{"id":26466,"date":"2013-07-26T11:27:06","date_gmt":"2013-07-26T15:27:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/watchwomanonthewall\/?p=26466"},"modified":"2013-07-26T12:20:34","modified_gmt":"2013-07-26T16:20:34","slug":"update-cleveland-kidnapper-get-plea-deal-life-1000-years-amada-berry-gina-dejesus-michelle-knight-wont-be-dragged-through-courtroom-trial","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/watchwomanonthewall\/2013\/07\/update-cleveland-kidnapper-get-plea-deal-life-1000-years-amada-berry-gina-dejesus-michelle-knight-wont-be-dragged-through-courtroom-trial.html","title":{"rendered":"UPDATE: Cleveland Kidnapper Get Plea Deal-Life + 1000 years (Amada Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight won’t be dragged through courtroom trial)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ariel Castro agrees to plea in Ohio kidnap case<\/h1>\n
\"Suspect<\/a>
Suspect sketch in DeJesus case (left) Ariel Castro photo (right) – Police and parents never stopped searching for this monster who lived in the neighborhood.\u00a0 He was hiding these 3 girls who grew into women at his house at 2207 Seymour Street in Cleveland, OH for over 10 years. Other links to other related posts are shown below.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Cleveland man accused of holding three women captive in his home for about a decade agreed to plead guilty Friday in a deal to avoid the death penalty.<\/p>\n

In exchange, Ariel Castro would be sentenced to life without parole plus 1,000 years, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

Castro was in court Friday morning to enter the guilty plea. When asked if he understood he would never be released from prison, Castro said: “I do understand that, your honor.”<\/p>\n

He added, “I knew I was pretty much going to get the book thrown at me.”<\/p>\n

The deal comes more than a month after a statement issued on behalf of the women said they were “hopeful for a just and prompt resolution” and had “great faith in the prosecutor’s office and the court.”<\/p>\n

Castro, 53, had been scheduled for trial Aug. 5 on a 977-count indictment. The indictment included two counts of aggravated murder related to accusations that he punched and starved one woman until she miscarried. The former school bus driver also was charged with hundreds of counts of kidnapping and rape, plus assault and other counts.<\/p>\n

He was accused of repeatedly restraining the women, sometimes chaining them to a pole in a basement, to a bedroom heater or inside a van. The charges alleged Castro assaulted one woman with a vacuum cord around her neck when she tried to escape.<\/p>\n

The sticking point on a plea deal had been whether the prosecutor would rule out the death penalty. The Cuyahoga County prosecutor had kept that issue under review.<\/p>\n

The three women disappeared separately between 2002 and 2004, when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old. Each said they had accepted a ride from Castro, who remained friends with the family of one of the women and even attended vigils over the years marking her disappearance.<\/p>\n

The women escaped Castro’s house May 6 when one of them kicked out part of a door and called to neighbors for help. Castro was arrested within hours and has remained behind bars.<\/p>\n

News that Amanda Berry, Gina Dejesus and Michelle Knight had been found alive electrified the Cleveland area, where two of them were household names after years of searches, publicity and vigils. But elation soon turned to shock as allegations about their treatment began to emerge.<\/p>\n

\"MIRACLE<\/a>
MIRACLE IN CLEVELAND. Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight found alive after 10 or more years in captivity.\u00a0 This is how they look today. See the video of their first appearance at<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Castro fathered a 6-year-old daughter with Berry, authorities said. They allege that on the day the child was born, Christmas 2006, Castro raped one of the other women, who had helped deliver the baby.<\/p>\n

VIDEO HERE! Amanda Berry,Gina DeJesus, Michelle Knight (First view:Cleveland kidnapped women found alive after 10 yrs)
\nhttp:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/watchwomanonthewall\/2013\/07\/see-breaking-video-here-amanda-berrygina-dejesus-michelle-knight-first-viewcleveland-kidnapped-women-found-alive-after-10-yrs.html<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

RELATED POSTS ON WATCHWOMAN ON THE WALL<\/strong><\/p>\n