They were interviewed. Here is what they said:
"I think he deserved it, and I think he should stay in there," said Monroe Johnson. Johnson has another theory as to why Allen is still bars. He and his family said Allen beat Johnson's mother before taking her television."That was why the judge gave him such a stiff sentence, was because of all the circumstances in the case, just not the TV," he said.
Apparently they said quite a bit about it.
There's also a big question in my mind about their theory about why the judge imposed such a harsh sentence. If the prosecution didn't introduce evidence of assault into evidence - and in fact stipulated that no one was home at the time of the assault - how could the judge consider it when imposing a sentence?