Anna Lindh's killer gets life in jail

The life sentence, Sweden's harshest penalty, usually translates into about 15 years behind bars, but can be longer.

Josef Zila, criminal law professor at Stockholm University, said that as with all life sentences, the Swedish government would decide after seven or eight years whether to commute the life sentence, saying he expected it to be changed to 15 to 20 years.

"In practice there are no rules. Since no explanations are required for pardons or rejected pardons, every case gets different treatment," he said.