LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) — A La Crosse man accused of fatally stabbing his wife in front of five children has been sentenced to life in prison.

A jury in December found 36-year-old Haron Joyner guilty of first-degree intentional homicide in the death of 29-year-old Jessica Joyner. La Crosse County Circuit Judge Scott Horne on Friday sentenced Joyner to life with the possibility of release in 40 years.

The criminal complaint says Joyner stabbed his wife in the neck, face and chest six or seven times before she escaped to an apartment across the hall. She collapsed and died about an hour later.

Prosecutors say Joyner killed his wife after learning she planned to divorce him.

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