Nearly two decades after he was charged in the abduction and killing of a Vermont supermarket worker, a man pleaded guilty Friday in exchange for avoiding the death penalty. With no emotion, he pleaded guilty to the four charges in the 2000 kidnapping and killing of Terry King, whose relatives sat in the packed courtroom and had wanted Fell put to death. U.S. Attorney for Vermont Christina Nolan said the U.S. attorney general's office in August directed prosecutors not to seek the death penalty. Vermont has no state death penalty, but Fell was charged and tried under federal law. Fell has repeatedly offered to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, but up until now prosecutors have rejected the offer, insisting he face the death penalty.

Source: Fox News September 28, 2018 18:21 UTC