A Beaver County teenager pleaded guilty Thursday to killing his mother at their Economy Borough home with two blasts from a shotgun. Gary Beck, who was 13 at the time, received the maximum sentence for third-degree murder -- 20 to 40 years. The earliest he could be released is at age 33. Beck, now 15, was to be tried as an adult and could have faced a life sentence if convicted of first-degree murder in the February 2003 slaying of Lee Ann Nauman, 31. "Was justice served today• I do not know," said David Nauman, the victim's husband, who was due to adopt Beck within weeks of the shooting. "I'd like to see longer (prison time). "He took away my wife, and my daughter doesn't have a mother, and that's just not right." The Naumans' daughter, Brandie Lee, was 15 months old and in the house when Beck shot his mother. No testimony about motive was presented yesterday, but a friend testified in an earlier hearing that Beck told him of watching TV, then deciding to get a gun and kill the first person he came across. Many of Lee Ann Nauman's relatives -- including her mother, sister and brother -- supported Beck throughout the proceedings. Lee Ann Nauman's sister, Stephanie Murphy, said she and other family members recommended that Beck accept the plea agreement. Beck acknowledged yesterday that he shot his mother and that he understands he cannot appeal the sentence or the decision that he be tried as an adult. If convicted as a juvenile, he could have been incarcerated only until age 21. Defense lawyer Tom Ceraso described Beck as a confused young man and said it was unfair to put him in the adult justice system. "He's 15 going on 50, and he better become 50 tomorrow because he's going to jail," Ceraso said. "I just hope that when Gary comes out of incarceration that he will be productive. ... I hope we don't turn him into something he wouldn't have been." He said Beck is devastated by his mother's death, and his motive in shooting her remains mysterious. "He's sorry. It's been extremely difficult for him," Ceraso said. "He was a 13-year-old kid that did something totally irrational. He did it; he doesn't know why." Assistant District Attorney Anthony Berosh said some have criticized the district attorney's office as being too harsh on Beck, while others think 20 years is too short a time for a killer to spend in jail. Berosh told the court that most people look back on their teenage and young adult years as the best of their lives, and Beck will spend that time behind bars. "That's the price we're asking the defendant to pay," he said. Beck showed no emotion and spoke little throughout the proceedings, answering most questions with "yes" or "no." When asked if he understood that he was pleading guilty to third-degree murder -- which requires malice -- he said he did. "I had to have some anger," Beck said. Beck also was ordered to pay $10,577 to David Nauman and the Pennsylvania victims compensation fund to cover his mother's funeral expenses.

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