The three victims of Ariel Castro's abduction took the opportunity on Thursday in court to address their captor and give him a message before he faced sentencing in Cleveland, Ohio.

As Castro sat in his orange prison suit in between his two lawyers, his victims faced him for the first time since being rescued on May 6. The 53-year-old abducted Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight individually in Cleveland between 2002 and 2004 when they were 14 to 20 years old. Castro pleaded guilty on July 26 to 937 counts of kidnapping, rape, assault and other charges, in a plea deal that sends him to prison for life without parole plus 1,000 years.

 DeJesus' cousin, Sylvia Colon, addressed the court Thursday as her family's spokesperson. She talked about her family's efforts to move on from the horrific crime that affected them and DeJesus future.

"Today we will close this chapter of our lives," she began by saying, before thanking the police for all their help. "To the Castro family, we are saddened that you are burdened with this burden. Please know that we do not hold you accountable. Our family recognizes it is not for us to judge or determine any punishment, only a higher power can do that.

The three victims joined together to release a YouTube video on July 9 offering thanks for the support they have received trying to rebuild their lives. That was the last time they together spoke publicly about their nearly decade-long captivity, and DeJesus' cousin said her family wants to speak about it no more.

"Today is the last day we want to think or talk about this," Colon said, again asking for the public to respect the family's privacy. "We will continue to live and love. [DeJesus'] insurmountable will to prevail is her only story worth discussing.

Colon then talked about DeJesus' future, saying "she will finish school, go to college, fall in love and when she chooses," get married and have a family. During her entire speech Colon looked at the judge, but before leaving she turned to Castro and said something to him in Spanish.

On behalf of Berry, her sister, Beth Serrano. addressed the court. She said Berry does not talk about her captivity and remains to keep it to herself. Serrano said the reason is about her Berry's daughter named Jocelyn, born while they were captives in Castro's home.

"She is doing better every day," she said of Berry. "She has not talked about it either to me and she does not want anyone to talk about these things."

"She wants to decide when to tell her daughter and how to tell her daughter. Amanda's concern is about her daughter," Serrano added, before asking for the public to respect their privacy. "Amanda did not control anything for a long time. Please let her control this so she can protect her daughter."

Berry is also "graceful" the case is over, Serrano finished off by saying. She looked at the judge throughout her entire testimony.

Knight then got up and addressed the court, talking directly to the judge. She started off by talking about her son, whom she said she misses every day. He was only 2 years old when she was abducted.

Knight then went into the thought process she had while being held captive.

"I worried about what would happen to me and the other girls every day," she said. "Days never got shorter... Years turned into eternity. I knew nobody carried about me. He told me that my family didn't care.

"Christmas was the most dramatic day because I never got to spend it with my son. Gina was my teammate she never let me fall. She nursed me back to health when I was dying from abuse. My friendship with her is the only good thing out of this situation."

Knight then had a message for Castro.

"Ariel Castro, you took 11 years of my life away. I spent 11 years in hell. Now your hell's just beginning," she said. "You will face hell for eternity. From this moment on I will not let you define me. I will live on; you will die a little every day...You deserve to spend life in prison.

"I can forgive you but I will never forget. Writing this statement gave me the strength to be a stronger woman and know there is more good than evil. After 11 years I am finally being heard and it's liberating."

Castro then gave his own testimony. For a live stream of the sentencing, click here.

Tags: Amanda Berry Gina DeJesus michelle knight