Man Pleads Guilty In 1985 Murder

The plan was to steal recording equipment from a studio. The result was the strangling death of the studio operator.

As a consequence, a 24-year-old man has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, and another man faces trial in the killing of David G. Loucks, 34, on March 7, 1985.

Joseph A. Gardner, arrested Nov. 21 at the state penitentiary in Walla Walla, accepted a plea bargain Monday in which King County deputy prosecutor Lisa Marchese said she would recommend a 25-year prison term, about the middle of the standard sentencing range under state guidelines.