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Ogden • A Roy man charged in the 2008 slayings of two women working as prostitutes pleaded guilty to the crimes in 2nd District Court on Thursday.
Jacob D. Ethridge, 33, was charged with two counts of capital murder for the shooting deaths of Teresa Tingey, 42, and RosaAnna Maria Cruz, 25, in the early hours of July 13, 2008.
Ethridge entered guilty pleas to two counts of aggravated murder, a first-degree felony, as part of an agreement with prosecutors. Ethridge also pleaded guilty to one count of attempted assault, a Class A misdemeanor, in connection with assaulting another prisoner and a corrections officer at the Weber County jail.
Ethridge faces two consecutive terms of 20 years to life in prison when he is sentenced Dec. 13 by Judge W. Brent West.
The plea deal negated the need for a trial — slated to begin Monday — which could have resulted in a death sentence.
Defense attorney Bernie Allen said he was happy with the outcome.
"I am pleased we were able to resolve it this way," he said.
Deputy Weber County Attorney Gary Heward said the plea deal eliminates years of post-conviction appeals. The last death-row inmate to be executed was Ronnie Lee Gardner, who faced a firing squad this year, 25 years after his arrest.
"I think it is a fair resolution," Heward said. "It brings closure for the victims and their families. He will probably never see the light of day."
But Cruz's family said they don't have full closure, or the chance to confront her killer, since the case isn't going to trial. But they are relieved they won't have to go through any more turmoil.
"The family felt like he should have got the death penalty," said Cruz's uncle, Robert Stallins, who spoke on behalf of the family by phone on Thursday. "He has destroyed not just two families but his family. They have to live with the fact that he killed people."
Stallins said the Cruz family was disappointed to learn of the plea deal and feel it is "kind of like a slap in the family's face."
He said he personally isn't happy with the agreement because he was preparing to travel from his home in Kentucky for the trial next week to get a chance to speak to Ethridge.
"I wanted to confront this man," Stallins said. "And I wanted to let this man know my niece wasn't a piece of garbage that he could throw away like he did."
Stallins added that while he isn't in favor of the death penalty, he was hoping for a sentence of life without parole.
Ethridge's family members declined to comment on the plea deal.
An Ogden detective testified at a preliminary hearing that Ethridge told him he shot Tingey after he asked her for oral sex and she refused because of open sores in her mouth. Soon after, he shot Cruz after she performed oral sex on him, the detective testified.