A man who admitted killing his girlfriend at a Charleston fast food restaurant will spend the rest of his natural life in prison.

Almost a year after murdering Na'lisha Gravely at the Taco Bell on Patrick Street Desmond Clark learned his fate. Hours of emotional testimony preceded Judge Jim Stucky's sentence Thursday.

"We got justice today," said Kanawha County Prosecutor Mark Plants. "We got a life sentence with no mercy so Desmond Clark will spend the rest of his life in jail."

During the sentencing, the prosecution called Chris Dunlap, a cashier who called 911 and stayed by Gravely's side while she died.

Dunlap recalled seeing Gravely coming into the restaurant asking for a phone. He said he gave her his cell phone before Gravely hid in a utility closet in the back. A few moments later he witnessed Desmond Clark jump over the counter as depicted in surveillance video from the scene.

"The next thing I know the defendant came over the counter," Dunlap recounted. "He came back through the store. He had lifted the shirt that he had on and revealed a gun."

The prosecution then played the 911 tape of Dunlap's call. "Come on she's bleeding. She's dying," Dunlap was heard saying to dispatchers. Several people sitting in the court had to be removed while the tape played because they were overwhelmed with emotion.

"Anybody that heard the 911 tape, it's absolutely gut wrenching. I had plans to play the whole thing, but I could only get through two minutes of it," Plants says.

Na'lisha Gravely's mother, Tina, also gave a victim's impact statement. She told Judge Stucky that because of Clark's actions her grandson has been denied both a mother and father.

"I have to wake up and watch as this child moans every morning for both them. It's just sad, and I want an explanation," Tina Gravely said.

The defense argued that Clark had suffered from a mental disorder that made him prone to episodic fits of rage. Clark's attorneys said the disorder, called intermittent explosive disorder, should have been treated with medication and psychiatric help.

They also made the claim that Clark's condition was exacerbated through a substance abuse problem saying Clark had been using illegal Xanax, marijuana, and alcohol prior to the shooting. However, that defense failed.

Before Judge Stucky passed judgment, Clark apologized to Na'lisha Gravely's family and friends.

"I ask Na'lisha and God for forgiveness every day. I know you all are hurting and that I messed up bad. I really do wish this thing never happened," Clark said.

Clark had entered a guilty plea back in March to charges of first-degree murder. Gravely was killed on July 5th, nearly a year before Thursday's sentencing.