The man known as the Golden State Killer will plead guilty on June 29 to 88 charges, including murder and rape, in order to avoid the death penalty, according to reports.
By entering the guilty plea agreement, Joseph James DeAngelo, 74, will receive a life sentence, four sources revealed to the Sacramento Bee.
No further details of the agreement have not been released as they are still being worked out, the sources added.
DeAngelo was arrested in April 2018 and charged with committing 13 murders, 45 sexual assaults and more than 120 burglaries across California between 1976 to 1986.
The Sacramento County District Attorney's Office declined to comment, but DeAngelo's attorney, Joseph Cress, said the plea deal could provide solace to the families of the victims.
"We feel this is a just resolution of this case and that the resolution provides some finality and closure for the victims," Cress told the outlet on Monday. "This also avoids the stress and financial costs of a lengthy trial."
However, Jennifer Carole, whose father and stepmother were killed in their home in March 1980 by the alleged killer, said the plea deal did not provide her with relief.
"I don’t feel like this is justice, but I don’t know if there’s anything that could make me feel justice," she said.
In the decades following, the search for a suspect known by nicknames such as the Golden State Killer and the East Area Rapist frustrated investigators and left victims' families without answers. Finally, in early 2018 investigators used DNA and a genealogical website to identify DeAngelo as the alleged killer.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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