PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — Jurors have withdrawn to deliberate on whether a former University of Illinois doctoral student should be put to death for killing a young scholar from China.

Prosecutor James Nelson told jurors Wednesday during closing arguments that Brendt Christensen deserved to die because he brutally killed Yingying Zhang “for sport.”

Christensen’s attorney, Elisabeth Pollock said that, while the defense admits their client killed Zhang, his life as a loving, gentle child and other positive characteristics should spare him the death penalty.

A tearful Pollock stood behind Christensen as she ended her remarks, put her hands on his shoulders and told jurors: “He is a whole person. He is not just the worst thing he did.”

She also told jurors that Christensen was going to leave prison “in a casket” no matter what their decision.