A judge today sentenced Semmie Lee Williams Jr. to 35 years in prison for the horrific murder of 14-year-old Ryan Rogers, Palm Beach County State Attorney Alexcia Cox announces.

On January 23, a jury found Williams guilty of second-degree murder with a weapon. The evidence at trial showed that Williams randomly attacked the teen as he rode his bike on November 15, 2021.

Williams, who had no connection to the community and had traveled from another county, stabbed Ryan repeatedly. The child victim was less than two miles from his Palm Beach Gardens home.

In her recommendation for a life sentence, Assistant State Attorney Jo Wilensky described the devastating impact of the murder.

“Ryan Rogers was not even halfway through his freshman year of high school when his life was stolen by this Defendant,” Wilensky wrote. “He will never graduate from high school, go to college or get married. His family must live every single day not only with his death but knowing of the violence, pain and suffering he endured in his final moments.”

State Attorney Cox said, “While the sentence delivers a measure of justice, no number of years can restore what was taken from Ryan’s family and our community — the life of a child full of promise.”

The State Attorney’s Office thanks the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department and Miami-Dade Sheriff’s detectives who investigated this case.