Sister in fugitive sibling trio pleads guilty

WALSENBURG, Colo. - One of three siblings accused in a multi-state crime spree pleaded guilty Thursday to charges stemming from the trio's capture in Colorado.

Under a deal with prosecutors, Lee Grace Dougherty, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of attempted first-degree assault and two counts of felony menacing. She faces between nine and 28 years when she's sentenced April 30.

Judge Claude Appel told Dougherty that she could serve her Colorado sentence concurrently with any other sentences she might receive elsewhere.

Dougherty faced the assault charge for pointing a gun at Walsenburg police chief James Chamberlain after the chase that led to the siblings' capture Aug. 10. The menacing charges relate to allegations that her brothers pointed guns at other officers but Dougherty was charged as a conspirator.

Prosecutors last week dropped attempted-murder charges against her.

Dougherty and her two brothers — Ryan Dougherty, 21, and Dylan Stanley-Dougherty, 26 — are accused of shooting at a police officer in Florida, as well as robbing a Georgia bank before being captured in southern Colorado.

There's no word yet on whether the brothers have also reached plea deals. Colorado, federal and Florida prosecutors have been discussing possible plea deals involving them.

Attorneys for the siblings have questioned whether prosecutors' evidence could prove that the siblings were trying to harm or kill officers, pointing to an apparent lack of bullet holes on police cruisers involved in the chase.

One brother, Dylan Stanley-Dougherty, allegedly plotted to break out of the Walsenburg, Colo., jail where he had been held since being captured and had found his way into the walls and ceiling of the building. Deputies said on Jan. 10 they found a homemade knife, a letter addressed to the FBI and the note to his sister that detailed a plan to drop down on guards in the control booth at the jail.

He has since been transferred to the jail in Pueblo, 45 miles away.

[JusticePro]

Well I am in FL and when she gets back here I hope the court would have the courage to sentence her and the rest of the group to a sentence that is consecutive to this case. What a cowardly act by the Prosecutor to "make the court" accept this outrage. One of the real problems with the Justice System is letting the Prosecutor determine the punishment.