2008 began with a rash of murders.

"It's like he took my life away," said Marla Harris, the mother of Kendra and Alysha Suing. "He took my babies away from me."

Six days into the new year, firefighters pulled the bodies of 8-year-old Alysha and 10-year-old Kendra from their burning Sioux City home. Their stepfather, Larry Harris, told police he had been 'casting a spell that had gone bad'.

"But in reality it was his hands who strangled them, and it was his hands who cut them," said Harris the day after her daughters' murders. "So in my eyes, it was him."

Five days later, police found the body of 15-year-old Raina Hulit hidden in Stone State Park. She had been missing for a week and was last seen at a party where police believe Matthew Hettinger shot and killed her.

"That's any mother's worst fear," said Lucinda Hulit. "Is to bury their kids you know."

In the following week, hunters found Zachary Cooper's body with two gunshot wounds on a rural road near Lawton, Iowa. Samuel Wright was sentenced to life in prison for robbing, kidnapping and murdering Cooper.

"I never thought I would ever say this to anybody," said Cooper's foster mother Patricia Kronz at Wright's sentencing. "But I hope when you are in prison, your life is hell."

A second suspect, Jeremy Williams, was found guilty on three lesser counts.  He will serve up to 25 years in prison.

The bloodshed spilled into February 2008. Jeremy McCoy repeatedly beat 35-year-old Daniel Taleno, stripping him of his shirt, shoes and socks, and leaving him outside in subzero temperatures. McCoy plead guilty to a second degree murder charge.

"The arrested party has some responsibility whether he froze or whether he was beaten to death," said Police Chief Joe Frisbie. "Either one, he's got responsibility in this."

A series of trials began in the summer of 2008. Armando Orozco was sentenced to life in prison for abducting and raping a seven-year-old girl. And U.S. Attorneys prosecuted two members of a multi-million dollar marijuana ring. The conspiracy included a total of ten defendants, and all are now serving time in federal prison.

Later in August, 16-year-old Codie Kapaun allegedly shot Ryan Blanchard in the head -- killing him.

"I would say to her, get down on your knees and ask the good Lord to forgive you for taking my son's life," said Blanchard's mother Becky Seitzinger.

Kapaun plead not guilty to involuntary manslaughter and aggravated assault and will be tried as an adult.

And just three days before Christmas, Tim Sohler allegedly killed his wife, Sue Sohler, inside their Woodbury Heights home. Police believe Sohler stabbed her repeatedly with a kitchen knife when her back was turned.

"These homocides that we've had, there would have been no preventing any of them," said Chief Joe Frisbie. "Most of these were domestic. Most of them were crimes of passion."

And as the year comes to a close, some of these cases close too while others are left to be resolved in 2009.

As for those cases carrying over into the new year, Larry Harris' trial begins January 13th, and Matthew Hettinger's trial is scheduled for February.