " ... I love you Viv."
James' friend, Terry Crawford, said she had an infectious personality. He questioned what he could of done, lamented that James' final minutes of her life were spent fighting for air and referred to the killing as an "evil act."
"Because of this evil act of rage, my friend's life is over," he said.
On Dec. 25, 2019, Zebulon Perkins was at a Westside Jacksonville motel with Leah Kline when they got into an argument, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. Police said Perkins strangled Kline and threw her body in the dumpster.
Perkins then went to the home of Vivian James in Cedar Hills, his former teacher, looking for advice on Boxing Day. When James told Perkins to turn himself in to the police, Perkins beat and strangled her with a cord, police said.
On Dec. 28, 2019, a friend stopped by James’ home and found her body, calling 911 and informing the police her friend’s car was missing. Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office investigators found Perkins with James’ car at the Westside motel where he had been staying and he was arrested.
Inside James' car, police recovered Perkins’ bag containing a pair of sweatpants with James’ DNA on them, James’ camera, and her three laptops. Officers found two of James’ televisions and her computer monitor inside Perkins’ mother’s home. During the investigation, Perkins’ DNA was found under James’ fingernails.