Burkheimer defendant pleads guilty, will testify

By Jennifer Sullivan
Times Snohomish County bureau

	Jeffrey Barth
	E-mail this article Print this article Search archive

EVERETT — A fifth defendant in the kidnapping and slaying of Rachel Burkheimer has agreed to testify against his co-defendants in exchange for a reduced charge.

With about an hour to go before attorneys would meet with the pool of prospective jurors summoned for his trial, Jeffrey Barth yesterday pleaded guilty to first-degree kidnapping with a firearm in exchange for his testimony against defendants John Anderson, John Whitaker and Yusef Jihad.

"All I can say about this plea agreement is that we wouldn't have entered into it if after talking with Rachel's family we didn't think it was the best thing to do," said Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Mark Roe.

Barth, 23, faced up to life in prison had he been convicted of the original charges of first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and conspiracy to commit first-degree kidnapping. By pleading guilty to the reduced charge, he faces only about decade behind bars when he is sentenced.

Barth and Jihad, who is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping and conspiracy to commit first-degree kidnapping, were scheduled to be tried together over the next several weeks. Because of Barth's plea, Jihad's trial has been postponed until March 5.

John Henry Browne, Barth's attorney, said he and his client had been hammering out the terms of the plea agreement for about a week. "He really had nothing to do with Rachel's death," said Browne.

Burkheimer, 18, was lured to Jihad's duplex on Sept. 23, 2002, under the guise that Anderson, her ex-boyfriend, wanted to talk to her, according to court papers. The Marysville woman was beaten, gagged and shoved in a duffel bag and driven to the Gold Bar area, where she was shot by Anderson, according to court filings.

Browne said Barth admits he saw Burkheimer tied up and beaten in Jihad's garage. But, he said, Barth didn't try to help her.

"Clearly, Jeff now wishes he had done something to stop what was going on," Browne said yesterday.

After securing Barth's guilty plea, Deputy Prosecutor Michael Downes said he wants to increase the murder charge against Jihad from first degree to aggravated first degree, which would carry a life sentence if he is convicted. Snohomish County Superior Court Judge James Allendoerfer will rule Feb. 20 on that motion.
 
Downes declined to say why he wanted to change the charge.

During several recent court hearings, Downes had painted Jihad, 33, as the much older leader of the group of six men and two boys charged in connection with the kidnapping and slaying of Burkheimer. The effort to upgrade the charge against Jihad may be tied to what Barth is expected to say when he testifies against his fellow defendant.

Browne said Barth will testify that Jihad was much more closely tied to Burkheimer's slaying than has been revealed in the past. Browne said Barth will testify that it was Jihad who ordered Anderson to kill Burkheimer.

"The real new information is that Jihad ordered Rachel to be killed," Browne said.

Browne said Jihad "was concerned" that Burkheimer would go to the police if she was beaten up by Anderson and his friends. Court files indicate the men may have killed Burkheimer because they thought she was setting them up in a drug dispute.

After Jihad is tried, Anderson and Whitaker will be tried separately sometime this spring.

Anderson, 21, of Mukilteo, and Whitaker, 23, of Everett, will face mandatory sentences of life in prison if convicted of aggravated first-degree murder.

In addition to Barth, Matthew Durham, 18, Maurice Rivas, 19, Tony Williams, 21, and Nathan Lovelace, 17, have pleaded guilty to charges ranging from first-degree murder to rendering criminal assistance. They agreed to testify against Jihad, Anderson and Whitaker.

Jennifer Sullivan: 425-783-0604 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company