Everett woman pleads guilty in slaying
Published 11:16 pm Thursday, November 15, 2007
An 18-year-old Everett woman pleaded guilty Thursday to first-degree murder in the brutal beating death of a young woman who was suspected of stealing some clothes and jewelry.
Suzie Kay Le likely will be sentenced to between 20 and 26 years in prison, deputy prosecutor Helene Blume said.
She is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 20 by Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Michael Downes.
Le is the second person to be held responsible in the beating death of Terilynn Gardner, 18, on Nov. 3, 2006. Gardner was held captive for two days, tied up and frequently beaten with a hammer. Her throat was slit.
A jury late last month convicted Le’s boyfriend, Aaron Robert Bander, 22, of Sultan of first-degree murder in Gardner’s death.
Bander is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 17 and faces a similar prison term as Le.
In court on Thursday, Le told Downes that she lured Gardner to an apartment where the killing happened, participated in the beating, and helped Bander get rid of the body. Gardner’s body was found a few days after her death in the trunk of a stolen car.
Gardner suffered more than two dozen severe head injuries, many that could have caused death, according to testimony in Bander’s trial.
The victim’s body was wrapped in a shower curtain, a blanket and other material before it was dumped in the car’s trunk.
