For the rest of my editorial this morning, click here

"In agreeing to the deal, which still includes a possible sentencing phase for the death penalty, Duncan spared Shasta, her family, family friends and Kootenai County residents an emotional roller coaster that had been expected to last into the holidays. He also gave Prosecutor Bill Douglas everything he wanted. Douglas, who was roundly criticized for not accepting a similar plea bargain offer from Duncan's attorneys last week, deserves credit for winning a game of legal brinkmanship against Public Defender John Adams and possibly the most manipulative psychopath ever to face trial in North Idaho. Douglas couldn't have asked for much more from Duncan, other than that he also agree to plead guilty to federal murder and kidnapping charges in the abduction of Shasta and her brother Dylan Groene, and the killing of Dylan in northwest Montana."

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