Man in death penalty case takes Alford plea
Dec. 7—Richard Ross entered an Alford guilty plea to avoid a death penalty trial and instead receive life sentences for two murders.
Ross appeared Thursday at the Nez Perce County Courthouse for a change of plea. Second District Judge Mark Monson asked Ross three different times how he pleaded and each time Ross responded, "guilty by way of Alford."
An Alford plea is a guilty plea that recognizes that the prosecution has enough evidence for a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt, but the defendant can maintain innocence, Monson said.
Ross, 58, of Lewiston, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for the death of Edwina "Eddy" Devin and pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for the death of her son, Michael Devin, both by way of an Alford plea. Ross' public defender, Anne Taylor, told Monson that a settlement was reached in the case to enter the Alford pleas for a stipulated life sentence.
The case was scheduled to go to trial Jan. 16 and prosecutors have sought the death penalty since February 2022. Taylor and other public defenders had been arguing against the use of the death penalty, which resulted in the trial being delayed and numerous motions being filed. With the Alford pleas, the trial won't take place and Nez Perce County Prosecutor Justin Coleman said the death penalty has been dropped and instead Ross will receive two life sentences.
"I firmly believe this was an appropriate death penalty case, but ensuring the defendant is in prison for the rest of his life and eliminating countless years of appeals is definitely a win," said Coleman in a news release from the Nez Perce County Prosecutor's Office.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor April Smith outlines the facts and evidence the prosecution would have presented at trial, showing that Ross smothered, strangled or inflicted violence on Edwina Devin at her home in Grangeville the night of Sept. 30, 2021. Ross then suffocated or inflicted violence on Michael Devin in Lewiston on Oct. 1, 2021, then burned his body in a truck.
Smith said that Edwina Devin was found in the basement of her home with her hands bound, a ligature around her neck and duct tape over her mouth. There was flammable material around the body, some of which was charred, including incense and items that smelled of diesel fuel. Her cause of death was determined to be from homicidal violence of strangulation.
In Lewiston, fire crews responded to a vehicle fire and found the body of Michael Devin burned in a truck. He had his hands handcuffed behind him. The cause of death was ruled as homicide by unspecified means, Smith said.
Smith shared other details of the case from witnesses. Ross' girlfriend at the time told investigators that Ross asked her to take him to Lewiston and at one point he was hiding in the back seat. He told her to take a specific route and she dropped him off two blocks away from Michael Devin's home. Surveillance from Michael Devin's home showed Ross entering through the dog door after he was dropped off. The girlfriend also told police she found him packing his belongings and crying uncontrollably.
Brewster may be contacted at kbrewster@lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2297.
