Acid 'victim' to plead guilty, prosecutor says

VANCOUVER, Wash. — Bethany Storro, the Vancouver woman who gained worldwide attention for fabricating an acid attack on herself, will plead guilty today, Clark County Prosecutor Tony Golik said Thursday afternoon.

Storro has agreed to plead guilty to unspecified charges, Golik said. The 28-year-old woman will enter her plea at 3:30 p.m. before Clark County Superior Court Judge John Nichols.

It's expected she will also be sentenced at that time.

Golik, citing court rules, could not offer more details. He said that he and Storro's defense attorney, Andrew Wheeler, had just finalized plea negotiations.

When reached by telephone, Wheeler, also citing court rules, said he could not comment before the plea deal is finalized in court.

Storro is charged with three counts of second-degree theft for receiving community donations under the pretense that she had been disfigured by an unknown black woman who threw acid in her face.

Two weeks after fabricating the Aug. 30 attack, she admitted her injuries were self-inflicted. She admitted she doused her face with drain cleaner because she wanted to die or get a new face, according to court documents.

The theft charges allege that Storro, by deception, "did obtain control over" money from three charitable donors: Anytime Fitness, Safeway and Michael Kite of California. In total, she received about $28,000. Most of the money has been returned, Golik has said.

According to the charges, Storro spent part of the money on items including clothes, dinner and a train ticket before admitting to police that the attack was a hoax.

This winter, Storro was evaluated at Western State Hospital for insanity and diminished capacity, or the inability to form criminal intent. The results of the mental evaluation have not been made public.

She is staying at a Vancouver residential mental health facility while her case is pending.

Second-degree theft carries a standard sentencing range of two to five months in jail. Golik filed an aggravating factor that the crime was committed against Samaritans, which could bring the charge outside the sentencing range, either above or below.