Chaiden Miller gets life sentence for murdering Fairfield High School Spanish teacher Nohema Graber

FAIRFIELD — A District Court judge sentenced a Fairfield teenager to life in prison Thursday for murdering his Spanish teacher over a bad grade.

Judge Shawn Showers issued his ruling late Thursday afternoon in the case involving Willard Noble Chaiden Miller, 17, who pleaded guilty to murdering Nohema Graber, 66, in November 2021 and hiding her body in Fairfield’s Chautauqua Park. Showers sentenced Miller to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after serving a minimum of 35 years.

During the sentencing hearing, the prosecution called four witnesses and presented evidence detailing Miller’s involvement in the planning and execution of the murder on Nov. 2, 2021, which he did with co-defendant Jeremy Everett Goodale, who also pleaded guilty to the murder.

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Prosecutors presented evidence showing that Miller was receiving an F in Graber’s Spanish class at Fairfield High School, and this was the motive for the murder, which he began planning one to two weeks in advance. The state presented a note that was saved on Miller’s phone titled “Prep” indicating a list of supplies he would need including plastic gloves, a trash bag, wet wipes, a transport vehicle and other items.

Graber died from blunt force trauma from being struck in the head with a baseball bat. She was killed while walking on a trail in Chautauqua Park. The defense contended that Miller was merely a lookout while Goodale was the one who swung the bat. However, a witness for the state, Special Agent Trent Vileta, said Miller told another teen a day after the murder that he had “caught a body with a baseball bat.”

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Showers ordered Miller to pay $150,000 in restitution to the heirs of Nohema Graber. Graber’s three children are Christian, Jared and Nohema Marie. Her husband Paul died just days before the sentencing on June 29.

As Showers read his verdict, Miller sat in his chair and stared straight ahead without showing emotion. Miller was given a chance to speak, and apologized to the Graber family for the harm his actions caused.

“I’m sincerely sorry for the distress I caused you, and with all my heart, I’m sorry for your loss,” Miller said.

Miller apologized to the community, to Graber’s church, to his own family and to the family of Jeremy Goodale.

“I wish him the best and I hope he gets out as soon as possible. I’m sorry,” Miller said as he looked back at members of the Goodale family sitting in the courtroom. Goodale’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 23.

Miller said he was sorry for his “carelessness” and “ignorance.” He apologized to the Fairfield Police for the “misinformation” he provided during his initial interrogation, where Miller claimed that he witnessed a group of six to eight masked men attack Graber in the park.

Showers said he felt it was necessary to impose a mandatory minimum sentence on Miller given the brutal nature of the crime and what motivated Miller to commit it.

“Any individual who would plan and participate in a murder based on an unsatisfactory grade is an individual who will require immense rehabilitation,” Showers said.

Showers noted that since Miller was a juvenile, age 16, at the time of the murder, state law requires a judge to conduct a more thorough review before handing a sentence. Showers said that he must consider the effect of the offense on the victim, the victim’s family and the wider society.

“Your horrific actions led to the death of Nohema Graber, and her family will never be able to fill that void,” Showers said. “The victim impact statements remind us all of the pain the family and friends of Nohema Graber will carry with them forever.”

Showers said that Miller’s act of a “senseless premeditated murder” shook the entire Fairfield community, and robbed it of one of its “most beloved teachers.”

“You, along with Mr. Goodale, are responsible for that detriment to the community,” Showers said.

Showers said he imposed a mandatory minimum sentence of 35 years, because releasing Miller any earlier would pose a risk to public safety.

“I would not be doing my job if I did not impose some sort of mandatory minimum,” Showers said. “The reason Nohema Graber was murdered was that you were unhappy with your grade. But for your thoughts, planning and acts, Nohema Graber would still be alive. You and Mr. Goodale committed premeditated murder or your teacher, carried out in one of the most horrific fashions one could imagine.”

Showers said that Miller stalked Graber, learned her daily routine, and brought a wheelbarrow and baseball bat to the scene.

“Beating the victim lifeless is a horrific act, and it calls for swift justice and accountability,” Showers said. “With regard to your remorse, you waited until today to show some sort of remorse for the act you and Mr. Goodale committed. I find that you downplayed your role based on your admissions and the minutes of testimony presented in this sentencing hearing.”

Showers remarked that he was glad Miller pleaded guilty, which saved Graber’s family from a trial where the “brutal details of this act would be recounted.” Furthermore, Showers said state law requires him to consider Miller’s age, since he was 16 at the time, and the brain does not become fully mature until a person is 25, Showers said.

“Based on your immaturity, you probably didn’t think deeply about what happens to individuals who plan and execute a murder,” Showers said. “You knew what you were doing, but whether you appreciated how wrong it was raises a question of rehabilitation for me.”

At earlier hearings, defense attorneys argued that Miller’s lack of a criminal record should be a mitigating factor in his favor, particularly when the defense was attempting to have Miller tried as a juvenile instead of as an adult, as he was. However, Showers said during sentencing that Miller’s behavior before the murder showed he was fully capable of complying with the laws and norms of society.

“It is a mitigating factor that you were 16 when you committed this crime,” Showers began. “However, you’re also an intelligent young man.”

Showers said Miller was fortunate Iowa law does not allow judges to sentence juveniles to life without parole, “because that would be a serious consideration for me if I had that option.”

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A defendant’s lack of a criminal record before a particular would normally mean they were a good candidate for rehabilitation and may deserve a lighter sentence, Showers acknowledged. However, in the 1.5 years that Miller has been held in a juvenile facility awaiting sentencing, staff at the facility reported that Miller has threatened other juveniles and argued with staff.

Showers also considered whether Miller was acting under any outside pressure when he committed the crime, and concluded that he was not.

“It was your plan to kill Nohema Graber, and you recruited Jeremy Goodale, based on the minutes of testimony,” Showers aid.

Showers said that he hopes that, with the amount of time Miller will be in prison, he will reflect on his actions and grow as a person.

“You’re currently a threat to the community based on this planning and executing of the murder with Jeremy Goodale, but with the programming in the prison system, beginning with the Youthful Offender Program, I believe you have the ability to avoid many further offenses, because a mandatory prison sentence is a great deterrent,” Showers said.

Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com