Cleveland kidnapper Ariel Castro will appear in court today where he is expected to be sentenced to life in prison, plus 1,000 years, as prosecutors released new details from his captives' dairies that include "being held like a prisoner of war" on only one meal a day.
A sentencing memorandum, released Wednesday, outlines dramatic details of how Amanda Berry, 27, Gina DeJesus, 23, and Michelle Knight, 32, were restrained by chains attached to their ankles with access only to plastic toilets in the bedrooms that were rarely emptied. Castro fed the women one meal a day and used the "cold of the basement" and the "heat of the attic" as punishment techniques, according to the memo.
"The entries speak of forced sexual conduct, of being locked in a dark room, of anticipating the next session of abuse, of the dreams of someday escaping and being reunited with family, of being chained to a wall, of being held like a prisoner of war," the memorandum says.
Castro, 53, pleaded guilty Friday to 937 counts, including kidnapping, rape, assault and aggravated murder that will send him to prison for life with no chance of parole for abducting the three women and keeping them as sex slaves for more than a decade in his Cleveland home.
The prosecution released the memo in an attempt to persuade the judge to give Castro the sentence that the former bus driver has agreed to accept.
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The plea deal spared Castro the death penalty because he was accused of the aggravated murder of a fetus after forcibly causing an abortion in one of his victims that he is accused of impregnating. The deal will also spare the three women from having to testify at a trial.
Knight is expected to appear at the sentencing to read an impact statement, a source with knowledge of the situation told ABC News.
ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said, "While this is a legal proceeding, we know what the outcome is. This is going to be primarily a crossing the 'T's, dotting the 'I's on the legal side, and then incredibly powerful on the emotional and human side."
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Castro's sister, Marisol Alicea, told CNN in an interview that he will give a statement at the hearing to allow people to see "the other side of Ariel Castro," but nothing he says could change his future.
Abrams said, "He can apologize, he could express remorse. He could try to explain himself. He might not do any of that. It doesn't matter. He is going to serve the rest of his life behind bars without any chance of parole."
The memo, released by prosecutor Tim McGinty, said the three women kept daily diaries about being raped, cut off from the outside world and holding on to a glimmer of hope that they would one day reunite with their families.
Castro allegedly told the women that he had other victims and that "some of them made it home, but others had not." The former bus driver once kept the three women locked in a vehicle for three days while he had a visitor at his home. Berry, Knight and DeJesus each kept a diary of their ordeal, documenting the horrific physical and sexual abuse they suffered on a daily basis.
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The victims were discovered in Castro's home in May. They were abducted between 2002 and 2004, when they were in their teens or early 20s. He had a child with Berry during her captivity.
A sentencing memorandum, released Wednesday, outlines dramatic details of how Amanda Berry, 27, Gina DeJesus, 23, and Michelle Knight, 32, were restrained by chains attached to their ankles with access only to plastic toilets in the bedrooms that were rarely emptied. Castro fed the women one meal a day and used the "cold of the basement" and the "heat of the attic" as punishment techniques, according to the memo.
"The entries speak of forced sexual conduct, of being locked in a dark room, of anticipating the next session of abuse, of the dreams of someday escaping and being reunited with family, of being chained to a wall, of being held like a prisoner of war," the memorandum says.
Castro, 53, pleaded guilty Friday to 937 counts, including kidnapping, rape, assault and aggravated murder that will send him to prison for life with no chance of parole for abducting the three women and keeping them as sex slaves for more than a decade in his Cleveland home.
The prosecution released the memo in an attempt to persuade the judge to give Castro the sentence that the former bus driver has agreed to accept.
Crowds Cheer Amanda Berry at Roverfest Watch Video
Ohio Kidnap Victim: 'I'm Strong Enough to Walk Through Hell' Watch Video
Guards Fear Cleveland Kidnap Suspect Will Hurt Himself Watch Video
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The plea deal spared Castro the death penalty because he was accused of the aggravated murder of a fetus after forcibly causing an abortion in one of his victims that he is accused of impregnating. The deal will also spare the three women from having to testify at a trial.
Knight is expected to appear at the sentencing to read an impact statement, a source with knowledge of the situation told ABC News.
ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said, "While this is a legal proceeding, we know what the outcome is. This is going to be primarily a crossing the 'T's, dotting the 'I's on the legal side, and then incredibly powerful on the emotional and human side."
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Castro's sister, Marisol Alicea, told CNN in an interview that he will give a statement at the hearing to allow people to see "the other side of Ariel Castro," but nothing he says could change his future.
Abrams said, "He can apologize, he could express remorse. He could try to explain himself. He might not do any of that. It doesn't matter. He is going to serve the rest of his life behind bars without any chance of parole."
The memo, released by prosecutor Tim McGinty, said the three women kept daily diaries about being raped, cut off from the outside world and holding on to a glimmer of hope that they would one day reunite with their families.
Castro allegedly told the women that he had other victims and that "some of them made it home, but others had not." The former bus driver once kept the three women locked in a vehicle for three days while he had a visitor at his home. Berry, Knight and DeJesus each kept a diary of their ordeal, documenting the horrific physical and sexual abuse they suffered on a daily basis.
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The victims were discovered in Castro's home in May. They were abducted between 2002 and 2004, when they were in their teens or early 20s. He had a child with Berry during her captivity.