Whitey Bulger's girlfriend expected to plead guilty to contempt

BOSTON -- The woman who spent 16 years on the run with gangster James "Whitey" Bulger is expected to plead guilty to a contempt charge for refusing to testify before a grand jury investigating whether other people helped Bulger as a fugitive.

A change-of-plea hearing is scheduled Wednesday for Catherine Greig.

Greig already is serving an eight-year prison term for helping Bulger avoid capture. In September, she was indicted on the contempt charge.

It wasn't immediately clear how much additional time Greig could get. The criminal contempt charge has no fixed maximum penalty.

Bulger fled Boston in late 1994 and remained a fugitive until he and Greig were captured in Santa Monica, California, in 2011.

Bulger is serving a life sentence after being convicted in 2013 in a sweeping racketeering indictment.